Do you prefer Creep On or Off?

[dgpcolorado]

... I learnt to drive in a stick shift and drove one for first 3 years. I really hated manual transmission.

By contrast, I learned to drive in an automatic but my first purchased car was a manual and I liked it so much better that I drove nothing else for almost four decades, until switching to electric cars.

No issues with parking the Tesla in more than 54k miles with creep off. Don't get the angst of some here.

 

[JulienW]

On because I see zero advantage having it off and several advantages having it on.....

Setting at a red light and adjusting screen while foot slightly/unconsciously eases up on the brake. You move forward and bump car in front of you.

While maybe not enough in your case that is MORE than zero advantage.

 

[TT97]

Creep Off People: I think all right-thinking people on this forum are sick and tired of being told that ordinary, decent people are fed up on this forum with being sick and tired.

Creep On People (Creepers): Well, I meet a lot of people on this forum and I'm convinced that the vast majority of wrong-thinking people are right.

It's time to start arguing about more important things. I think green m&ms are the best tasting of all the m&ms.

 

[mzairboy]

Do tell, what are these MANY Tesla unintended acceleration events with creep off you speak of. Please offer a list.

I don't have the time to gather sources, but I think we all remember a handful of stories in the news or on the forums of unintended acceleration. Maybe "many" was a poor choice of words. Maybe it should be replaced with "a few unintended acceleration events".

I'm not here to argue whether creep on or off is right or wrong. Your car, drive it how you want according to your driving style. I'm just offering the OP my point of view and explaining why I will choose to drive with creep on. Maybe it is helpful, maybe not. Maybe you like my opinion, maybe you don't. Take it for what it is, an opinion stating why I think creep off may cause unintended acceleration and why I prefer to drive with creep on.

 

[mzairboy]

Setting at a red light and adjusting screen while foot slightly/unconsciously eases up on the brake. You move forward and bump car in front of you.

While maybe not enough in your case that is MORE than zero advantage.

Sitting at a red light and adjusting screen while foot slightly/unconsciously eases up on the brake. You roll backwards and bump car behind you.

It can be argued both ways. But I'm not here to argue.

 

[evannole]

Completely agree.

I don't have my Model 3 yet, but I drove a friends P3D for a weekend. Incredible car!
I read through the whole owners manual and came to this conclusion myself when running though possible scenarios in my head.
My friend and I discussed this setting and think creep off is the reason for so many unintended acceleration events.

We have a tight garage. My wife will be primarily driving this car, has never driven manual transmission, and is not used to the quick acceleration of electric vehicles. I drive auto/stick and love the quick acceleration/regen. Having to feather the accelerator to pull into a tight space seems like a recipe to launch into the wall. Also, if the car is sitting there not moving, but in gear, she may accidentally press the accelerator and launch. With creep on, when foot is not on the brake the car begins to move, so you know right away you are in gear. I believe your foot should be on the brake when not moving, or put the car in park. Why risk it? With creep off, and in gear, you can also coast backwards by accident. For me, the potential for disaster far outweigh the benefits of one pedal driving. So creep will be ON for our car.

On because I see zero advantage having it off and several advantages having it on.

35+ years of manual transmissions. Why enable the disadvantages of a manual transmission. It’s not like the car is an Atari game or something. Oh wait...

My manual transmission ego isn’t hurt.

Exactly this. I have spent many more years driving manuals than automatics, and actually preferred manuals in my ICE cars, but "Creep Off" doesn't mimic any of a manual transmission's good qualities - only the undesirable ones.

With a manual transmission, I could inch forward or backward simply by modulating the clutch, with my right foot hovering over the brake for safety; obviously this is not possible in my Model 3 with Creep turned off. It was also easy on my manuals to tell what gear I was in by feel with my hand on the shifter; First and Reverse were in very different psitions . The first time I tried to parallel park in my Model 3 with Creep turned off, at one point I thought I had switched to Drive but when I hit the accelerator found I was still in Reverse and had to quickly hit the brake. With Creep On, there's much less risk of that, as you can feel what gear you're in as soon as you start releasing the pedal.

 

[Knightshade]

Sitting at a red light and adjusting screen while foot slightly/unconsciously eases up on the brake. You roll backwards and bump car behind you.

Can you?

Wouldn't hold be engaged since you were stopped with your foot on the brake, and hold engages pretty easily in that situation with creep turned off?

 

[Nocturnal]

Don't be a creeper!

Creep off and regen high makes the car feel like a manual to me. I like the combo.

 

[mzairboy]

Can you?

Wouldn't hold be engaged since you were stopped with your foot on the brake, and hold engages pretty easily in that situation with creep turned off?

I have not experienced this myself, but others on the forums say with creep off you can roll backwards.

Now if you press the brake really hard and engage brake hold while at said red light, then rolling backwards would not happen.

 

[TT97]

I have not experienced this myself, but others on the forums say with creep off you can roll backwards.

Now if you press the brake really hard and engage brake hold while at said red light, then rolling backwards would not happen.

Having to press "really hard" is for creepers. You don't have to press hard at all when creep is off.

 

[ZeApelido]

Creep Off People: I think all right-thinking people on this forum are sick and tired of being told that ordinary, decent people are fed up on this forum with being sick and tired.

Creep On People (Creepers): Well, I meet a lot of people on this forum and I'm convinced that the vast majority of wrong-thinking people are right.

It's time to start arguing about more important things. I think green m&ms are the best tasting of all the m&ms.

Are you a Yook or a Zook?

 

[Nocturnal]

I have not experienced this myself, but others on the forums say with creep off you can roll backwards.

Now if you press the brake really hard and engage brake hold while at said red light, then rolling backwards would not happen.

Yes, it can definitely roll backwards. I think it auto-engages breaks at a point though.

 

[Limit X]

Came from a manual, so having it on means I can be more lazy...

 

[Perry]

Off. Why cling to legacy when there is no reason for it? The only reason for creep is if you are stopped up hill and you don't want the car to roll back as you move your foot from brake to accelerator. But there is the brake hold feature that takes care of that more elegantly so I can't find a reason for keeping creep mode on. I rather control my own creep with the pedal if needed. I find the accelerator pedal to have very high precision compared to ICE cars.

 

[mzairboy]

Off. Why cling to legacy when there is no reason for it? The only reason for creep is if you are stopped up hill and you don't want the car to fall back as you move your foot from brake to accelerator. But there is the brake hold feature that takes care of that more elegantly so I can't find a reason for keeping creep mode on. I rather control my own creep with the pedal if needed.

I was always taught that when coming to a stop, you place your foot on the brake and leave it there until ready to accelerate. I was also told that if someone rear ends you, the police will look for your tire skid marks to prove you were on the brake/securely stopped instead of coasting backwards. Is that true, I don't know. Brake hold in a Tesla may do the same thing. However my foot always goes on the brake when stopped, or when entering a vehicle and starting it up. It is a simple safeguard that harms no one, and a positive habit I'll continue to maintain. For me, it just feels natural to have creep on and I own both auto and manual vehicles. It seems logical in my mind as a safeguard against potential mishaps, so that is why I'll choose to continue creeping on.

 

[JeffK]

It seems logical in my mind as a safeguard against potential mishaps, so that is why I'll choose to continue creeping on.

For stops on hills there's always hill hold...

...but in general, wouldn't you think it's more logical that if the car is moving it's because you have your foot on the accelerator?

With creep on, you adjust and move the vehicle by feathering the brake. That just seems backwards IMHO, which is why you see pedal misapplication on automatics in the first place. People assume they are feathering the brake and in fact they are hovering over the accelerator. The natural reaction in that scenario, if going too fast, is to hit the pedal harder (sudden unintended acceleration).

With retraining and creep off, you learn that if you're in a garage or a parking lot, the only way the car is moving is if you are on the accelerator.

 

[Knightshade]

I have not experienced this myself, but others on the forums say with creep off you can roll backwards.

Now if you press the brake really hard and engage brake hold while at said red light, then rolling backwards would not happen.

From the Model 3 owners manual

When Model 3 is stopped, Vehicle Hold can continue to apply the brakes even after you remove your foot from the brake pedal. When driving on a hill or on a flat surface, brake as you normally would. After coming to a complete stop, simply press the brake pedal again (until the touchscreen displays the Vehicle Hold indicator light) to enable Vehicle Hold. You can then release the brake pedal and remain stopped, even on a hill.

Engaging hold leaves the car in exactly the same state as if you kept your foot on the brake. It should not roll, either direction, with Hold engaged.

 

[mzairboy]

For stops on hills there's always hill hold...

...but in general, wouldn't you think it's more logical that if the car is moving it's because you have your foot on the accelerator?

With creep on, you adjust and move the vehicle by feathering the brake. That just seems backwards IMHO, which is why you see pedal misapplication on automatics in the first place. People assume they are feathering the brake and in fact they are hovering over the accelerator. The natural reaction in that scenario, if going too fast, is to hit the pedal harder (sudden unintended acceleration).

With retraining and creep off, you learn that if you're in a garage or a parking lot, the only way the car is moving is if you are on the accelerator.

You have a valid point. However I don't like the fact that it would coast backwards with creep off if you are on an incline. I'd have to refer back to the owners manual for details on brake hold to refresh my memory. So if I need to apply the brake anyways to prevent coasting, I'd still prefer creep on. Yes I could retrain muscle memory, but since I still own several auto and manual vehicles, creep on will work best for my application.

 

[mzairboy]

From the Model 3 owners manual

Engaging hold leaves the car in exactly the same state as if you kept your foot on the brake. It should not roll, either direction, with Hold engaged.

Thanks for quoting that for clarification. I don't see the benefit of brake hold though. Just so I don't need to keep my foot on the brake at a red light? I'm not that lazy? In other situations I'll just put the car in park.

 

[clostridium]

In my Model S after the car comes to a stop and I release the brake pedal the hold comes on automatically whether I'm on a flat surface or an incline. It doesn't require a second push of the pedal. It doesn't require pushing harder. It just works. In fact, pushing the pedal again makes it disengage. I could theoretically leave my foot off the brake while at a light but just like @mzairboy I was always taught to leave your foot on the brake. Does the Model 3 work differently? I'd be surprised if it did.