Hi all,
I bought my Model S 75D on Sep 30 from available inventory at the Nashville Tesla dealer. My birthday was 9/29 and I was about to pull the trigger on a demo 100D, but it was in St. Louis....and after a lot of back and forth on Sep 29, that deal didn't work out. Fortunately for me, Tesla was trying to close Q3 strong and Sep 30 was the last day. That worked to my advantage as they had some new inventory offered at a mild discount ($3,000 off). I looked at 3 S 75Ds in inventory and decided on my white beauty, with cream interior and the upgraded 19 inch gunmetal color (I forget the name of the wheels).
Sidenote: I was the very last Q3 delivery at the Nashville Tesla dealer. That whole place had been working day and night to deliver as many vehicles in Q3 as possible. The sales lead told me their best quarter ever, prior to Q3 2018, was 130 deliveries. In Q3 2018, I was their 457th (something like that) delivery. Wow, over 3 times their prior record quarter. I'm sure a lot of that is the Model 3 release, but still. Just wow.
So, I'm all of 10 days into ownership, but I'll share some initial impressions/observations....
Styling/Appearance:
- this is obviously subjective, but I think the Model S is one of the sleekest sport sedans on the road, in any class. I'm partial to the BMW 5 series, and I think the Model S looks better.
Build Quality:
- I had read about this pre-purchase, but I'm still a bit disappointed in the general build quality. Tesla just doesn't seem to have the manufacturing dialed in yet, as there are seams (where doors come together, etc.) that are just not exact the way you are used to seeing in the more established auto manufacturers. Another example: I have some sort of excessive glob of glue/adhesive behind one of my tail lights. This car came straight from the plant to the dealer like this. It's not a huge deal, but it's something I'm going to have to take the car in and leave for a day or whatever to have cleaned up. It's just a general sign of build quality. And, at this price point....it's disappointing.
Driving impression:
- Noise: being all electric, I actually expected it to be quieter. There's a decent amount of road noise coming from the 19 inch tires. I cannot imagine what the 21 or 22s must sound like. I think this is because the Model S is really heavy -- there's a lot of weight on the tires, which has to contribute to road noise. Also, there's a decent amount of noise intrusion into the cabin at highway speed. I'm not put off by this, but I do think it's an area where Tesla can improve....and is not yet on par with BMW or Mercedes. Those German vehicles feel like you are tucked away inside a vault.
- Ride quality and handling are very nice....incredibly smooth ride, yet still very sporty. Because of the weight of the car, it feels absolutely glued to the road in turns.
- Acceleration: my 75D is rated at 0-60 in 4.2 seconds. I have yet to fully depress the "gas" pedal, so I haven't tested this. But, the acceleration I have experienced thus far leads me to believe 4.2 is accurate (or even conservative). As you've probably read, it's instant torque, which is a bit of a shock to the system. It throws you against the seat like a roller coaster taking off.
Technology:
- Autopilot (I have Enhanced Autopilot) is absolutely amazing. I came from a Volvo XC90, which also had above average lane departure aids, blind spot monitoring, auto-braking, etc. But, the Autopilot in the Model S is light years ahead. On the highway (and really any road with clear lane markings), this thing will drive and steer itself, including switching lanes when you give the signal. I am one software update away from full self-driving. This is something I will consider, once this passes government regulation.
- the 17 inch touchscreen is phenomenal, and works extremely well. The processor is very fast, so there is no latency, etc.
- my only complaint, as an iPhone user, is that the vehicle, with all this technology, doesn't offer an Apple Carplay feature. I was quite spoiled by having this in my Volvo. The upside is that Tesla could decide at any time to push this as a new feature through an over the air software update.
Charging / Range Anxiety:
- My 75D has a rated range of 259 miles. In real-life, I think it's going to be under that - maybe 230-240 miles. I have 2 free chargers in my office parking garage and the Tesla dealer/Supercharger 1 mile from my office. So, I really have no concern with charging away from home on a daily basis. As for charging at home, I am using the Tesla adapter for a NEMA 14-30 (dryer plug) and just sharing the dryer outlet in the house. This isn't super convenient, so I'll eventually get a dedicated outlet to charge the vehicle. My charging time with the dryer outlet is 17 miles per hour. So, overnight, I can get up to 170 miles of charge, easy. My daily commute is 10 miles each way, so I have very little range anxiety at this point. For road trips, we typically go to Birmingham or Knoxville, and each is a 3 hour drive. Using Tesla's trip planner online, I was able to see (before purchasing the car) that we'd have to stop 1 time for 20-30 minutes at the Supercharger, going to either destination. These are the exact exits where we stop anyway for Starbucks/Chick Fil A, etc. So, that made my buying decision much easier....especially when comparing the 75D to the more expensive (and longer range) 100D.
- Longer-term, I am concerned with Tesla keeping up the infrastructure (read: adding new Superchargers) on-pace with the number of Tesla's on the road. With the addition of the smaller, more affordable (though, still not cheap by any stretch) Model 3, Tesla is already multiplying in volume. My concern is a day in the future where Tesla owners are waiting in line to charge on a road trip. Hopefully, Tesla is ahead of that with the infrastructure.
- Supercharging: so, Q3 (Sep 30) was the last day Tesla was offering the "free Supercharging for life" on their Model S and X models. This ended up being a large factor in why I purchased the vehicle on Sep 30. Tesla was motivated to close Q3 strong (hence, a bit of a discount on my model), and I was very motivated to get in under the wire on the free Supercharging. Unless this was just a sales gimmick they threw me (read: they decide to push out the free Supercharging cutoff to 12/31, etc.), all future Model S and X purchases will have to pay for Supercharging. While it may not be a huge financial incentive, I felt it was significant for my buying decision.
All in all, I'm thrilled with the vehicle so far. Yes, there are things to improve. But, I haven't lost sight of what drew me to the Model S. It's a phenomenal piece of engineering. And, it's like no vehicle I've ever owed.
