Not confident this is a good road trip vehicle for me...

[SFOTurtle]

Honestly I think that's the issue. Basically at certain size/age/weights (from what I can tell) kids can sit in the third-row seats but aren't big enough to sit in a booster seat. So if somebody has to pack two full car seats into a MS just in case something goes wrong, well that defeats the purpose of the third-row seats, right? In fact in that situation the third-row seats are a distinctly negative feature; they cost you money you aren't taking advantage of, they are adding weight to your car, and they are taking up the under-floor storage space that could have been used for something else.

Now if you are going to be close to home then not a big deal. Or if your children are large enough for a small booster seat as a backup then not as big of a deal either.



Perhaps my first post was unclear (obviously it was?) but I was never complaining about flat tires. I was really just sharing my frustration with the roadside assistance combined with third-row seat situation and looking for advice on how it could have gone better.



I actually did receive great advice mixed in with the more negative posts. I have ordered a great inflatable booster seat that can easily be carried as a backup to the third-row seats. Technically my child is still a little bit too light for it but in an emergency I think it would work. So I did receive and took advice. Additionally when my tires need replacement I'm going to seriously consider aftermarket 20" wheels.

Finally, I see this could be a significant negative aspect of the third-row seats, especially if road trips with kids had been my primary use-case when ordering my MS. Nobody mentioned this possible limitation on any of the threads I have seen (everything I read was about ventilation and safety of the third-row seats). I'm sure a future buyer might appreciate this information.

We just completed a 1,000 mile road trip with our MS that has rear-facing seats. We brought our three kids, two of whom are in forward-facing car seats and the third is only 4 months old so had the base and a standard Kraco rear facing seat. For virtually all of our trip, we had the third row seats stowed away and used all of the hatch/rear trunk area for storage, including the foot space which still is useable. We also could use the space behind the driver's and front row passenger seat for storage of smaller things like bags, although we have in the past put a pack in play wedged in there to create even more space in the rear trunk.

There was one night where we had to shuttle around two other adults, so we removed the two forward facing seats and put the 3 year olds in the rear facing seats. When we made this change and re-arranged the trunk to put the rear-facing seats in place, the reaction of our two adult friends was astonishment. They literally said that we were the best advertisement for Tesla and were amazed at the versatility of the car especially with the rear-facing seats. The comment was like, "Tesla should make a commercial with you guys!"

For us, long road trips = 3 car seats for the kids across the second row (for the half dozen road trips we did before the new baby arrived, we had two car seats in the second row), and folding up the rear facing seats to use for an incredible amount of storage and luggage for a sedan. For everyday driving around town or when we need to take an extra adult or two, our 3 year olds love the rear-facing seats and ask to get in them rather than get in our MS 60 which only has the forward-facing seats.

Easy peasy. When we returned home after the road trip, we both had the same reaction: The MS 85 is the most amazing machine we have ever driven and wouldn't trade it for any vehicle.

 

[Griffinlair]

To the OP, while I can understand that your experience with the double flat and the situation that ensued due to that was less than desired. I do, however; hope that the perceived (real or otherwise) deficiency of the Model S is taken with the understanding that had this double flat occurred in your minivan, it could have easily caused a serious if not fatal accident. Given the choice between the safest vehicle ever tested with a flaw of potential inconvenience and a high center of gravity minivan with a significant chance of rollover and a lower (or much lower) crash rating, I would take the Model S everyday and twice on Tuesdays.

 

[kirkbauer]

For the record this is the backup booster seat I ordered:

BubbleBum - Bubblebum

 

[yul sam]

I am getting my new MS this week with 19" wheels, I have learned my lesson. I ordered my soon to be gone Mercedes with very low profile summer tires, and just last week I blew my 5th summer tire in 3 years in another rain covered pothole in beautiful Montreal. A few months ago I had my fourth blow up on a trip to Toronto, and I had to return on a Sunday with no way to order a tire. I limped back to Montreal on the midget spare at 80/90 kph (50/56 mph). This is how people learn to live with low profile tires. My winters sit on smaller wheels with bigger shoulders, and I have to lose one yet.

Most of the people disagreeing with the OP, me included, do so because this is clearly not an issue relating to the make of car he drives, but basically his choice of wheels/tires and car seats. Any other car with the same choice of wheels/tires and car seats would have been in exactly the same situation.

BTW my, first car with "aftermarket" seat belts that I installed myself was back in 1968. I brought up my three kids without child seats, they are 37, 38 and 41 today. I was always a crazy driver until my first grandchild was born 6 years ago, and I decided to be there when he grows up. However, whenever I had one or more of my kids in the car I drove super careful knowing the risks involved.

Last point: When you have to choose between leaving a car on the emergency lane of a highway with passengers in it, or leaving the site in another car with no child seats, the intelligent choice is the second one. Look up the half life expectancy of a vehicle sitting on the shoulder of an interstate type highway.

 

[kirkbauer]

Most of the people disagreeing with the OP, me included, do so because this is clearly not an issue relating to the make of car he drives, but basically his choice of wheels/tires and car seats. Any other car with the same choice of wheels/tires and car seats would have been in exactly the same situation.

BTW my, first car with "aftermarket" seat belts that I installed myself was back in 1968. I brought up my three kids without child seats, they are 37, 38 and 41 today. I was always a crazy driver until my first grandchild was born 6 years ago, and I decided to be there when he grows up. However, whenever I had one or more of my kids in the car I drove super careful knowing the risks involved.

Last point: When you have to choose between leaving a car on the emergency lane of a highway with passengers in it, or leaving the site in another car with no child seats, the intelligent choice is the second one. Look up the half life expectancy of a vehicle sitting on the shoulder of an interstate type highway.

Thank you for your constructive feedback! I disagree with a little bit of your otherwise helpful post -- I don't think you can buy any other new car today that will let you legally and safely transport young children without a separate car seat. So that does make part of this (and my reason for posting) Tesla-specific.

Secondly, I drove far enough to get into a relatively safe position, which fortunately wasn't too far. In my case there was a paved shoulder that was wider than a standard lane, and then there was a dirt area that was wider than two more lanes. I was parked all the way to the side, giving about 30 feet of distance between me and moving traffic (half of that pavement, half of that dirt). Additionally, and fortunately, since there was construction in the area, there were several of those large (oil drum sized) reflective orange traffic barrels. I moved one of them upstream from where I was parked with my hazards on.

 

[Xenoilphobe]

Smart Man - too many people watch the accidents on the shoulder and drive right into the parked vehicle. caution graphic

 

[brianman]

Data point:
Just got back from a Bellevue, WA to Las Vegas, NV round-trip on Saturday night.
Roughly 2,800 miles.
Lowest temperature observed: -4°F.
Lowest temperature @ supercharger: 2°F.

Superchargers the whole way. Shout out to Twin Falls, ID.

Edit:
For the curious, I haven't pulled stats from my logs yet but the timeline was roughly:
11/21 Sat 8pm - Leave Bellevue
11/21 Sleep @ Pendleton, OR
11/22 Sleep @ Nephi, UT
11/23 Mon 4pm - Arrive Las Vegas
<fun in Vegas>
11/27 Fri 9am - Leave Las Vegas
11/27 Sleep @ Twin Falls, ID
11/28 Sat 11:55pm - Arrive Bellevue