Did you get EAP? Why or why not? (Poll)

[Santa Claws]

I added EAP to my final order after test driving a P3D+ with it. It reminded me of being on the tram at Disney World or any other airport that has an automated train.

However, EAP is much more different than an automated train running in one dimension (forward and reverse). Two dimensions add a lot more complexity, as does staying in your lane on a single lane highway with blind turns.

For me, it's the thrill of being at the forefront of this technology. From being able to participate in it from a value/entertainment perspective, and being able to contribute to the refinement and growth of this technology.

 

[slipnslider]

Didn't order EAP. I'm only interested in the TACC feature, and wish it could be ordered separately.

You're not alone. That's why tesla won't sell it separately. Even though base level nissan and hyundai's now include TACC for free in the base model. Pretty pathetic.

 

[Santa Claws]

It is a little ironic to get a P3D and FSD/EAP. Because if you are using them, the P isn't being used. Don't expect FSD to ever enable ludicrous mode!

As much as we would all prefer it, we don't have to use our P all the time. Sometimes it's nice to know it's there in case you need to use your P. Wait, what were we talking about...?

 

[SteveD]

I got it because that is one of the attractions of buying a Tesla. I am somewhat of a techie person. I thought the price was high and much higher for the FSD. I think it should sell for half the price personally. Yeah I like it and do use it but this car is being used by my wife and she is not so hot on using it yet. We have had our M3 about three weeks now. I think the FSD should seriously sell for much less, especially since we already have the EAP.

 

[Camera-Cruiser]

You're not alone. That's why tesla won't sell it separately. Even though base level nissan and hyundai's now include TACC for free in the base model. Pretty pathetic.

...and why our side mirrors don't have blind spot detection. It just works. Look at mirror. Yellow dot = don't go there. My 75 year old mother asks me about such things, since her old Ford has it and my modern marvel doesn't.

 

[PHd410]

We have a couple other cars that have adaptive cruise control and my wife is NOT a fan, however I like them. Tesla’s implementation of TACC is by far the best, being the smoothest acceleration and it will only improve over time. My work commute is a lot of stop-and-go highway and EAP allowed for my 1:20 commute this week to be tolerable. I’m even considering taking the slow, traffic filled, highway rather than the clear winding backroads to have a more relaxed commute.

I do miss the BSM of the Audi, which even alerts you when someone is flying up on you in the adjacent lane and you signal to move over. I’m confident that this too will come to Tesla in due time.

 

[wcorey]

I got it but I rarely need it. It was great on the one road trip I've taken, but I rarely take road trips. $5k is too expensive for rare usage. I wish you could just buy adaptive cruise control for $1-2k. That would be fair.

In the case of Prius Plugin Advanced, radar assisted cruise control was the Marquee feature and represented way more than $1k-2k upchargeu. I use it all the time. I anticipate using EAP all the time as well. YMMV

 

[Eno Deb]

I think the FSD should seriously sell for much less, especially since we already have the EAP.

Personally I think EAP should be cheaper and FSD more expensive. Reasoning: EAP's price point isn't competitive with similar driver assistance systems from other manufacturers, and will be very disproportionate on a $35K base version of the Model 3. Perhaps there will be two tiers of autopilot? FSD, on the other hand, will provide huge value assuming they get to level 4 or 5 within the lifetime of the current model (I have some doubt about the latter though); I think that would be worth a lot of money for many people. Personally I'd pay a 5-figure sum for that in a heartbeat ...

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

yeah, my current Subaru does almost everything EAP does for $2k. The only thing it won't do is auto-lane change, which is a non-issue for me. I find I almost never use these features on the Subaru, so paying $5k for it is laughable for me. If it cost $2k or less, I'd have bought it in a second. But not at this price point...

Technically the Subaru won't do auto-steering or auto-lane change. The lane-keeping it has isn't anywhere close to AP let alone what EAP will do.

The biggest problem with this poll is a lot of us like myself don't see EAP as it is today being worth $5K, but it's worth $5K once the true auto-lane change is introduced. Plus the smart summons, and some other things.

So I expect it to be worth $5K within 6 months.

With that being said I strongly agree that they should have a lower cost TACC only option. To me TACC is really the one absolutely necessity, and it really sucks to have to pay $3K more for it than it's really worth. That's really nothing new though as lots of car companies only allow for TACC if you buy the more expensive version of their car. Like my mom had to buy a higher end Subaru to get the EyeSight system.

Now I do hear that Subaru is going to start (or they have) introducing it as standard on some vehicles. Sure I have a Tesla, but if a car is going to be behind me then I hope it's a Subaru with EyeSight.

I live in WA state so Subaru's are everywhere.

 

[Santa Claws]

...and why our side mirrors don't have blind spot detection. It just works. Look at mirror. Yellow dot = don't go there. My 75 year old mother asks me about such things, since her old Ford has it and my modern marvel doesn't.

You could just turn on EAP and put your turn signal on. If you auto change lanes then it was clear, if not then try again at a later time...

 

[rachelhikes]

Didn't get it.

I honestly don't see the point of self-steering. You have to keep your hands on the wheel anyway, so I don't understand the value of it. It seems more like demoware than something really useful.

The following-distance feature I DO see the point of: in rolling traffic jams, all the slowing and accelerating are really tedious, with the added risk of not noticing quickly when the car ahead of you slowed or stopped suddenly. Having that happen automatically seems really useful. I just don't drive in that sort of traffic enough to make it worth $5,000. If I drove in it every day, that would be different.

As Autopilot improves and/or my driving situation changes, I will review my judgment. I don't rule out getting it at some future date.

 

[NowIsGood]

I haven't ordered my P3D+ yet but am planning to shortly. At one point I thought, like others: "I enjoy driving, especially this car -- why would I want the car to drive for me?"

The thing is, though, I have a, um, "friend" who sometimes, despite knowing it's wrong and dangerous, occasionally reads and even sends texts or even short emails while driving on the freeway. There's no excuse for it, and it should never be done, and yet it happens. For that, EAP, especially TACC and auto-steer, could be a major safety feature. The basic lane departure warning is just too subtle, and in any case maybe too late.

So that's one thing that helped me decide to get it -- for the sake of my stupid "friend" (and everyone else on the road). Plus it is kind of cool, and also I would miss the "adaptive cruise control", as it's called on my current car.

 

[Santa Claws]

EAP could save your life...

 

[fluxemag]

I've had the trial for a week and I'm glad I didn't buy it up front. It doesn't work very well for my commute situation of mostly high-speed freeway with minimal traffic. It basically makes my car a passing opportunity for others, gets confused on merge points, and disengages periodically due to road conditions. If I had a commute with stop and go traffic I would probably pay for it, but the price point isn't reasonable. Like others have said, just because it's expensive doesn't mean I can't afford it.

Summon looked like it would be ideal for me. I have a detached garage with home link set up, a narrow driveway that leads straight to the front door. It freaks out about the garage opening and a bay window, preferring to run over my landscape lighting to staying straight on the driveway. It's also so slow that if it were able to work, I don't think I would have the patience. I can just imagine getting the car all lined up for that narrow space at the supermarket, getting out of the car and fumbling with my phone while someone stabs me for blocking the lane. Cool party trick though.

 

[9erDog]

AutoPark work great. Does a good job of centering the car between two others. I even "backs and fills" if a single arch can't cut tight enough. I am skeptical about lane keep. I had test drive in M3 yesterday on I-95 around Boston, same as I-495 around DC or Baltimore. The road is a constant arch. I was going counter-clockwise and the car, twice, sure felt like it was going to slide into traffic in the adjacent driver side lane. When mine arrives I'll have to play with it without adjacent traffic.

I got brave enough to try AutoPark and it did work fine. I was nervous but it backed into a space between two cars (not parallel parking).

 

[RichXKU]

1. A couple/three days a week, my commute is 75+min each way. 20 min of that (each way) is slow 'n go 'n stop 'n slow. EAP really takes the pressure off. I can just hang one hand on the wheel and let it do its thing.

2.

 

[David L]

yeah, my current Subaru does almost everything EAP does for $2k. The only thing it won't do is auto-lane change, which is a non-issue for me. I find I almost never use these features on the Subaru, so paying $5k for it is laughable for me. If it cost $2k or less, I'd have bought it in a second. But not at this price point...

I own a current gen. Outback, which I thought had pretty good adaptive cruise control (ACC), until I bought the Model 3. Speaking only in terms of ACC (because Eyesight lane keeping assist is better labeled as lane departure mitigation... sometimes), Autopilot excels in smoothness, hard stops, and recognizing merging vehicles. With Eyesight, my wife would sometimes close her eyes on the freeways because it's too stressful/scary to watch, but she has no issues with AP and doesn't even know it's on if she doesn't pay attention. Now Honda Sensing on the '18 Insight I test drove on the other hand... that was stressful even for ACC-loving me.

 

[JGard]

I own a current gen. Outback, which I thought had pretty good adaptive cruise control (ACC), until I bought the Model 3. Speaking only in terms of ACC (because Eyesight lane keeping assist is better labeled as lane departure mitigation... sometimes), Autopilot excels in smoothness, hard stops, and recognizing merging vehicles. With Eyesight, my wife would sometimes close her eyes on the freeways because it's too stressful/scary to watch, but she has no issues with AP and doesn't even know it's on if she doesn't pay attention. Now Honda Sensing on the '18 Insight I test drove on the other hand... that was stressful even for ACC-loving me.

Interesting and good to know. And yes, when I first used Eyesight in stop and go traffic, there were a few moments for me where I thought poo was going to come out. It doesn't do a great job of detecting/anticipating cars doing lane changes in front of you.

I'm still on the fence about EAP, though, mostly because I don't think I'd use it all that often.

 

[wcorey]

yeah, my current Subaru does almost everything EAP does for $2k. The only thing it won't do is auto-lane change, which is a non-issue for me. I find I almost never use these features on the Subaru, so paying $5k for it is laughable for me. If it cost $2k or less, I'd have bought it in a second. But not at this price point...

You're not paying for what it is today. You are paying for what it is today AND what it will be in a year or two years. Sure, in 12 months you can decide to get it but it will cost more. Prices don't go down, they go up. I would expect between EAP and FSD in 18 months +/- the purchase price will double.

 

[wcorey]

Interesting and good to know. And yes, when I first used Eyesight in stop and go traffic, there were a few moments for me where I thought poo was going to come out. It doesn't do a great job of detecting/anticipating cars doing lane changes in front of you.

I'm still on the fence about EAP, though, mostly because I don't think I'd use it all that often.

I'm used to a Prius Plugin Advanced with adaptive cruise control. The Advanced over the Std, as I recall, was $10,000. Clearly the marque feature was adaptive cruise control. I will say this, once the car hit 28mph it came on, even in town. With the M3, it'll come on virtually as soon as the car is in motion. Keep in mind, unlike the Prius Plugin Advanced, the M3 reads speed limit signs and knows speed limits via GPS info. So going from a 25 mph to 45mph the car will automatically speed up and in the other direction slow down. As I said elsewhere. Unlike the Prius or Subaru or anything else where what you buy is what you'll have for as long as you own the car. The Tesla's software will add features over time and mature (get better). You are future-proofing your investment. Just something to consider.