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85D vs P85D

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I love my P85 (RWD). I mean, I looooooove this car. And full, flat-out acceleration gets a workout every single day I drive it.

That being said, I've decided that 4.2 or 4.4 seconds from 0-60 is enough, and I don't feel any need or desire to pay significant amounts of money for even greater acceleration. I am going to investigate any suspension differences, because I want great traction and grip but my family wants a decent ride... but based only on acceleration as a sole criterion, I'm going for the S85D as my next car, or its X equivalent. I could use the range, and the S85D is essentially as fast as my P85. That's fast.

It really is a totally personal, totally subjective choice.
 
Right. Okay so half a second. My point is that it just seems like it's not really a big difference in everyday driving.
Every stoplight is a zero to X event. X will vary based on speed limit and your driving style. For me, everyday driving involves lots of stoplights. YMMV.

As for the numbers...

Let's go with the 2.4 (even though I think the gap is probably higher). Comparing a 3.1s 0-60mph with a 5.5s 0-60mph shows a pretty significant difference. If/when that 3.1 drops to 2.8s (like many have theorized) you're on the edge of saying that it accelerates to 60mph in half the time. To some, experiencing that daily changes everyday driving in a (positive) fundamental way.
 
@Phil - exactly the same position as I am in!

except I have ordered an 85D and not a P85D.
It's not confirmed yet, and every day I review my decision.

What swung me ...

be a little careful with these acceleration figures, the 0-30mph is startling, the 30-60 is not bad at all, but less remarkable.
Like a few others here, I have yet to grow up, but in all honesty to myself I am looking to hoof this thing off roundabouts and in traffic, and get very little opportunity to launch it off lights.

>30mph the performance differential is much smaller, the P85D is still a bit faster but not by nearly as much as off the line.

If your pockets are deep enough go for the best you wont regret it of course, however if you are budget constrained, I took the view that having the extra performance without all the toys was not for me, this kind of tech car needs all the tech accessories to play with and enjoy every day.

Performance wise in the UK I dont think there are any P85D demos yet, I was told soon, but a P85 will give you a good marker for the 85D.
As an ex RS5 owner, A45AMG owner and a bunch of other performance stuff I have driven, I can vouch that these things are certainly rapid at sub licence losing speeds, but they are a heavy car, and you can feel it despite all the electrickery. Think GT rather than nimble porsche.

Whilst there are defenders of the 70D and rightly so - it's a great model, personally I think this car will be noticeably slower than the 85D in general use, closer to ordinary you might say. I didnt want ordinary.

One last point is that the next opportunity for the P85D performance update (unless we already have it with s/w6.2) is at Elon's announcement at the end of the month, he did tweet something along the lines of it would make a good trailer for the main announcement. The evidence around here does seem to point to he P85D running considerably under its potential, so who knows.

Be careful of technophobia though, you'll wait for ever for the next thing to come along, that's why I jumped on board.

Have fun!
 
Head : the speed and handling the only reasons for having a P85D. The S85D makes more financial sense and is a more practical car.

Heart : your best friend sits in your new car and asks you to show them Insane mode ... do you tell them that you changed your order down to a lesser car with no Insane mode, or do you tell them to strap in and hold tight...
 
Head : the speed and handling the only reasons for having a P85D. The S85D makes more financial sense and is a more practical car.
Heart : your best friend sits in your new car and asks you to show them Insane mode ... do you tell them that you changed your order down to a lesser car with no Insane mode, or do you tell them to strap in and hold tight...
Regarding Tesla brand awareness...

Every person that I talk to about Tesla asks if my car has insane mode.
 
We only borrow the car for a few years in exchange for money.
There is only a small actual SAVINGS when you actually go resell or trade it in as the P85D will sell for more when are done with the car.
You will simply enjoy a lower performance product during ownership as well as all the other fringe benefits of temporarily owning the best.
Plus when you actually go to sell it will be easier to sell as there will be fewer of that model for sale.
Lots of speculation. No one knows how the resale will compare in 3, 5, 8+ years between the models. Currently, ~1.5-2 year old P85's sell for more than S85's, but as a percentage of original price, the cheaper cars are holding more value (the price difference now is ~$5k, much less than when new).

And if you drive cars until they fall apart like me, you don't really car about resale, anyway.

- - - Updated - - -

I confirmed that damping is the only suspension difference between the SD and PD.
I guess our several page long discussion is proof that there is a need for both.
So (assuming coil suspension), when the shocks are shot, go with a set of Bilstein HD's or the equiv, and the SD and PD should have the same handling?
 
I spoke with Bilstein regarding my original P85's damping as I felt it was not adequate. I was told that there were no aftermarket dampers for that configuration and that the OEM dampers could not be re-valved. That was two years ago so things may have changed.

There was also mention in another thread where a European owner researched the parts listings and came up with air module and sway bar differences. This does not agree with what I was told so, at this point, I am unsure as to the exact nature of the S85D and P85D.
 
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My P85D was delivered in December, 2014. Love the car... But it doesn't take many tickets to avoid insane mode. Just sayin'... ;)

Even worse, on trips where I used to optimize time (prior MB S550) by always driving in the high speed lane and checking my radar detector, I now try to optimize battery life. I baby the accelerator, draft behind large trucks, drift to stop lights... it's just insanity for a car that can almost snap a neck from a standstill. I may need special therapy...

So, buy the S85D and invest $14k in a new stereo. Problem solved! :)