First time driving a Model S

[Indecisive]

Since I have been obsessed with purchasing a Tesla for the last few months, I thought it might be a good idea to drive one to see if my expectations met reality. Fortunately, I found a 2015 MS 70 on Turo that was nearby.


I wanted to start out with this older model to determine (a) if AP1 would be sufficient for my needs, (b) if RWD is more than enough for South Florida, and (c) if driving the vehicle was comfortable and a game changer.


For the most part, I was never made to feel disappointed.

· The zip on the car was more than a middle age conservative driver such as myself would ever need.

· Although in the beginning I was a little ‘freaked out’ about relying on AP1 and was preparing myself to grab the wheel at any millisecond, I ended up using autopilot quite a lot and it began to feel quite comfortable.

· Even though the leather seats were a little bit cheap looking, they were comfortable enough and I really enjoyed the smooth ride.

· Finally, I had the chance to hang out at the supercharging station and felt like I was part of some exclusive club.


There were only two things that bugged me slightly about the car. I would appreciate your feedback, as well as suggestions on how they may be possible mitigated. I am wondering as well if I were to drive a later model S, these issues would be resolved.

(1) I didn’t discover any blind spot monitoring capabilities. Am I correct? I didn’t attempt to move to a different lane on the highway with a car on my side, but I couldn’t figure out any way the car would warn me when a vehicle was next to me except for the sensors that showed up on the dashboard.

(2) I wish the car had full 360 camera view (Bird eye view). When I would pull into any parking lot, I was paranoid that I would scrape the underside on the parking cement blocks. I ended up leaving the car sometimes up to 2 feet from where I should be and had to get in again and correct it. Is there an optimal way to park the car without getting too close to the block?


Anyways, thanks in advance for your feedback. You will excuse me now since I don’t need to return the car until the afternoon and am going for a ride.

 

[Knightowl]

1. no blind spot assistance.

2. I back into spots using the rear cam, mirrors and sensors.

 

[erik_k]

Congrats on trying a Tesla! I did much the same last month when via Turo I rented a ‘15 S 85D and then a 3 RWD to compare them. I too have been interested in a Tesla for years and was blown away. Ordered a used S P85D two weeks later and I’m excited to take delivery.

Regarding #2, back into parking spots when the situation allows. You’re far less likely to ground out on the back end of the car vs the nose. Generally you can back all the at up until your rear wheels stop against a curb, etc if you want. Don’t back over and block sidewalks though.

 

[Dithermaster]

1. AP2.x has a limited form of blind spot assistance; in addition to the display of cars around you, it will show red if you turn on the turn signal and it thinks there are cars nearby. Also, it will vibrate the wheel if you are leaving your lane, and in some cases will try to push you back in the lane.

2. There is a third-party making a 360 birds-eye view kit. It's a big job to install, so unless you do that kind of stuff you'd need to find a place to install it too.

 

[PDX_Magesh]

I was in a similar boat a month or so back & after driving a MS, I don't think I'll go up. True this car has lot more quirks, than ICE cars - that we seem to take for granted, but it is, imo, one of the best & safest cars to own & drive.

a) There is no active BS available, unlike some of the upscale luxury cars out there today. Example: my previous 2015 A5 cab, had it; the C300 has it & even the QX50 has it. And I think the Toyota & Honda all have it as part of their 'standard' package. I look at the dash in front of me & know if there is a car in the BS. That's all I see.

b) Lack of a 360* camera is a pet peeve since I have had it in my cars for the past 3+ years. I believe Tesla is working on it AND as you wrote, there is a mod if you want to do it. But as part of the 'one of the many quirks', there is no native support. And we have to wait for an OTA push.

Once again, if you are able to overcome some of these quirks, you'll find "zip on the car was more than a middle age conservative driver such as myself would ever need" will be understated. ;-) The zip gets you out of traffic situations. And AP is getting better over a period of time.

G'luck on your decision.

 

[DriveMe]

While AP1 might still be adequate today, the biggest concern about it compared to AP2 is that it is a dead end in the Autopilot evolution. It's not upgradable to FSD and will be quickly falling behind in the upcoming years.

 

[BerTX]

The whole fiasco with the "blind spot" sensors is well documented, so I'm not going through re-hashing all of that. We just have to learn to compensate.

What I did is two steps. First, I learned to properly adjust my mirrors and be comfortable with what they showed. There is no blind spot in the MS if the mirrors are properly adjusted. Driving like this requires some confidence that there is actually not a vehicle in what your brain tells you is a blind spot. I get around this by doing a particular maneuver after checking my mirrors that I call "blind spot repositioning".

Punch it!

 

[erik_k]

While AP1 might still be adequate today, the biggest concern about it compared to AP2 is that it is a dead end in the Autopilot evolution. It's not upgradable to FSD and will be quickly falling behind in the upcoming years.

Falling behind as compared to what? My 2015 Accord only has Lane departure warning, no steering assist and no active steering assist/intervention. My 2017 Accord has active lane departure correction and vibration and stupid basic Lane Keep Assist that only works above 40MPH or so. An AP1 can competently drive in a lane and handle stop and go traffic. It’s worlds better than anything I’ve seen for the age 2014-2018). Yes, AP2 cars and in the future other automakers will go beyond what AP1 offers but AP1 is such an upgrade already from anything I’ve ever driven I’m just thrilled with it. It’s stable in its end of life development. It’s features and limitations are well known vs the ever-changing AP2/3. I’ve spent enough of my life wrestling with alpha and beta software. I’m very happy with AP1, for now.

 

[ewoodrick]

In my Model 3 I just hit the lane change and it takes care of it.