When I heard that it switches from SC01 to SC05, I realized this is them playing the long game of a war of attrition. With SC01, it can keep lingering as a liability forever. But with converting it to SC05, at some point, the car is going to get sold, and then the free Supercharging eventually dies permanently and disappears.
I looked at it a bit, but my old 2014 S85 is exactly the way I want it. I'm still grandfathered in to the permanent free Slacker radio streaming, which would be gone moving to a new car. Mine has the nice open flat floor in the middle instead of the console they started putting in later. And my S has both screens, which I like, whereas the Y only has the one on the dash in the center, which I don't like. So I would have to pay about $20K to "upgrade" to a car I would like less just to get faster charging.
The upgrade for me was considerable: double the range and
quadruple the Supercharging speed! My range was down to 166 RM in my S60 in recent years; hour and a half Supercharging was routine for longish trip legs. Now I am able to make trip legs that were impossible with the S60. It completely changes road trip planning.
Having done my first real road trip in the Y, the difference was astounding. I managed the 600 miles over the mountains to Tucson in a single day with ease, and just three brief charge stops required. One leg was from Gallup NM to Scottsdale AZ, 262 miles and I made it without the least care or concern, 92% to 25%. The charge to 92% was unintentional since the car charges so fast that it got to that level while I was putting air in the tires to adjust for large altitude changes.
I also really like the TACC, so nice to have and really, really easy to use. I am enjoying the heated steering wheel, something I didn't have in my S and helpful in snow country. As a septuagenarian, I also appreciate the somewhat higher seating, which makes getting in and out easier. Somewhat to my surprise, the Y is considerably quieter than my S. The handling is tighter and more firm.
The regen is MUCH stronger in the Y and that helps with my very steep (14% grade) twisty mountain roads at home. I expect that AWD will help with snow and ice, although I have already bought extra wheels for snow tires; I take my winter driving seriously, given where I live. I also appreciate the trailer hitch for a hitch-mount bike rack and the ability to rent an occasional utility trailer. Unlike most here at TMC, my Tesla is my only car.
Downsides, are that the solid roof in the S was warmer at night when camping in the car in freezing temps than the glass roof in the Y, had to use the heater more. And, of course, the lack of the instrument cluster makes turn by turn navigation a bit less easy to follow.
Since most of my miles are long road trips, the Y will make things a LOT easier for me. YMMV. (I did more than 80,000 miles of road trips in the S60.) I'm one of the rare owners who gets a lot of use out of Free Supercharging.
