Feature comparisons (old S, new S, 3...)

[BrunoM]

Hi all

Any good guides/writeups out there getting into detail comparisons of the changing and evolving elements of the Model S and now the 3?

I have been wrestling with my intense-fanboy-desire to own a MS for ages, have had a deposit down for a 3, now that it's becoming real I'm worried that the 3 just isn't big enough for me (I'm 6'5", it'll be a family of four car, etc), but I don't drive enough miles to feel a new S is a sensible buy so I'm just looking at the used S inventory, the new MS discussions, the 3 features etc and being really confused about the AP changes and other bits and pieces.

It might all be moot as I've got no way of home charging and that might just sink it all for me anyway :/

 

[Troy]

Model 3 has more headroom than Model S.

Model 3 headroom: Front= 40.3”, Rear = 37.7”(source),
Model S headroom: Front= 38.8", Rear= 35.3" (source)

Also, Model 3 has the same legroom as Model S:
Model 3 Leg room: 42.7” Front, 35.2” Rear (source)
Model S Leg room: 42.7" Front, 35.4" Rear (source)

In addition, Model 3 is only 1.2 inches (3 cm) narrower:
Model 3 width: 76.1” with mirrors folded (source)
Model S width: 77.3” with mirrors folded (source)

I'm worried that the 3 just isn't big enough for me (I'm 6'5")

As for Autopilot, old Model S usually have Enhanced Autopilot shown as C here, and you can add D for $4,000 assuming the car has at least AP2.0 hardware which would require it to be produced after 1st October 2016. That means all nosecone versions are out because those were discontinued in April 2016.

 

[BrunoM]

Thanks Troy, useful numbers... I sat in an M3 cabin recently for a few minutes and it "felt smaller" but might've been all in my head. I probably need test drive action again for the MS I guess.

Looking at something like 85 kWh Model S 5YJSB6H14EFP58824 | Tesla UK as a comparable price point to a new nicely specced M3 and just dunno.

 

[jsteele]

It might all be moot as I've got no way of home charging and that might just sink it all for me anyway :/

I've just got a used 75d Model S direct from Tesla, and haven't had any home charging for 1 month now while waiting for installation. I'm lucky enough to have a public charger a few minutes from my house though, which has the added benefit of being free in Scotland - if you haven't got anything like that though then I'd be very hesitant to get an EV.

 

[Troy]

@BrunoM, the car you picked here is the rear-wheel-drive Model S 85. It means this car is comparable to the Model 3 Mid-Range because both are rear-wheel-drive and have similar range numbers. Here is the comparison you wanted:

1. This car has 3 years left on the 8-year battery failure warranty compared to 8 years for a new Model 3 MR. Source
   
2. Model S 85 has 218 miles range at 75 mph compared to 233 miles for the Model 3 MR. See the table here. The range difference is more if you pick the Model 3 LR. More range means you can do long distance trips at regular speeds instead of the car telling you to slow down to reach your destination.
3. This Model S 85 has Autopilot 1.0 hardware with a single camera. Model 3 MR has Autopilot 2.5 hardware with 7 cameras and a liquid cooled faster Autopilot computer.
4. Model S 85 has a slower touchscreen computer. The touchscreen in Model S/X was upgraded to Model 3 quality on 14 March 2018. See the article here.
5. This Model S 85 has the plastic nosecone which was discontinued on 12 April 2016. See the article here. Therefore this is a dead giveaway that this is an older Model S. Some people consider the plastic nosecone uncool. Model 3 doesn't have this issue.
6. This Model S 85 will never have Sentry Mode, Dashboard, Blind Support Chime or 'Navigate on Autopilot'. Model 3 MR has these features if you purchase Autopilot and Full Self-Driving
7. This Model S 85 has the original Tesla seats instead of the Next-Gen seats with more padding. See the video here.
8. This Model S 85 with Autopilot 1.0 costs £45,600. In comparison, a new Model 3 MR with Autopilot and Full Self Driving costs $48,000 in the US. It should cost £43,750 in the UK when/if it arrives. Because Model 3 Design Studio is not open to the UK yet, when converting the prices, I have looked at the cheapest Model S which is $79K in the US and £72K in the UK. That means 0.911 conversion multiplier when converting US prices to UK as a simple way to guess the price. Even if it turns out MR won't be available in the UK, the Model 3 LR with AP&FSD is $51,000 or £46,500.
9. Also, all Model 3s ever made including 2017 models support Supercharger V3 but no Model S or X does, even current versions.

For those reasons, a Model 3 MR or LR is a much better choice.

 

[ZERO260]

The new S is longer, faster, and has a more asthetic and proportioned timeless design. Hatchback. It put the "S" in SEXY. The M3 is its little sibling! For real you can't go wrong with a Tesla!!!

Snobert,

 

[BrunoM]

Thanks again Troy, really helpful comparisons there.

 

[WannabeOwner]

I'm 6'5"

I guess you need to consider upper-torso proportion of that? I've known tall people that are all-leg, and some short-legged ones too

used S inventory

In case you aren't already aware of it Tesla UK new and used car prices scrapes all Tesla advertising sources for a single online resource, and it also has price-change-history for each advert, and chucks in anything else it has found over time for that vehicle

 

[BrunoM]

That's a great link, and I wasn't aware thanks

Not sure about my upper body proportions, probably... typical...maybe? Anyway looks I will continue to agonise probably til I am forced into a decision by my reservation slot coming up to order. I really want an extended test drive for a weekend or something. And my council to admit more specifics about their chargepoint roll out plans!

 

[WannabeOwner]

my council to admit more specifics about their chargepoint roll out plans!

Are you not available to charge at home? (e.g. no off-road parking)

Its doable to charge elsewhere, but it would mean forfeiting a key advantage of BEV driving - leaving home every morning with a full tank of fuel and not having to do stand-and-pump and queue-to-pay or, equivalent, drive to charge-point and kill time; off course "kill time" can be a lot more flexible than "stand-and-pump and queue-to-pay", e.g. do shopping or do emails etc., but there will eb times when the chargers are all occupied and then you have to stooge

At 27,000 miles per annum, say 500 miles per ICE fill-up, that is filling once a week, say 10 minutes, that's over 8 HOURS A YEAR just filling the flipping thing up ...

 

[BrunoM]

Right - no offroad option, inner London and all (just possibly I might be able to rent lockup space nearby but for now assuming not).

However I won't be a Tesla commuter - typically only do 6000 miles a year - so less crucial to charge each night I hope... maybe..

 

[Troy]

If you have a front garden that can be converted to a parking space, that would make home charging possible. Alternatively, (this is a bit experimental), if you park in the street in front of your house, you could try to get the council to install a curbside charge point for you. See the article here and here.

 

[WannabeOwner]

curbside charge point

There have been some street light chargers too, which is a neat innovation to existing infrastructure.

I can see that retro fitting Electricity, Telephone and Gas was worthwhile - a relatively easy sale to every house in the street ... but BEV adoption is not going to be whole-street, so I reckon this will be a more frustrating retro-upgrade to street infrastructure

 

[BrunoM]

i tackled my council (Islington) a couple of times on this over the last couple of years... they did do some rollouts last year but assessed that my road doesn’t have room for curb side. They’ve promised theylol be looking at lamp post but not holding my breath

 

[culverwood]

The problem with lamp-post charging units is that they are low power units and as residents parking is open to all residents they will often be ICEd. The Ubitricity ones used by many central London boroughs including Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster require you to have a Smart Cable which monitors the electricity use and charges you rather than the council. The benefit to the council of such solutions is that they require very little investment and enable them to reach some of their targets simply, so it may not be too long before you see more lamp-post chargers in Islington.