It’s good and it’s bad

[ammulder]

So, 5-week checkpoint on my P3D.

I love it. The end.

Ok, wait, just a bit more. My wife hated it on the test drive. Didn’t like the minimalism, the regenerative braking, or, I suppose, the way I drove during my half. (But hey, if you test drive a Performance, you have to TRY the performance, right?)

I think it was two weeks until I got the first text ‘Who said YOU got to take the Tesla today?’ So it’s grown on her. She used to refuse to drive my car, and now the minivan gathers dust. I’d complain about how gas stations suck, except in 5 weeks we haven’t actually driven the minivan enough to need a fill-up!

There’s good reason. It drives like a bus. Or maybe a cruise ship. ‘20 degrees to starboard, please!’ Lack of regen sucks. Who wants to carry keys around? What do you mean it can play MP3 CDs? Do they issue a magnifying glass to read the tiny infotainment display? Or an egg timer for when you press the pedal until it actually moves? Ugh. The stuff that wasn’t really visceral until you’ve driven the 3 for a bit.

So the P3D is now both our daily driver and family car, to whatever extent is possible. Unfortunately, I’m stuck with the Odyssey this weekend because my wife is on a road trip, and naturally, she wanted to try Supercharging.

But, it’s not all sunshine and roses. In the interest of balanced reporting:

1. My wife likes to drive in silence. She found a little noise from the left of the vent when the AC is on. Only mentioned it once, so I don’t know if it’s still there and whether we’ll have to call service about it. (I drive with music so I’m oblivious.)
2. I can’t remember the last time I washed my old car. Now I’m like ‘dang, there’s a bug on the bumper, grab the two buckets!’ I wasn’t really looking to get carried away. It’s a daily-driver / family car! Oops.
3. One of the kids already vomited in the back seat. Family car, right?
4. Then there was the sand incident. It gave the black vegan leather a sort of urban camouflage effect.
5. Have you LOOKED under the booster seat?
6. The kids actually fight over who gets to plug or unplug the car. Every time.
7. It turns out that when three hands are pulling on the charger, it usually doesn’t get fully seated in the car and charges under half-rate. I mean, they put in fart mode, couldn’t they have anticipated this?
8. And perhaps most importantly... we’re a family of 6. Had no idea she’d be so completely converted to the Tesla. So the 3 doesn’t totally cover us and the X ain’t cheap. And we *just bought* the 3! I guess I have a built-in excuse to see whether the rumored September refresh pans out for the X. If we can stand the minivan for that long. Wish me fortitude. (And maybe a can of nitrous to make it through the weekend.)

 

[Skione65]

@ammulder,

LOVE the write up! Same here. Family of four...well 6 but two grown. My P3D+ and the Odyssey! Just paid the Odyssey off but eyeing the X. Willpower.....Willpower.....

Ski

 

[jjrandorin]

So, 5-week checkpoint on my P3D.

I love it. The end.

Ok, wait, just a bit more. My wife hated it on the test drive. Didn’t like the minimalism, the regenerative braking, or, I suppose, the way I drove during my half. (But hey, if you test drive a Performance, you have to TRY the performance, right?)

I think it was two weeks until I got the first text ‘Who said YOU got to take the Tesla today?’ So it’s grown on her. She used to refuse to drive my car, and now the minivan gathers dust. I’d complain about how gas stations suck, except in 5 weeks we haven’t actually driven the minivan enough to need a fill-up!

There’s good reason. It drives like a bus. Or maybe a cruise ship. ‘20 degrees to starboard, please!’ Lack of regen sucks. Who wants to carry keys around? What do you mean it can play MP3 CDs? Do they issue a magnifying glass to read the tiny infotainment display? Or an egg timer for when you press the pedal until it actually moves? Ugh. The stuff that wasn’t really visceral until you’ve driven the 3 for a bit.

So the P3D is now both our daily driver and family car, to whatever extent is possible. Unfortunately, I’m stuck with the Odyssey this weekend because my wife is on a road trip, and naturally, she wanted to try Supercharging.

But, it’s not all sunshine and roses. In the interest of balanced reporting:

1. My wife likes to drive in silence. She found a little noise from the left of the vent when the AC is on. Only mentioned it once, so I don’t know if it’s still there and whether we’ll have to call service about it. (I drive with music so I’m oblivious.)
2. I can’t remember the last time I washed my old car. Now I’m like ‘dang, there’s a bug on the bumper, grab the two buckets!’ I wasn’t really looking to get carried away. It’s a daily-driver / family car! Oops.
3. One of the kids already vomited in the back seat. Family car, right?
4. Then there was the sand incident. It gave the black vegan leather a sort of urban camouflage effect.
5. Have you LOOKED under the booster seat?
6. The kids actually fight over who gets to plug or unplug the car. Every time.
7. It turns out that when three hands are pulling on the charger, it usually doesn’t get fully seated in the car and charges under half-rate. I mean, they put in fart mode, couldn’t they have anticipated this?
8. And perhaps most importantly... we’re a family of 6. Had no idea she’d be so completely converted to the Tesla. So the 3 doesn’t totally cover us and the X ain’t cheap. And we *just bought* the 3! I guess I have a built-in excuse to see whether the rumored September refresh pans out for the X. If we can stand the minivan for that long. Wish me fortitude. (And maybe a can of nitrous to make it through the weekend.)

you sound like you would be the ideal family for a model Y if you want to stay with teslas and get rid of the minivan. Minivans are awesome for what they are (good family cars), but speed in cars is addictive... even if you dont use it all the time. I personally was not a fan of the model Y "big car" look, and my wifes car is a BMW X3 M40 that we just leased the same time I bought my tesla.

My wife is still somewhat "scared" of my car (the speed). We also have a model 3 performance. When she drives it, she puts it in chill mode because shes scared of the amount of torque it has (and its not like her x3 M40 is slow...).

I am already fully converted to the EV lifestyle... I could not imagine having a gas car for my daily driver at this point, but I am not sure I am ready to be an all EV family yet either. We are empty nesters so its just my wife and I. Going to be very interesting to see whats in the EV space in 3 years when her BMW lease is up. I suspect we will likely be an all EV family at that point, I just dont know if it will be 2 teslas, or if BMW (who we are still partial to.., we have been bmw drivers for 15 years or so, so we have some brand loyalty there) will have something we like in that space.

I have been pretty happy with tesla so far, myself, both the purchasing experience and my current ownership experience. Very interesting to hear you wife go so fast from "i dont like it" to " you take the minivan, honey, I am taking the tesla!".

 

[ammulder]

you sound like you would be the ideal family for a model Y if you want to stay with teslas and get rid of the minivan.

Thing is, we have 6-foot genes and the back row in the Y looks microscopic. I’ll have to see one in person, but the X is already downsizing from the Odyssey... I’m just not sure the third-row space and cargo space in the Y is realistic. Youngest is still in a booster — but for a car that expensive we’ll be keeping it for a while, so I’m wary of buying one that only fits littles.

Plus, to be honest, I saw the Holiday Mode video of the X and I’m already sold.

Very interesting to hear you wife go so fast from "i dont like it" to " you take the minivan, honey, I am taking the tesla!"

I have to say, I think she has a performance driver hidden inside her, and just tries mostly not to acknowledge it. She complained a lot about the price delta from AWD to Performance on the 3. But just wait until I say “let’s get you the LR X”. When push comes to shove, 50/50 chance I hear “What do you mean YOU get the Performance?!?”

 

[jjrandorin]

Thing is, we have 6-foot genes and the back row in the Y looks microscopic. I’ll have to see one in person, but the X is already downsizing from the Odyssey... I’m just not sure the third-row space and cargo space in the Y is realistic. Youngest is still in a booster — but for a car that expensive we’ll be keeping it for a while, so I’m wary of buying one that only fits littles.

Plus, to be honest, I saw the Holiday Mode video of the X and I’m already sold.



I have to say, I think she has a performance driver hidden inside her, and just tries mostly not to acknowledge it. She complained a lot about the price delta from AWD to Performance on the 3. But just wait until I say “let’s get you the LR X”. When push comes to shove, 50/50 chance I hear “What do you mean YOU get the Performance?!?”

Lol . That right there is the reason my wifes car is the "X3 M40" and not the X3 30i". In BMW nomenclature, the M40 is a performance model, relatively speaking. A better comparo with tesla would be the upcoming "X3M" but that didnt exist when we leased her X3, thank goodness lol.

 

[SeaNile]

Philly area here and really tempted by the X and the 3. Wife would love the X and I seriously doubt we could go all EV so having both is unrealistic at this point. So if the numbers work maybe I'll get a 3 for a while then decide on the X in 12-18 months. Who knows, I still can't configure the 3 yet. Definitely need AWD being my daily driver and this climate. Long range, an absolute must for my job and Performance. I mean why not I guess. Can it really be that much more??

 

[ammulder]

Philly area here and really tempted by the X and the 3. Wife would love the X and I seriously doubt we could go all EV so having both is unrealistic at this point. So if the numbers work maybe I'll get a 3 for a while then decide on the X in 12-18 months. Who knows, I still can't configure the 3 yet. Definitely need AWD being my daily driver and this climate. Long range, an absolute must for my job and Performance. I mean why not I guess. Can it really be that much more??

My advice to you: don’t pick the X or the 3 and put down a really huge down payment. Instead, whatever your assessment is now, expect that pretty much as soon as you buy the one you’ll want the other. So split it into two half-size down payments, and only use one of them on the first vehicle. (You can thank me later.)

 

[Tron 3]

One of the kids already vomited in the back seat. Family car, right?

Hahaha! Yeah, gotta watch that acceleration!

We wanted to watch the sunrise from the top of the volcano in Hawaii and were running late. I'm flying up the switch-back all the way to the top, and my son would puke out his window on the driver's side, and my daughter's turn came on the opposite curve.

 

[SeaNile]

My advice to you: don’t pick the X or the 3 and put down a really huge down payment. Instead, whatever your assessment is now, expect that pretty much as soon as you buy the one you’ll want the other. So split it into two half-size down payments, and only use one of them on the first vehicle. (You can thank me later.)

I have a feeling at some point we will get an X for my wife. The impatient part of me thinks I could get the 3 for a while before we need the X for the wife/family hauler.

We are going to start tracking the money spent on gas for the BMW X5. I'm guessing it's around $325-375 a month. Lets not even talk about the upkeep these things for general maintenance.

 

[jamessmooth007]

My wife hated it on the test drive. Didn’t like the minimalism, the regenerative braking, or, I suppose, the way I drove during my half.

Same here my friend. This is a big reason why I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. I have her blessing, but if she doesn’t love it like I think she will, I don’t want to hear it for the next 4-5 years!

 

[ammulder]

Same here my friend. This is a big reason why I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. I have her blessing, but if she doesn’t love it like I think she will, I don’t want to hear it for the next 4-5 years!

Well, my wife didn’t like my old car either. I had pretty much figured you’d have to pry that minivan from her cold, dead fingers. So I’m really pleased by her change of heart, except I totally hadn’t planned on buying TWO new cars! 20/20 hindsight, right?

 

[ammulder]

I'm flying up the switch-back all the way to the top, and my son would puke out his window on the driver's side, and my daughter's turn came on the opposite curve.

That was my mistake! I had the one with the more delicate stomach in the middle seat. See, Elon, this is why we need a moon roof...

 

[dfwatt]

So, 5-week checkpoint on my P3D.

I love it. The end.

Ok, wait, just a bit more. My wife hated it on the test drive. Didn’t like the minimalism, the regenerative braking, or, I suppose, the way I drove during my half. (But hey, if you test drive a Performance, you have to TRY the performance, right?)

I think it was two weeks until I got the first text ‘Who said YOU got to take the Tesla today?’ So it’s grown on her. She used to refuse to drive my car, and now the minivan gathers dust. I’d complain about how gas stations suck, except in 5 weeks we haven’t actually driven the minivan enough to need a fill-up!

There’s good reason. It drives like a bus. Or maybe a cruise ship. ‘20 degrees to starboard, please!’ Lack of regen sucks. Who wants to carry keys around? What do you mean it can play MP3 CDs? Do they issue a magnifying glass to read the tiny infotainment display? Or an egg timer for when you press the pedal until it actually moves? Ugh. The stuff that wasn’t really visceral until you’ve driven the 3 for a bit.

So the P3D is now both our daily driver and family car, to whatever extent is possible. Unfortunately, I’m stuck with the Odyssey this weekend because my wife is on a road trip, and naturally, she wanted to try Supercharging.

But, it’s not all sunshine and roses. In the interest of balanced reporting:

1. My wife likes to drive in silence. She found a little noise from the left of the vent when the AC is on. Only mentioned it once, so I don’t know if it’s still there and whether we’ll have to call service about it. (I drive with music so I’m oblivious.)
2. I can’t remember the last time I washed my old car. Now I’m like ‘dang, there’s a bug on the bumper, grab the two buckets!’ I wasn’t really looking to get carried away. It’s a daily-driver / family car! Oops.
3. One of the kids already vomited in the back seat. Family car, right?
4. Then there was the sand incident. It gave the black vegan leather a sort of urban camouflage effect.
5. Have you LOOKED under the booster seat?
6. The kids actually fight over who gets to plug or unplug the car. Every time.
7. It turns out that when three hands are pulling on the charger, it usually doesn’t get fully seated in the car and charges under half-rate. I mean, they put in fart mode, couldn’t they have anticipated this?
8. And perhaps most importantly... we’re a family of 6. Had no idea she’d be so completely converted to the Tesla. So the 3 doesn’t totally cover us and the X ain’t cheap. And we *just bought* the 3! I guess I have a built-in excuse to see whether the rumored September refresh pans out for the X. If we can stand the minivan for that long. Wish me fortitude. (And maybe a can of nitrous to make it through the weekend.)

Fortunately I was able to obviate the inevitable conflicts over having just one Tesla Model 3 Performance version to share by getting a second one.

But the evolution has been interesting. My wife who we joke about as the Queen of Anti-Technology started out with massive skepticism and the complaint about the car being too expensive "That car is just going to sit in the driveway - I've never driven a car that listed for $72,000! You shouldn't have bought it"

After her first test drive she was still skeptical but admitted "the car has potential!". After about two weeks she was singing a different tune: "This car is the bomb!" On occasions when she's had to transition back to her previously much-loved minivan Honda Odyssey, she exclaims "This thing drives like dog meat!" Other typical verbalizations include "This van sucks!" and "I press the accelerator and it oozes forward making a god-awful racket! What's wrong with this f****** car!"

She's just been Tesla-spoiled.

 

[dmurphy]

Preface: My wife's a school teacher, so is on break in July & August. This will be important later.

My wife was dead set against the Model 3. In her words "It's your car, do what you want, but I hope it makes you happy."

... but, being the good sport she is, she went along with it. We picked it up together at the Paramus center. Our delivery person spent an hour with her going over every feature and function in the car, which was great. But she still didn't want to drive it home (I offered!).

That was 2 months ago... Since then, she's driven it a few times here and there, but all local stuff. This weekend, I made her do a 50 mile open highway drive, so she could actually engage the autopilot and get used it. That had her terrified - she was white knuckled the whole time, but again, a good sport about it and forced herself to do it. Didn't think she enjoyed it very much ...

... until last night.

We live about 70 miles from her preferred beach at the Jersey shore (it's nice and peaceful and quiet). Usually on Fridays in July & August (there's the teacher-on-break part) - she spends the day on the beach while I'm toiling away and our son's at camp. Last night, she said to me, "You know, if you're OK with it, maybe I'll take the Tesla on Fridays this summer when I go down the shore. We'll save a bunch on the gas."

POINT. SET. MATCH.

That's an admission-without-admission that she actually LIKES the Model 3. I should've known this was coming when, one day last week, she said "I'm going to take your car since mine is on fumes and I don't have time to stop for gas...."

I don't think I'll ever hear the words "I want one too" (at least until her Enclave is a decade old - just 8 1/2 years to go) - but that's a stunning turn of events!

So, @ammulder - we're brothers-in-arms here. It's pretty fun to watch folks become Enlightened. ;-)

 

[ammulder]

I don't think I'll ever hear the words "I want one too" (at least until her Enclave is a decade old - just 8 1/2 years to go) - but that's a stunning turn of events!

So, @ammulder - we're brothers-in-arms here. It's pretty fun to watch folks become Enlightened. ;-)

Well, you make me feel good that I'm one step ahead -- I think my wife actually WANTS the X (assuming it proves spacious enough for family and travel gear), she's just firmly in the "we should let our finances recover from the prior new car purchase first" camp. I mean, it never even crossed our minds that we'd be in the market for TWO new cars.

Freaky, that Tesla effect.

 

[Saghost]

We used to see this a lot on gm-volt.com, too - and likely on other EV forums. Spouses that were initially against the EV often wind up commandeering it for themselves. Generally the only solution is the second EV.

For what it's worth, the X is an amazing car.

 

[dmurphy]

Well, you make me feel good that I'm one step ahead -- I think my wife actually WANTS the X (assuming it proves spacious enough for family and travel gear), she's just firmly in the "we should let our finances recover from the prior new car purchase first" camp. I mean, it never even crossed our minds that we'd be in the market for TWO new cars.

Freaky, that Tesla effect.

You're WAY ahead..... she's determined to get 10 years out of that Enclave. And, to be frank, the X is a non-starter. The FWD's alone are a total turnoff, for both of us, actually. It's just unnecessarily overcomplicated in my book. The Y -- well, that's an option in 8 years once the Enclave is vintage ...

 

[Big Earl]

You're WAY ahead..... she's determined to get 10 years out of that Enclave. And, to be frank, the X is a non-starter. The FWD's alone are a total turnoff, for both of us, actually. It's just unnecessarily overcomplicated in my book. The Y -- well, that's an option in 8 years once the Enclave is vintage ...

If I’m understanding the situation correctly, it sounds like you’re going to enjoy her Enclave for another ten years while she enjoys your Tesla at the beach.

In all seriousness, I think it is worth strongly considering selling the Enclave while it’s still worth something. Nobody is going to want a fossil fueled vehicle in ten years and its value will plummet. I saw the same thing happen to diesel values post-Dieselgate, even those that weren’t directly involved.

 

[dmurphy]

If I’m understanding the situation correctly, it sounds like you’re going to enjoy her Enclave for another ten years while she enjoys your Tesla at the beach.

In all seriousness, I think it is worth strongly considering selling the Enclave while it’s still worth something. Nobody is going to want a fossil fueled vehicle in ten years and its value will plummet. I saw the same thing happen to diesel values post-Dieselgate, even those that weren’t directly involved.

Nah, I work from home... I just won't go out to lunch on Fridays... LOL

I don't disagree on the Enclave but there's really nothing (even the X is ~10-12cu ft smaller cargo room wise) with the room, comfort and versatility it has. In 10 years, I'm not concerned much about its value. It won't owe me anything, and by then, I expect a wide selection of large-ish EV's on the market.

My wife's a creature of habit... if I could shrinkwrap a half dozen of these Enclaves, and just give her a new one every 8-10 years, she'd be happy. That's gonna be a tough sell. An even tougher sell right now getting into a 6-figure vehicle.

 

[afadeev]

Thing is, we have 6-foot genes and the back row in the Y looks microscopic. I’ll have to see one in person, but the X is already downsizing from the Odyssey... I’m just not sure the third-row space and cargo space in the Y is realistic. Youngest is still in a booster — but for a car that expensive we’ll be keeping it for a while, so I’m wary of buying one that only fits littles.

We have an Odyssey as family road trip van, and there is no way a Model Y, or even an X, would compete with it for a space in our garage. The amount of crap you can throw into Ody is ridiculous: full assortment of winter ski's and supplies to drive some place in Canada for a week - no problem. Full assortment of beach gear and surf boards for a summer beach vacation - no sweat.

Odyssey is a keeper until kids go to college.
TM3P is a great family EV for a family of 4-5. You have 6, so I'm not sure how you fit everyone into a TM3 (and S - maybe).
Add a proper fun/track car, if that's your thing, and you should be all set!


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