First off, let me say the staff at Tesla's Seattle store are really great!
Jenny stayed about 20 minutes later than the normal closing time so that I could finish putting out a minor fire at work before picking up my car.
From there I headed home (13 miles), then off to my girl friends place for dinner (16 miles), to pick up food (5 miles), up to a friends place (24 miles), back to my office with friend to pick up the BMW (18 miles; it's a manual, the gf doesn't drive a stick and nobody else was going to drive the Tesla yet today!), back home to drop off the BMW (13 miles), and round trip to take my friend back to his place (11 miles) for a total of 100 miles added to the odometer in my first evening driving the Tesla.
Initial reactions:
1. Nissan may be a bit screwed with the Leaf as far as range goes. I was driving pretty similar to how I normally drive (probably 85-95 percentile of traffic speedwise, so fairly quick, but not crazy). While I comfortably drove 100 miles with 25 estimated miles remaining (34 ideal miles, std mode), I wouldn't have wanted a much smaller pack. It was really nice knowing that I could tap into range mode if needed for another 10% of the battery too, so I didn't have to switch into hypermiling mode on the run to go get the BMW. I really doubt the Leaf could have handled tonight's driving. Basically I used 150 ideal miles to travel 100 real miles.
2. This is the car I've been waiting for, for a really long time. It's way better than my 1995 NSX-T. It's what I really wanted when I converted a 1985 MR2 to electric. I love the ride, handling, center of gravity, low seating position, and quiet smooth ride, not to mention the stunning look. The color choices, wheels and interior are amazing. It's nice and quick, but if money were no object, I can see why one would get the sport. As fast as it is, more power wouldn't hurt, but I stretched plenty to justify the car I ordered, so no regrets on passing on the extra power. I think I'll be glad I got the sport wheels and suspension.
3. I need to read the manuals. The Alpine head unit gave me a few fits trying to figure a few things out while driving in the dark in the rain (gotta love Seattle -- the weather would turn bad again the day I get my car...). Basic car functions fell well in hand, but I have had two somewhat extended test drives since August too, so it wasn't all new to me.
4. So far the car seems really good. Wipers work well, climate control seems adequate, although with two of us and wet it was fogging up a bit inside until I added A/C into the equation as well. Headlights look like they fogged up a bit, but night visibility in the rain was fine, and the wiper worked well. Road/wind noise is noticeable on the freeway, but I was able to take a call on my iPhone with it plugged into the car, use the speaker phone and complete the call. Note to self: need my bluetooth headset in the Tesla now
.
Jenny stayed about 20 minutes later than the normal closing time so that I could finish putting out a minor fire at work before picking up my car.
From there I headed home (13 miles), then off to my girl friends place for dinner (16 miles), to pick up food (5 miles), up to a friends place (24 miles), back to my office with friend to pick up the BMW (18 miles; it's a manual, the gf doesn't drive a stick and nobody else was going to drive the Tesla yet today!), back home to drop off the BMW (13 miles), and round trip to take my friend back to his place (11 miles) for a total of 100 miles added to the odometer in my first evening driving the Tesla.
Initial reactions:
1. Nissan may be a bit screwed with the Leaf as far as range goes. I was driving pretty similar to how I normally drive (probably 85-95 percentile of traffic speedwise, so fairly quick, but not crazy). While I comfortably drove 100 miles with 25 estimated miles remaining (34 ideal miles, std mode), I wouldn't have wanted a much smaller pack. It was really nice knowing that I could tap into range mode if needed for another 10% of the battery too, so I didn't have to switch into hypermiling mode on the run to go get the BMW. I really doubt the Leaf could have handled tonight's driving. Basically I used 150 ideal miles to travel 100 real miles.
2. This is the car I've been waiting for, for a really long time. It's way better than my 1995 NSX-T. It's what I really wanted when I converted a 1985 MR2 to electric. I love the ride, handling, center of gravity, low seating position, and quiet smooth ride, not to mention the stunning look. The color choices, wheels and interior are amazing. It's nice and quick, but if money were no object, I can see why one would get the sport. As fast as it is, more power wouldn't hurt, but I stretched plenty to justify the car I ordered, so no regrets on passing on the extra power. I think I'll be glad I got the sport wheels and suspension.
3. I need to read the manuals. The Alpine head unit gave me a few fits trying to figure a few things out while driving in the dark in the rain (gotta love Seattle -- the weather would turn bad again the day I get my car...). Basic car functions fell well in hand, but I have had two somewhat extended test drives since August too, so it wasn't all new to me.
4. So far the car seems really good. Wipers work well, climate control seems adequate, although with two of us and wet it was fogging up a bit inside until I added A/C into the equation as well. Headlights look like they fogged up a bit, but night visibility in the rain was fine, and the wiper worked well. Road/wind noise is noticeable on the freeway, but I was able to take a call on my iPhone with it plugged into the car, use the speaker phone and complete the call. Note to self: need my bluetooth headset in the Tesla now
.
