Model 3 Stability/Drift

[AndyS3]

I ve had our LR3 rear end flicking out, reverse lock steering.

In compacted snow a few weeks back.

The normal road conditions very planted around corners

 

[Adopado]

I ve had our LR3 rear end flicking out, reverse lock steering.

In compacted snow a few weeks back.

The normal road conditions very planted around corners

It takes a good bit of effort to get the car moving sideways on winter tyres so plenty of space needed for experimenting! .... but I have a plan!

 

[rouge trooper]

Moderator comment - posts merged from "lack of slide"

Took my m3lr for drive on farm tracks and unable to get a slide on . Is this the only downside of a Tesla

 

[Gatsojon]

The performance has track mode and options for reducing stability intervention. Do the others not have something to turn off traction control then?

 

[speedyranger74]

In settings or demo mode(I don't remember how to activate it)

 

[Adopado]

The performance has track mode and options for reducing stability intervention. Do the others not have something to turn off traction control then?

There used to be a trick to activate a so called dyno mode that could turn off traction control... but I believe this is no longer possible ... but if anyone knows an alternative for SR+ or LR I would be interested to know. I did manage a non-smooth 360 drift in the snow in the RWD SR+ (off road) ... the car keeps trying to correct all the time so it's not very elegant but it's sort of possible!!

 

[pgkevet]

Took my m3lr for drive on farm tracks and unable to get a slide on . Is this the only downside of a Tesla

Try wet leaves and gravel next autumn. Only problem is fighting the traction control to straighten the darn thing out...

 

[Medved_77]

There used to be a trick to activate a so called dyno mode that could turn off traction control... but I believe this is no longer possible ... but if anyone knows an alternative for SR+ or LR I would be interested to know. I did manage a non-smooth 360 drift in the snow in the RWD SR+ (off road) ... the car keeps trying to correct all the time so it's not very elegant but it's sort of possible!!

It's still available but quits as soon as the brake is applied or the steering (or both, can't remember)

 

[speedyranger74]

 

[Neilio]

My car is the first awd car I've owned and I'm impressed with the stability. Summer tyres on and a lot of power but I've never lost traction once, not even in heavy rain. Do you know when the traction control has kicked in? In an ICE car you normally get the "skidding car " symbol but I've never seen anything in the Tesla even when booting it

 

[Fadiawesome]

I think your tires are maybe to blame, cuase the stock tires on the SR+ suck in wet conditions(in my opinion). the car feels planted for me no matter what I try to do(within margin)

 

[tomorrowman]

Moderator comment - thread renamed and merged from "SR+ Stability/Drift" and "lack of slide"

I have an SR+ that I got in the spring. Over the summer no noticeable issues powering out of roundabouts and corners. Traction control seamed to handle it. Since the roads have got wet and tyres cold I have had a couple of wiggles from the back end. One big enough to give me a fright. So appart from the obvious remedy of being more cautious with my right foot I wondered two things;

1. how good is the traction control and has anybody ever properly lost the back end or had a serious drift in an SR+?

2. is this much different in the dual motor/ 4 wheel drive versions? Ie is there a stability benefit in the LR/P?

1) Can only comment on M3LR - Traction is normally great but I did find rear got 'loose' when tire tread was reaching legal minimum. replacing rear tyre rectified
2) 4 wheel drive tends to give you more traction but its not a miracle worker. 4WD car's used to be vicious when they reach the limits with zero warning traction loss. The M3LR interestingly doesn't exhibit this behaviour, it seems to start a 4 wheel drift outwards fairly benignly and simple reduction of power rectifies.

 

[Neilio]

The M3LR interestingly doesn't exhibit this behaviour, it seems to start a 4 wheel drift outwards fairly benignly and simple reduction of power rectifies.

That's possibly due to it's weight. It's a heavy car pushing down on the tyres. Add to that the very low centre of gravity and you have less weight imbalance between the outside and the inside wheels.

 

[akenham]

That's possibly due to it's weight. It's a heavy car pushing down on the tyres. Add to that the very low centre of gravity and you have less weight imbalance between the outside and the inside wheels.

My AWD M3 exhibits very similar "bolted on rails" good behaviour to my previous 4matic Mercedes. I suspect it's adopting much the same approach too - first "level" of SC is quite moderate making use of 4wd (reduce / shift power delivery between axles) and only if you exceed that do you feel full stability control as the car makes perceptible corrections (usually a slight wriggle on extremely poor surface conditions).

I never saw the traction control light on either the merc or the Tesla yet (I only know it worked on the merc as it used to overreact to speed bumps even at low speed, cutting power).

Caveat: I've yet to put winter or cross-climate tyres on as we're now likely locked down until spring this year[1] so my Tesla experience is Michelin Pilot Sport 4 on dreadful UK country roads down -1 to -3 Celsius and an awful lot of frost, mud, rain and standing water during the first half of winter. I would expect a high-end winter-capable tyre would make it hard to even provoke slight wriggles under any normal usage from my similar AWD Mercedes-on-winter-tyres experience.

[1] Yes, I've had the debate with myself about the risk of regretting buying a second set of wheels/tyres even with my current v low mileage but stay at-home/local kicked in before I could source some wheels and tyres at the end of December...

 

[browellm]

Yes, I've had the debate with myself about the risk of regretting buying a second set of wheels/tyres even with my current v low mileage but stay at-home/local kicked in before I could source some wheels and tyres at the end of December...

It's the eternal dilemma, especially in the Midlands/South where full winter tyres would probably be of benefit for maybe 10 days a year. This is why I'm excited for the latest developments in all season tyres. For UK drivers they fit the bill almost perfectly and perform brilliantly in our prevailing conditions, whilst keeping costs low.

 

[akenham]

It's the eternal dilemma, especially in the Midlands/South where full winter tyres would probably be of benefit for maybe 10 days a year. This is why I'm excited for the latest developments in all season tyres. For UK drivers they fit the bill almost perfectly and perform brilliantly in our prevailing conditions, whilst keeping costs low.

Very much agreed - I won't buy full winters again. As you say all season would be perfect in the UK unless you live somewhere very hilly and/or further North.

I will still switch over to summers but it'll be nice to not feel the pressure to do it as soon as temps rise, and a bonus for the second set of wheels to be a valid set of spares even in the summer.

 

[Dangerous Fish]

Full winters are not just good for snow. The weather has been wet and cold for longer than 10 days and there's a lot to be gained from full winters (if chosen carefully) in these conditions.

 

[Adopado]

Full winters are not just good for snow. The weather has been wet and cold for longer than 10 days and there's a lot to be gained from full winters (if chosen carefully) in these conditions.

Yes, it's a common misconception that winter tyres are just for snow ice and slush. They are, of course, brilliant in snow ice and slush but they are also brilliant in normal UK cold wet or dry conditions when the temperature nudges 7c or below ... and that's a lot of mornings across the UK. However, it's also true that winter tyres are not as capable as summer or all weather tyres when the temperatures rise, and in the south of the country this can happen quite quickly ... and then drop again a few days later!! You really can't win unless you employ a Formula One pit crew standing by to put on the appropriate tyres every morning!

A good "all season" tyre (European spec All Season .. equivalent to USA All Weather not same as USA All Season) should give a very acceptable balanced performance for the driving we do in this country all year round and really should be the "best" compromise. The only problem I'm now having is that I have experienced how great full winters are in winter ... and how great summers are in summer! I just can't get it out of my head that All Season tyres would not be quite as good as my winters in winter and not quite so good as my summers in summer! So when my current winter/summer tyres wear I'm going to be in as much of a dilemma as ever ... what to choose ... and we haven't even mentioned efficiency considerations .

 

[Dangerous Fish]

I have Vredestein Wintrac Pro winters and various summers depening on how much I'm tracking the car, but I left the Vredesteins on way longer then usual last year and they were still excellent in dry and relatively warm conditions. High performance winter tyres have really come on. The overlap between summers and winters is much wider now.

 

[Adopado]

I have Vredestein Wintrac Pro winters and various summers depening on how much I'm tracking the car, but I left the Vredesteins on way longer then usual last year and they were still excellent in dry and relatively warm conditions. High performance winter tyres have really come on. The overlap between summers and winters is much wider now.

True ... I was a late changer too last year and the performance didn't drop off a cliff by any means (Goodyear Ultragrip). Maybe that should reassure me about All Seasons? I have the tyres changed on the same rims so benefit from a full rebalance as part of that process ... which is nice because most of us don't routinely rebalance our wheels/tyres just for the hell of it but they do go slightly off with wear even though you don't really notice. It's one of the reasons why your car feels like new when you change a whole set all at once ... it's not just because they are lovely new tyres it's because they are freshly balanced.