Howdy,
I’m not posting here any longer.
Hit and run?
I’m still really sore about having to buy 18” wheels and new snow tires just to feel safe. My car with 20” wheels and snow tires just isn’t acceptable up here. And if anyone doesn't believe me, I'll put the wheels and tires back on and prove it. Good news is now that I have 18’s with Nokians, the car feels good.
You went with performance wheels and tires and don't feel that the were best in snow? Must of made a mistake
Tesla makes blanket statements about its AWD that just aren’t true. The videos you see on the Internet, Tesla's in the snow, are about as useful as making a decision based on a snapshot in time. Who cares what a car does in a snowy field with no one around, or in the snow when there's not a car in the other lane on the highway going 60 when it's big time winter? Not me. No one else should, either. These videos are misleading.
I hope that you aren't trying to use the autopilot on roads where the lines are marginal and the conditions are marginal
The wipers not working is also a sore spot. It’s an expensive car. The Auto Wipers just don’t work. It pisses me off. And it’s dangerous, having to fiddle with the wipers in the snow.
It's a personal thing, they work great for me, and they are expected to be changed in a not so distant upgrade
AP up here is so-so. It’s fine as long as you’re not going around a bend with a car next to you. I don’t know. Maybe here in the mountains lane lines are narrower? I think Tesla also makes claims here as well, that are a stretch.
Works quite well around here on narrow roads. It's nice that the car actually stays in the middle of the road. But hey, remember when you enabled it, it said that it was BETA software? It is constantly getting better.
I think Tesla isn't doing anyone any good advertising that their cars get 310 miles range. It's misleading.
That goes for every car out there. I've commonly got better than 310 miles range. Don't assume that winter is the best numbers, At least you don't need specifically tuned engines for high altitudes.
TACC works good. But new Subarus come with this same tech.
Subaru, Toyota, Nissan and others offer it as well.
Last night at Copper Mountain was my first experience with the car handles being stuck. Luckily, not stuck to the point where the door wouldn't open. What were they thinking?
Interesting concept. The Model 3 is the first car where the doors haven't opened with winter precipitation? I could have sworn I've driven other rental cars in cold areas where they stuck
There's other things with the car that clearly show Tesla didn't do their homework, didn't spend near enough time testing in real world winter conditions.
Sounds as if you may be a Subaru fan. They work hard to work in high altitude winters. But many other auto makers don't.
All my issues being the case, I knew I was taking a chance. But I expected better. Still, I'm not selling the car. But I'm not sure I'd buy another Tesla.
Someone from here contacted me about buying a RWD 3. They said they plan on keeping their ICE AWD for snowy days. Here’s what I wrote to them.
Howdy,
There's a rumor Tesla is discontinuing the RWD version. So I'd be careful.
No, not the case
If you have a backup AWD, fine. But why not go for the AWD? I know it's more.
So are you fluent with EV's?
Do you get that the advertised range really isn't?
Yes, like all cars, you may get better, you may get worse, and in colder temperatures, you can drop it by 30%. (still reach 310, but at a slower speed).
First, you never use 100% of the battery. So plan your range on using 80% of the battery. For the RWD, the real range (using 80%) is 211. Then discount it a little once the battery loses capacity. The battery will lose 5% of its capacity in the first year. Now your range is more like 200.
Pretty much like a gas car. And no, the battery doesn't loose 5% in the first year. I had a 2015 Leaf and it didn't loose that much in 3 years.
Then factor in cold weather, wind, and road conditions. In the cold (less than 35 degrees) battery range takes a hit. For example yesterday I drove back and forth to Copper Mountain. 112 miles total. I used 189 rated miles due to the cold and snowy roads. So I was using 1.7 rated miles for each mile I drove.
Pretty close to that 30% I just mentioned.
Same thing with wet roads and wind.
Not quite, but these impact any cars as well. Once you learn to stop focusing on the battery range and loose the "range anxiety" this pretty much becomes nothing to worry about. I honestly rarely drive the full range in a week, let alone a day.
You should also know that Tesla just acquired a battery company, here's the link:
Tesla acquires ultracapacitor and battery manufacturer for over $200 million
What this means is that the battery storage and performance will surely increase -- soon. Probably not in the 019 model year, but for sure in the 020 model year. So you may want to wait.
and wait, and wait, and wait. I assume that you've never bought a computer or a modern phone, because technology is getting better. Even batteries in phones and computers are getting better.
There's also some other gotchas you should be aware of. If your car ever needs body work, it could take a few months. I have a small dent that needs to be fixed. I started looking for repairs in January. The soonest I could get in was late March. Some shops were booked until June. The reason why is Tesla's are hard for a body shop to work on.
Same problem with most new to the market cars, inventories haven't caught up
Tesla's service is getting better. But it's been painfully bad. My experience has been just so-so with them. Calling them is getting better. It used to be a waste of time.
Some of the tech just doesn't work right. For example the Auto Wipers just don't work. Surely that'll be fixed with a software update one of these days. But it sure is frustrating.
We bought ours because we care about the environment. And, we needed a new car. I wasn't going to buy another ICE car. Would I buy another one? An EV, yes. But maybe not from Tesla. We'll see. While they do some things great, there's a lot not to like about them.
For example we bought the Performance+ version. The car is simply not safe with the stock 20" wheels and snow tires. I had to buy 18" wheels and new snow tires. It pissed me off. But now the car goes good in the snow.
Oh, okay, you just blew a lot of your range with your decision on car to buy. A performance and dual will definitely reduce your range. That's indeed something that Tesla tends to hide. But the reality is that even the P3D can hit 310, it's just a lot easier in the long rage single motor.
Also. Where do you live? Can you charge at home? If not, then don't buy one.
Is a 120V plug available? That satisfies the need of many people
Good news is that charging at home works out to being way less than gas. Last night I went 112 miles in the cold and snow. I used 30 kWh, which is worse case. That's less than $3 bucks in electricity. The same trip would have cost me at least $10 in gas.
Anything else I can help with let me know.
Peace and love,