Canceling my reservation

[Snerruc]

The perfect is the enemy of the good. If you wait for autonomous driving to be perfect, you will never get it. Tesla has trusted it’s owners with beta software, and it actually worked out pretty well. I remember when Autopilot first was released. It was a basket case, but people learned, the software learned and there was no mass carnage. One of these days people will wake up to find FSD on their cars. It will be buggy, people will scream and there will be few accidents. Then over time, it will get better.

 

[McRat]

"WOW! I can't believe there is a motherfrieken LEAF/BOLT/VOLT in my garage!!!!!!!", said no one ever.

Close. I've had friends say "Wow! I can't believe you've waited 2 years for a car that isn't even in your garage! For an economy car?"
"Don't worry, only 1-3 more years and I'm set."

Some non-car folk were curious about Satan, a bright red 2010 ZR1. They had never seen one. It trapped about 128'ish in the 1/4 from a soft start. It's wider than a Vette and looks different to an extent. Folk sometimes asked if it was a Ferrari.

 

[jkirkwood001]

Thanks for this perspective, @Foxhound199.

And, again, the Tesla promise is that voice recognition will improve over time (OTA) so that eyes'n'hands will not be necessary to access and adjust most functions. Fault the Model 3 for looking too far ahead, but don't fault it for absolutely making the user interface more difficult. I'd rather have a UI in development that gets realized "soon", than an inferior interface I can count on staying the same for 15 years!

This is just one anecdotal account, but it might be useful: I'm in my 30s, so sort of an inbetween generation in regards to facility with all things digital vs analog. There's something I've always felt comforting about physical buttons, knobs, switches, and you won't ever catch me using my wife's iPad. I was skeptical of the loss of buttons, and I was skeptical of the loss of the instrument cluster.

I've had the car for about two weeks, and find the usability incredibly intuitive and not at all distracting. It was interesting jumping back over to our Subaru, which we've owned for several years, and find myself still bewildered by their choice of knob locations and their labyrinth of screen menus. adjusting the climate settings on the Subaru--even with knobs--took my eyes off the road much longer than Tesla's menu. Now, I do feel that the Subaru's interface was particularly bad compared to most cars I've owned, but every day I am convinced more and more that what at first glance appears to be a hastily mounted iPad in your face is actually an incredibly well thought-out and usable improvement to the driving interface.

 

[MXWing]

Close. I've had friends say "Wow! I can't believe you've waited 2 years for a car that isn't even in your garage! For an economy car?"
"Don't worry, only 1-3 more years and I'm set."

Touche. Flip side though is your friends won't be able to say anything once it DOES arrive however.

"He who laughs last, laughs best."

NEVER settle!

 

[9erDog]

"WOW! I can't believe there is a motherfrieken LEAF/BOLT/VOLT in my garage!!!!!!!", said NO ONE ever.

Funny but I did say that exactly when I got my 2012 Leaf. I had dreamed of an electric car since I was a kid reading Popular Science magazines in the 1970s. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for my first electric car!

 

[Tonymil]

Yup. The problem is the individual.

I was just reading the news. Front page article 1 - about the person who accidentally swerved and killed a bicyclist just got out of prison. Also front page - man (pedestrian) struck by vehicle. And to round it out - 10 people involved/injured in multiple vehicle accident.

None involved automation.

Heck - while I’m commenting. Saw a car fire two weeks ago. Pretty much destroyed the car. Never even made the news.

The problem is both. Your missing the fact that the driver needed to act because the autopilot program failed. The pedestrian was walking - not running as had been reported - across the road and autopilot should have avoided the collision, even though it was dark, unlike human eyes, autopilot doesn't need light to see. Something went wrong with both the technology and the human.

 

[adaptabl]

IMO, the product of cost and failure rate over time is what matters. If a particular part is relatively reliable, it may be expensive, but odds are most owners won't need to replace it, and even if they do, the part being reliable implies there will likely be a decent supply of much lower cost working parts off of salvage cars.

Tesla Model S (2012-2016) OEM Right + Left Rear Brembo E-Brake Calipers | eBay

Expensive+low failure rate is OK, and cheap+high failure is OK (but annoying). It's expensive+high failure rate that gets you.

Not really too keen on used brake parts from ebay. Mayby a console door or a trim part but never safety items.

 

[brkaus]

The problem is both. Your missing the fact that the driver needed to act because the autopilot program failed. The pedestrian was walking - not running as had been reported - across the road and autopilot should have avoided the collision, even though it was dark, unlike human eyes, autopilot doesn't need light to see. Something went wrong with both the technology and the human.

Not missing the point at all. I’m saying humans fail quite frequently. Sure, the automation may have made this human lazy, and an attentive human may have avoided this particular problem all together. But there are tons of lazy humans out on the street all the time. I see them drifting out of lanes, blowing through stop signs, driving too fast (or too slow), failing to yield when merging. Some are on phones, some are just not paying attention. The front page of our local news shows lots of evidence of the inattentive human problem. Those inattentive humans are not backing up anything and don’t have a safety net themselves. They are putting all of us at risk all the time.

 

[seattlite2004]

"WOW! I can't believe there is a motherfrieken LEAF/BOLT/VOLT in my garage!!!!!!!", said NO ONE ever.

Funny but I did say that exactly when I got my 2012 Leaf. I had dreamed of an electric car since I was a kid reading Popular Science magazines in the 1970s. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for my first electric car!

NICE! I'm gonna take delivery of my 2018 Bolt (Premier) this week...its my first EV..I'm excited....maybe not "WOW! I can't believe there is a motherfrieken" excited, but probably as excited as taking delivery of a Model 3. Certainly not as exiting as taking delivery of a 911/Cayman/Boxter Spyder....next year or two for that event.

 

[MXWing]

Funny but I did say that exactly when I got my 2012 Leaf. I had dreamed of an electric car since I was a kid reading Popular Science magazines in the 1970s. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for my first electric car!

I still have fond memories of my first motherfrieken Sony Walkman as well!

I say a lot of things to try to be funny but am well meaning and understanding of things that are personal to us.

Damn though that Tesla.. amusement ride every time the foot is on the 'gas'.

 

[MXWing]

NICE! I'm gonna take delivery of my 2018 Bolt (Premier) this week...its my first EV..I'm excited....maybe not "WOW! I can't believe there is a motherfrieken" excited, but probably as excited as taking delivery of a Model 3. Certainly not as exiting as taking delivery of a 911/Cayman/Boxter Spyder....next year or two for that event.

I don't know your entire story my friend, but buyers remorse on such a new purchase is something I might be feeling in my shoes if I got a Bolt with Model 3 in sight.

Not sure if you've driven them all.. Bolt, Model S, Model 3 but you'll get an idea on what excites you.

 

[John Lamoureux]

I still have fond memories of my first motherfrieken Sony Walkman as well!

I say a lot of things to try to be funny but am well meaning and understanding of things that are personal to us.

Damn though that Tesla.. amusement ride every time the foot is on the 'gas'.

"Wow, I'm the only one with a motherfrieken Commodore 64 on the block!"

 

[C141medic]

Wow, I'm the only one with a motherfrieken Commodore 64 on the block!"

Wow. That was high end at the time. How about the VIC 20? I know I’m a nerd and yes I had both of them wayyyy back when.

 

[seattlite2004]

I don't know your entire story my friend, but buyers remorse on such a new purchase is something I might be feeling in my shoes if I got a Bolt with Model 3 in sight.

Not sure if you've driven them all.. Bolt, Model S, Model 3 but you'll get an idea on what excites you.

I'm a 3-31 in line reservation holder. Still did not get an invite to configure. I drove the S..its to large for me..drove and fondled the bolt...really liked it. Fondled the Mod 3 at a local showroom...some things bugged me about the build quality. I needed another car..so I got the Bolt (Premiere) for $37.5 (after tax and fees, $30K with the Fed Tax Credit) because I could buy one that day with delivery this week. I'm holding on to the reservation...maybe get in front of the queue for the AWD or Performance (hoping initial QC issues and more features/colors will be available)...or get a Porsche (manual trans) to scratch that itch. Till then...I'm EVng with the Bolt.

 

[MXWing]

I'm a 3-31 in line reservation holder. Still did not get an invite to configure. I drove the S..its to large for me..drove and fondled the bolt...really liked it. Fondled the Mod 3 at a local showroom...some things bugged me about the build quality. I needed another car..so I got the Bolt (Premiere) for $37.5 (after tax and fees, $30K with the Fed Tax Credit) because I could buy one that day with delivery this week. I'm holding on to the reservation...maybe get in front of the queue for the AWD or Performance (hoping initial QC issues and more features/colors will be available)...or get a Porsche (manual trans) to scratch that itch. Till then...I'm EVng with the Bolt.

I would check the my tesla page. For some reason, tons of people even myself as an owner did not get an email to configure.

 

[daniel]

I agree with Carnook. It's the combination of flawed technology and flawed human nature that will make autopilot dangerous for quite some time. The technology will miss things, like the white truck that the Tesla hit and the pedestrian crossing the road that the Uber car hit. In both cases, had the "driver" been paying attention, the accidents could have been avoided. But it is human nature to become complacent when it appears that technology is working, so we don't have to. The Uber driver was looking down instead of at the road for a full five seconds before the car hit the pedestrian. And that's what we humans do,

It isn't enough to say that the problem isn't the technology, it's the individual.. The technology has to reach the point of being "idiot proof" before it can be relied on. We're talking about tons of metal hurtling at speeds that will kill. And frankly, the manufacturers are limited in their ability to anticipate every scenario in which the technology will fail. It's going to keep happening.

It looked to me as though the Uber driver was sleeping, not looking down.

You say: "The technology has to reach the point of being "idiot proof" before it can be relied on."

I disagree. No technology will ever be perfect. The technology is ready for mass consumption as soon as FSD cars will cause one fewer accidents than human cause. One life saved is good enough to make the switch. After that, FSD cars will just keep getting better and better, while human drivers will continue to be the idiots we are.

It is very important, however, to remember that AP is not self-driving. It does require the driver to be alert at all times. If the driver will do that, AP probably makes the car a little safer than without.

Funny but I did say that exactly when I got my 2012 Leaf. I had dreamed of an electric car since I was a kid reading Popular Science magazines in the 1970s. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for my first electric car!

Me, too. It was a complete P.O.S. and a rattletrap and took half a minute to get from a stop to its top speed of 35 mph on level ground. It slowed down to 6 mph going up a steep hill once and I was terrified it was going to stop. I had it up to 50 mph once going down hill and just about wet myself I was so scared. It was the ugliest color, someone called it "garden-pest green." And I loved it. It put a big grin on my face every time I drove it. I'd probably still have it today if it hadn't been so under-powered. Its 40-mile range was a bit limitation also.

But I loved it and will always have a soft spot in my heart for it. Now I'm on my third EV and looking for a buyer for my second.

 

[seattlite2004]

I would check the my tesla page. For some reason, tons of people even myself as an owner did not get an email to configure.

I still check several time a day..still nothing...but race (Fed Credit/WA State Tax Exemption) to get the Model 3 is over for me..so no real rush to get a Model 3 now.

 

[Carnook]

Tesla finally caught up to MobileEye, a 30 billion dollar company by itself.

MobileEye can recognize a stationary object and stop before hitting it. MobileEye can recognize a car that swerves into the lane and stop before hitting it. MobileEye can recognize pedestrians and stop before hitting them.

Tesla has a lot of work to do before it’s caught up.

 

[McFlurri]

I posted this in the Canada sub-forum, but thought it would also be relevant here as to a reason someone may want to cancel...

damn... this car is really pricey for the "affordable EV" category.

After the 13% tax and taking off the $3200 down payment for an 84 month loan at 3.99%...

Its $78,160 ------- or ------- $1,067.99/month. Plus insurance and electricity.

But! The cost of the loan is $11,551.51 effectively raising your total purchase price to $92,911.51 (before the $3200 deposit)

This is of course without the $14,000 rebate. (If it's still around come the results of the provincial June election)

All i can say is.... ouch!

 

[jkirkwood001]

Kind of like a project estimate, eh @McFlurri and @Tony_YYZ? Estimate the required effort. Then double that estimate. Those are Canadian prices (I'm Canadian), but still... ain't no $35,000 car!

I posted this in the Canada sub-forum, but thought it would also be relevant here as to a reason someone may want to cancel...

damn... this car is really pricey for the "affordable EV" category.

After the 13% tax and taking off the $3200 down payment for an 84 month loan at 3.99%...

Its $78,160 ------- or ------- $1,067.99/month. Plus insurance and electricity.

But! The cost of the loan is $11,551.51 effectively raising your total purchase price to $92,911.51 (before the $3200 deposit)

This is of course without the $14,000 rebate. (If it's still around come the results of the provincial June election)

All i can say is.... ouch!