Help me decide 40 vs. 60 KWh

[instigator]

I need to commit to my Model S specs in the next 2 weeks. I was planning to order the 40 KWh but would love to hear from someone who has one. OR others that have been though the decision process.
My primary use is a 40 RT commute. Weekends maybe 120 mile RT event. Longer trips I can use my wife's gas car.
Live in South Florida .. so no worries about cold , but interested to know how much a drain AC is.

On paper I should not need to spend the extra $10 K for the 60KWh . But i would love to hear from others.

Thanks!

 

[Elshout]

On a cold day you might not make 120 miles particularly if you drive fast and use the heater/AC to an excessive amount. Don't forget these batteries lose capacity in time, perhaps as much as 30%. Don't even think about 40A.

 

[steve841]

If you dont want your wife nagging at you when you're worried about that long RT ... get the 60kwh.

The 40kwh is just not really practical here is S FL ... one trip to Palm Beach ... or a dinner in South Beach .. you'll live happily with the 60kwh.

 

[dsm363]

Definitely the 60 with supercharging.

 

[Trnsl8r]

Definitely the 60 with supercharging.

+1. Put everything you have towards the range.

 

[yobigd20]

60kWh w\ supercharging.

 

[Beavis]

Go with the 85 and leave the ICE at home. Just kidding. I would go with what Trnsl8r said.

 

[shokunin]

No 40kw's have been delivered so far, nor has Tesla released official EPA numbers. I think 120 miles may be pushing it a bit in terms of range and any latitude for error. Having used the superchargers, they are in a word, effen awesome. I'd go with the 60kw + supercharging.

 

[MTGMAN]

40 is out of the question if you only want 100 mile range by the Leaf !

 

[abbylinn]

Do you have to carry the charger cord with you at all times?? Even around town?

 

[dsm363]

Do you have to carry the charger cord with you at all times?? Even around town?

Not really. If you have HPWC you can but otherwise you'd have to unplug and plug it in each day. If you have a full standard charge and are going to be driving less that 150 miles that day I wouldn't even think twice about not taking the cable with me. Some people want to have it at all times though and are buying a second UMC as a backup.

 

[100thMonkey]

not sure if this will help but, after owning a Leaf for two years I've come to a rather solid conclusion: get the most you can afford! there are lots of variables to range in an EV, whatever you think the minimum you will be happy with, double or tripple that. after just a few days of owning the S, I can say that the question won't be whether you will be able to barrow another car, it will come down to the fact that you won't want to drive any other car. to call this a car is lacking in some way, it's more like some kind of space ship or something, absolutely blows anything I've ever driven out of the water... as a friend said after a drive, "it's the future of cars".

 

[wraithnot]

I need to commit to my Model S specs in the next 2 weeks. I was planning to order the 40 KWh but would love to hear from someone who has one. OR others that have been though the decision process.
My primary use is a 40 RT commute. Weekends maybe 120 mile RT event. Longer trips I can use my wife's gas car.
Live in South Florida .. so no worries about cold , but interested to know how much a drain AC is.

On paper I should not need to spend the extra $10 K for the 60KWh . But i would love to hear from others.

Thanks!

I went through exactly the same decision process. At first I was sure I was going with the 40 kWh, but then I thought about it some more and realized it would be cutting it way too close for weekend trips my wife and I often take. And between my daily commute and weekend trips, the 100,000/8 year warranty on the 40 kWh battery would be up long before 8 years. Then I decided the 60 kWh was the better option since it comes with a 125,000/8 year warranty and the range would work for the most common weekend trips. But if I wanted to take actual road trips for wine tasting, going to Vegas, etc. then the supercharger option is a must. But the supercharger network is optimized for the 85 kWh battery and since it comes standard with the 85 kWh battery, there is only an $8k difference between the 85 kWh and the 60 kWh + supercharging. And the 85 kWh version accelerates faster

Anyway, despite intending to buy the 40 kWh Model S, I ended up finalizing the 85 kWh Model S. And I haven't regretted that decision at all (although I'm sure it will still sting a bit when I have to write Tesla a very large check upon delivery).

Basically, I came to the conclusion that the 40 kWh battery only makes sense if either you don't drive more than about 30 miles a day and never take roadtrips or you really want a Model S and simply can't afford one of the larger batteries. Unless you live in a place like Hawaii where long road trips are essentially impossible, I'd suggest buying the biggest battery you can afford.