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malcolm

Active Member
Nov 12, 2006
3,072
1,760
June 2014 issue of evo magazine.

Written by evo co-founder and auto-journalist Richard Meaden.

Article is in print/subscription only atm.

P85+ driven over 300 miles in Norway, from the Tesla Store in Trondheim to Tesla HQ in Oslo.

Free Supercharging (due emphasis given to the word "free") at Dombas and Lillehammer.

Three quotes to give you a flavour:

As a driving experience the Model S pretty much sells itself. Incredibly relaxing yet blessed with tremendous reserves of seductive performance in the meaningful sector of the speedo's needle arc.

The styling sells the brand a little short and the seats and interior trim would also benefit from an uplift in look and feel, but you wouldn't bet against Tesla successfully stepping up to the European plate, not least because it sets the standard in so many other areas.

If only the rest of the world operated with the logic, efficiency and joined-up thinking as those bits built by Elon Musk.

With superchargers only an average of 100 miles apart and strict speed limits on many of the roads, then there was a good chance this was going to be a great review. These are Tesla-friendly conditions - even with the cold.

But we've been here before: 85kWh? Check. Superchargers all in a row? Check. Cold? Check. Professional journalist? Check.

Thankfully, this one's much better.

Having prior experience of the evo office's regular 32 amp 230 volt EV supply, Mr Meaden understands the importance of the symbiosis of car and charging infrastructure. Designing the one correctly, makes the other much easier to use and once experienced, the simplicity and convenience of superchargers makes you reluctant to drive beyond their orbit.

They make the car better.

I've been giving a lot (Code for: excessive amount) of thought to the need for charging tips, range calculations and smarter, more informative navigation aids. Some of this stuff would be nice, I suppose, but much would lose its relevance for owners in a world where superchargers are only 100 miles apart:

Trip planning? What is there to plan?

Suggesting all sorts of smart features for Gen 3 isn't going to help keep the price down either and might not make the cars easier to use for the average customer.

So maybe the focus will be simplicity: getting Gen 3 to work REALLY well with superchargers. In some clever ways we haven't seen yet. Joined-up thinking.

Just as Model S is a marked improvement on the Roadster so the combination of Gen3 + the Supercharger Network will be a marked improvement on Model S,

Perhaps this is why Tesla have dropped the Model E name. Gen 3 needs a stronger link to the Tesla network, and the vehicle name will be a part of that.
 
Oh I assume there's an iPad version as well you can read it on if you pay. It's just not available for free yet online (because they make their money selling magazines!)

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Installed iPhone/iPad app. Free 7 day trial. Great article with amazingly few errors (only thing I saw of note was saying that the navigation and audio system are totally dependent on 3G signal).
 
Oh I assume there's an iPad version as well you can read it on if you pay. It's just not available for free yet online (because they make their money selling magazines!)

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Installed iPhone/iPad app. Free 7 day trial. Great article with amazingly few errors (only thing I saw of note was saying that the navigation and audio system are totally dependent on 3G signal).

yep - here's the link to the android july edition: haven't read it yet. https://play.google.com/store/newsstand/details/Evo_Magazine?id=CAowwryiAQ