Model S vs. Maserati Quattroporte
Mulder1231 - a Dutch guy who lives in the US, asked me to translate a story I wrote on the Dutch/Flemish subforum - so I tried.
I testdrove the Model S last tuesday here in the Netherlands. It was a short drive - roughly 20 min. but long enough to get a very good impression and to be able to compare with my daily driver, a Maserati Quattroporte.
In a QP you get kind of spoiled when it comes to speed and handling. I think it still is one of the best handling big sedans on the market, even seven years after it's introduction. For anyone who isn't familiar with the Masers lay-out: the Ferrari derived 4.2 litre 32 valve V8 has 400HP and lies behind the front axle and very low in the chassis thanks to its dry-sump oil system. The gearbox is next to the differential in the rear and it is a 'duoselect' which means it is basically a normal manual gearbox with clutch with a pneumatic system shifting for you. The result of all this is a very low centre of gravity and an almost perfect weight distribution of 49/51% front/rear. In spite of it's hefty weight it handles fantastic. Very few cars, even today, can match it. As I said you get used to such a combination of power and handling. "Power corrupts" is a very true statement in this car and the Tesla people must have had this in mind as they designed the Model S because I found the combination of speed and handling very very impressive. For sure it is faster then my QP from 0-160km/h (0-100miles) above that speed the QP keeps pulling where the S seems to slack off some, but such speed are useless in Holland anyway. Where in the Maserati many compromises had to be made to achieve the low gravity centre between the axles, in the S it just comes naturally as a result of the battery sitting so low. You can tell because just as in the QP it handles it's weight very well into and through the corners with very little body roll. The QP feels smaller as you start pushing it and the S has a similar feeling. Steering feel is also very communicative. Not as precise as in the Maserati where you feel every small stone, but very close. The overall impression of quality when you get inside the car exceeded my expectations. Of course my reference is not German (boring Audi's and Bimmers) so that may explain it some. The dash and cabin are just so different then anything you have ever seen, no dails or knobs anywhere. It really feels as a design-interior. Clean-modern-roomy and yet you are pleasantly 'in' the car.
And then you start driving... to find out that this is really, 100%, absolutely, not a single doubt, the future of all cars. The 'gas'pedal, or ampspedal rather, is your brakepedal at the same time. Down is faster, up is braking/slower. This regeneration-driving is all very natural and even though you have never done it before after one minute it feels as if you have never done without. Beautiful. Afterwards in your own car you experience a lot of your braking as annoying and irritating, because in the S it could have been done in regen. The brakes feel as if they have enough bite, but i didn't really punish them. On constant speeds it is a really comfortable cruiser. Very quiet, but that is easy compared to the noisy Maserati. Wind and tire noises are present, but the stereo was off. The sound system I didn't try but I trust it will be ok. Powering from 0-100 (0-60miles) is really impressive. It will be a lot of fun to humiliate all the powerfull ICE cars at the lights as they struggle to get their power on the asphalt. I know what my Maser can do but it does not stand a chance. No way in hell. It feels like one constant megapush, so directly connected to the input of your rightfoot that it feels almost as if the commands come straight from your brain. A mindconnection, almost. The very small hesitation that every ICE car has, even a superresponsive Ferrari V8 being launched from, let's say 5000rpm, feels like a... well, let's say a summervacation.
Strangely I didn't miss the sound of an engine. Keep in mind that the awesome sound of my QP was a big reason to buy it - I still roll down the windows when I drive underneath a tunnel
But the S is so new, as a model and as a carbrand, that there simply is no expectation. With American/German/Italian performance engines you have a certain expectation about the sound. With the S engine sound is a non-issue - no expectation, no disappointment. I expect that one gets used to it very soon. Just in case I will keep the QP - next to my Alfa Romeo collection to be able to play with them occasionally on sundays. Just like Jay Leno suggest in his Model S Youtube vid.
And then the exterior. My overpriced Fiat (they own Maserati - saved it, really) is a timeless beauty from the hands of the late Pininfarina. Even almost eight years after it's introduction it is still one of the most beautiful cars around. The S does not have the QP's presence, but it is very well proportioned. The big wheels look very natural on it. 19" on the Maser seem big enough but on the S it would look smallish. I have seen a lightgrey and a black one and I think a dark color looks better on it. It looks wider and lower in black.
To finish some loose thoughts on the S.
I think the difference in 1900 between the horse&carriage and the first cars was smaller then the difference between the Model S and the rest in 2012. Waiting for the S is as if you have reservation number for the first iPhone a year before anyone even knew Apple was going into phones: nobody understands what you are talking about but you know that something REALLY IMPORTANT is coming. So special even that it will change the whole industry and also our society. It feels nice to be among people on this forum who also are aware of this.
Regards from Holland (and Belgium, the Dutch part at least;-)) - the Tesla HotSpot in the EU. Don't believe it? Check Zeemaps!
Peter.
