Looking for community input on Model S Options

[kuttakamina]

.. looking for a color that hides dirt well – suggestions welcomed

Ranked worst to best

1. Black, Obsidian black
-- old blue
2. Midnight silver metallic, Metallic blue
-- old brown, old green
3. Red, white, pearl white
-- old silver
4. Titanium metallic

One more consideration, Tesla's interior gray is quite light in color.
It may need more regular cleaning than black for instance.

Agree with your assessment,
- 70D, best value
- P85D, most fun
- 85D, midway of both

I'm quite happy with 70D.

 

[ahurst]

I drove both the P85D and 70D yesterday. I took them up and down the same canyon road I drove the 85D on last week.

The P85 had 21" wheels and air suspension. The 70D had 19" wheels and standard suspension. Both of these were a little more stiff than the 85D with 19" wheels and air suspension. By stiff I mean I could feel the small road imperfections more. All three cars handled well and I'd be happy with any of the combinations so I'm going to go with the 19" wheels and air suspension. It will be a little more comfortable.

The biggest difference between the models is obviously the P85D's acceleration. It's like riding that magnetically launched roller coaster at California Adventure. If you want to own your own amusement park ride, this is the car for you. It’s really amazing.

For yesterday’s test drive, I purposely didn’t look at the exterior details of the first car so I wouldn’t know if it was a P85D or 70D. I didn’t want it to affect my opinion. I drove the first car down the canyon and it seemed fine. Based on my memory of driving the 85D last week, it seemed similar. Coming back up the canyon, driving as I normally would, it was great. It climbed hills easily and handled well. But with my style of driving, I really didn’t note any significant difference in the power compared with my memory of driving the 85D last week. At this point, I still didn’t know if I was in the P85D or the 70D. Once back at the top of the canyon road, and heading back to pick up the other car, I decided to try a full acceleration from a stop. I was definitely in the P85D. There is no mistaking that feel of acceleration beyond anything I’ve ever felt in a car. Very cool.

Several who contributed to this thread suggested I also consider the 70D and they were right. After returning the P85D we got into the 70D and headed for the same stretch of road. In my normal everyday driving mode, there was no way for me to tell the difference. Obviously, when accelerating from a stop, the 70D doesn’t come close to the P85D but as I said in my first post, I’m not a speed demon. I know I don’t need the power of the P85D but I’m glad I tried it before deciding. I can see how someone would want that power and for those people, the P85D is really the only choice.

So now the decision for me is between the 85D and the 70D. The 85D has more power and range but the 70D was plenty powerful for me. It climbed the steep canyon road with ease and has good acceleration.

For the major options, I plan to go with…
- Auto Pilot
- Premium Interior and Lighting
- Smart Air Suspension
- Ultra High Fidelity Sound
- Standard Body Color Roof
- Standard 19” wheels
- Next Gen Seats

Colors:
- Midnight Silver Metallic (looking for a color that hides dirt well – suggestions welcomed)
- Black Next Gen Seats
- Carbon Fiber Décor
- Black Alcantara Headliner

Excellent take. Thanks

 

[Modeler]

FYI, I'm exactly like you - never use moonroof and think they are a waste of money. Almost made the huge mistake of not ordering one. Until I sat in a Tesla without one - it was like a very uncomfortable cave. Do yourself a favor and check one out without the roof before making the decision.

 

[geobrick]

Now there's an option to get the 70 without the dual motor

So as I'm leaning towards the Model S 70D, Tesla adds the option to get it without the dual motor. Seems the dual motor on the 70 adds ~10 miles of range and 13 HP. Seems the dual motor makes things more efficient but as I said in my first post, I live and drive in southern California. Do I need the dual motor? I know there are people trading in their older single motor cars just to get one with a dual motor.

 

[robby]

So as I'm leaning towards the Model S 70D, Tesla adds the option to get it without the dual motor. Seems the dual motor on the 70 adds ~10 miles of range and 13 HP. Seems the dual motor makes things more efficient but as I said in my first post, I live and drive in southern California. Do I need the dual motor? I know there are people trading in their older single motor cars just to get one with a dual motor.

It's a great value, but you definitely don't need it. Here's what I'd consider:

Pros:
- Better handling
- Better traction in rain and on loose surfaces
- Wider geographic range of interest if/when you sell your car
- Slightly improved acceleration

Cons:
- $5k more expensive
- Loss of "microwave" portion of frunk space

 

[GSP]

Another pro for the 70D over the 70:

- More balanced regen braking and tire wear

It is much better to do most of the braking with the front wheels, since deceleration will transfer more weight to them, at the expense of rear wheel traction.

GSP

 

[manis]

I've had my P85D for a couple weeks and I've driven a low number (24xxx) P85+ loaner that had different options so I will give my opinions based on that experience. I'm hugely sensitive to how cars feel after renting dozens and dozens and owning several. Long, but I hope this is helpful

Dual Motors - I didn't even floor the P85+ at the light and I lost traction. A light I've launched the P85D from numerous times without any issues. Maybe this is because of the age of the vehicle, but it was running 6.2.xxx, had good tires, and only had 17k miles on it. I also like the feel of how AWD handles and like knowing I have AWD available should I go to Tahoe or we get some freak snow storm in the bay area (ha!)

Pano Roof - I never used sunroofs in the cars I've owned mainly because of IR and UV intensity. On my Mercedes I had crystalline put on my sunroof and you couldn't notice that it was open most of the time. I have pano on my P85D and there is some heat. It blocks I think 80% of UV, but I'm having it tinted to block 97+ UV and IR. It makes a HUGE HUGE HUGE difference. If you buy the sunshades they do a good job at blocking out light and heat. I'm in the bay area so the sun is intense here too in the summer. The P85+ has a solid roof and I don't like it. I'm only 5'9 and I feels way more closed. Also roof rack requires it and if you go with UHF you're paying for an XM antenna that won't be installed :/

Body Color - I went with midnight silver and glad I did. It hides dust really well and also hides excess brake dust and rubber that sometimes collects when having fun.

Wheels - I bought the 21" wheels in grey. Grey does an amazing job hiding brake dust, I highly recommend getting grey. I haven't had it long enough to speak about curb rash, but I've had 35s on most of my cars and (knock on wood) had very little curb rash and never blew out a tire. I am careful what I drive over/through though.

Painted calipers - Debated this quite a bit because I'm not a huge fan of red calipers. I've seen ones without the red calipers and it looked kind of dull (no offense) so I'm glad I got it. Brake dust is more visible though.

Interior - Black headliner all the way IMO. The P85+ had light headliner and I hate it. My Mercedes has a light headliner with black interior it is just annoying to me, but that is personal preference. The carbon fiber is nice. I think CF is overdone a lot of times, but this is really clean and I wouldn't worry about the center console not being in CF if that's the only thing holding you back. You can get the 3M CF to cover the black on the console. Black next-gen as way better than these seats in the P85+. I don't know if these are the standard seats they still ship, but they don't feel as nice other than that they are softer from having more butts in them. The accent lighting is nice, but nothing super special. The power liftgate is amazing. I love fog lights, and I find the corner lights to be useful. So I think premium is worth it in the end.

Autopilot - I'd just get it because with the features they will probably come out with you will want it eventually. You'll pay more, plus you have to take it in most likely, wasting your time.

SAS - I really really like being able to lower the car and I also really really like being able to raise it. There is a concrete wall in my garage that isn't that high, but at standard it is high enough the door would hit it, but when I raise the suspension it clears it. The ride is really smooth, but I can't remember how it compared to the test drive that didn't have it. I think the test drive that didn't have it handled a little better cornering when I was pushing it. I took the P85D to Santa Cruz the other night and on Low it handled well in the turns going fast through the turns. I have felt it be a little washy in turns at standard height, but as I drive it I have a better feel for how it will react and I feel more comfortable.

UHF - When you pick up your car you will hate yourself for paying for it... for a few days. When I got mine it sounded like complete crap, but in talking to a friend he said new speakers need to flex for a bit to sound better. It sound soooooo much better now. I've had dual 12s before so I remember what good systems sound like and while this isn't pushing 400w just to subs there are times I have to turn it down because the bass is too much on some songs. Audio source matters significantly and there are odd things that happen. Like dolby on sounds better with some songs and not with others (audiophile friend confirmed). Bluetooth sounds alright, but not as good as local music, and spotify (even extreme quality) over bluetooth sounds even worse. Here's what people always seem to leave out about their arguments against it and why it isn't worth it. Let's say that the speakers are the exact same quality as the base audio. This is what you are getting from what I've read. 480w vs 200w, 8" 80w front mid woofers instead of 6" 40w ones, 80w sub, 3 40w dash mids instead of 1, and 2 40w hatch mounted mids. So that $2500 is getting you more, but think about the cost involved to cut panels to upgrade 6" to 8" woofers and add two more mids to the dash and run wires, add a sub, and add and run wires for hatch mounted speakers. You're getting 5 additional, cleanly integrated, better speakers. If you hate the speakers, replace them, but an upgraded UHF is going to sound WAY better than an upgraded base audio package.

Spoiler - Looks nice on midnight silver. I'm sensitive to spoilers and CF and I am happy I got it.

Edit: Looking at TeslaTap again and reading the PDF from the company that did the audio I was wrong about the wattage and there are conflicts between TeslaTap and the PDF. Here's the differences listed:

Standard
- 200 watts
- 40-watt speakers (160 mm) incorporated in all four doors
- 2 passive tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar.
- 40-watt mid-range speaker (80 mm) located centrally on the dashboard

Premium
- 560 watts
- Two 20w tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar
- Two mid-range speakers (80 mm) each add a further 40 watts.
- Two 80-watt woofers (200 mm) in the front doors
- Two 40-watt speakers (160 mm) in the rear doors.
- Three 40-watt mid-range speakers (80 mm)
- 80-watt bass box with 25-liter box (comparable models have 8-12 liters)


Undocumented | TeslaTap
http://www.s1nn.de/system/uploads/a...-TechnischeInformationen_deutsch_englisch.pdf

 

[smilepak]

I have 70D with black next gen interior and black Alcantara with deep blue exterior and pano roof. With 15 tint back and 30 tint front. Nice and dark. Clean...

 

[Andrew Wolfe]

Standard
- 200 watts
- 40-watt speakers (160 mm) incorporated in all four doors
- 2 passive tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar.
- 40-watt mid-range speaker (80 mm) located centrally on the dashboard

Premium
- 560 watts
- Two 20w tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar
- Two mid-range speakers (80 mm) each add a further 40 watts.
- Two 80-watt woofers (200 mm) in the front doors
- Two 40-watt speakers (160 mm) in the rear doors.
- Three 40-watt mid-range speakers (80 mm)
- 80-watt bass box with 25-liter box (comparable models have 8-12 liters)


Undocumented | TeslaTap
http://www.s1nn.de/system/uploads/a...-TechnischeInformationen_deutsch_englisch.pdf

What's a passive tweeter? All tweeters are driven. Do you mean a tweeter with a passive crossover as opposed to a separate amp?

 

[manis]

What's a passive tweeter? All tweeters are driven. Do you mean a tweeter with a passive crossover as opposed to a separate amp?

I quoted the release from the company that designed the system. I found this article though that explains how a passive crossover would impact the sound

How to choose a crossover


a quote with a component passive crossover (not sure if Tesla is using inline crossovers)

Since it is filtering a signal that has already been amplified, a passive crossover wastes power, releasing the unwanted parts of the amplified signal as heat. Also, speakers actually change their impedances when playing which also changes a passive crossover’s crossover point, or frequency response, leading to inconsistent sound definition, especially around the vocal regions. (This is another advantage to using an active crossover, which is unaffected by speaker impedance.)

 

[4us2bev]

For the major options, I plan to go with…
- Auto Pilot
- Premium Interior and Lighting
- Smart Air Suspension
- Ultra High Fidelity Sound
- Standard Body Color Roof
- Standard 19” wheels
- Next Gen Seats

Colors:
- Midnight Silver Metallic (looking for a color that hides dirt well – suggestions welcomed)
- Black Next Gen Seats
- Carbon Fiber Décor
- Black Alcantara Headliner

Surprised no one has mentioned this, but since you're in SoCal, skip the UHFS and spend ~$1500 more and do the Reus upgrade. Superb audio is important to me and in a quiet car like a Tesla, the Reus system delivers; PM me if you would like to discuss further. (BTW you won't get XM with the solid roof if you were expecting that.)

For max dirt hiding see if Silver is still available if you like that aesthetic better than "bronze".

IMO 19" Cyclones look substantially nicer than the stock 19's.

-- David

 

[ahurst]

I've had my P85D for a couple weeks and I've driven a low number (24xxx) P85+ loaner that had different options so I will give my opinions based on that experience. I'm hugely sensitive to how cars feel after renting dozens and dozens and owning several. Long, but I hope this is helpful

Dual Motors - I didn't even floor the P85+ at the light and I lost traction. A light I've launched the P85D from numerous times without any issues. Maybe this is because of the age of the vehicle, but it was running 6.2.xxx, had good tires, and only had 17k miles on it. I also like the feel of how AWD handles and like knowing I have AWD available should I go to Tahoe or we get some freak snow storm in the bay area (ha!)

Pano Roof - I never used sunroofs in the cars I've owned mainly because of IR and UV intensity. On my Mercedes I had crystalline put on my sunroof and you couldn't notice that it was open most of the time. I have pano on my P85D and there is some heat. It blocks I think 80% of UV, but I'm having it tinted to block 97+ UV and IR. It makes a HUGE HUGE HUGE difference. If you buy the sunshades they do a good job at blocking out light and heat. I'm in the bay area so the sun is intense here too in the summer. The P85+ has a solid roof and I don't like it. I'm only 5'9 and I feels way more closed. Also roof rack requires it and if you go with UHF you're paying for an XM antenna that won't be installed :/

Body Color - I went with midnight silver and glad I did. It hides dust really well and also hides excess brake dust and rubber that sometimes collects when having fun.

Wheels - I bought the 21" wheels in grey. Grey does an amazing job hiding brake dust, I highly recommend getting grey. I haven't had it long enough to speak about curb rash, but I've had 35s on most of my cars and (knock on wood) had very little curb rash and never blew out a tire. I am careful what I drive over/through though.

Painted calipers - Debated this quite a bit because I'm not a huge fan of red calipers. I've seen ones without the red calipers and it looked kind of dull (no offense) so I'm glad I got it. Brake dust is more visible though.

Interior - Black headliner all the way IMO. The P85+ had light headliner and I hate it. My Mercedes has a light headliner with black interior it is just annoying to me, but that is personal preference. The carbon fiber is nice. I think CF is overdone a lot of times, but this is really clean and I wouldn't worry about the center console not being in CF if that's the only thing holding you back. You can get the 3M CF to cover the black on the console. Black next-gen as way better than these seats in the P85+. I don't know if these are the standard seats they still ship, but they don't feel as nice other than that they are softer from having more butts in them. The accent lighting is nice, but nothing super special. The power liftgate is amazing. I love fog lights, and I find the corner lights to be useful. So I think premium is worth it in the end.

Autopilot - I'd just get it because with the features they will probably come out with you will want it eventually. You'll pay more, plus you have to take it in most likely, wasting your time.

SAS - I really really like being able to lower the car and I also really really like being able to raise it. There is a concrete wall in my garage that isn't that high, but at standard it is high enough the door would hit it, but when I raise the suspension it clears it. The ride is really smooth, but I can't remember how it compared to the test drive that didn't have it. I think the test drive that didn't have it handled a little better cornering when I was pushing it. I took the P85D to Santa Cruz the other night and on Low it handled well in the turns going fast through the turns. I have felt it be a little washy in turns at standard height, but as I drive it I have a better feel for how it will react and I feel more comfortable.

UHF - When you pick up your car you will hate yourself for paying for it... for a few days. When I got mine it sounded like complete crap, but in talking to a friend he said new speakers need to flex for a bit to sound better. It sound soooooo much better now. I've had dual 12s before so I remember what good systems sound like and while this isn't pushing 400w just to subs there are times I have to turn it down because the bass is too much on some songs. Audio source matters significantly and there are odd things that happen. Like dolby on sounds better with some songs and not with others (audiophile friend confirmed). Bluetooth sounds alright, but not as good as local music, and spotify (even extreme quality) over bluetooth sounds even worse. Here's what people always seem to leave out about their arguments against it and why it isn't worth it. Let's say that the speakers are the exact same quality as the base audio. This is what you are getting from what I've read. 480w vs 200w, 8" 80w front mid woofers instead of 6" 40w ones, 80w sub, 3 40w dash mids instead of 1, and 2 40w hatch mounted mids. So that $2500 is getting you more, but think about the cost involved to cut panels to upgrade 6" to 8" woofers and add two more mids to the dash and run wires, add a sub, and add and run wires for hatch mounted speakers. You're getting 5 additional, cleanly integrated, better speakers. If you hate the speakers, replace them, but an upgraded UHF is going to sound WAY better than an upgraded base audio package.

Spoiler - Looks nice on midnight silver. I'm sensitive to spoilers and CF and I am happy I got it.

Edit: Looking at TeslaTap again and reading the PDF from the company that did the audio I was wrong about the wattage and there are conflicts between TeslaTap and the PDF. Here's the differences listed:

Standard
- 200 watts
- 40-watt speakers (160 mm) incorporated in all four doors
- 2 passive tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar.
- 40-watt mid-range speaker (80 mm) located centrally on the dashboard

Premium
- 560 watts
- Two 20w tweeters (30 mm) in the A-pillar
- Two mid-range speakers (80 mm) each add a further 40 watts.
- Two 80-watt woofers (200 mm) in the front doors
- Two 40-watt speakers (160 mm) in the rear doors.
- Three 40-watt mid-range speakers (80 mm)
- 80-watt bass box with 25-liter box (comparable models have 8-12 liters)


Undocumented | TeslaTap
http://www.s1nn.de/system/uploads/a...-TechnischeInformationen_deutsch_englisch.pdf

Good write up