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P85D sighting / test drives

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Hmm, is that a 3rd version of the frunks closing mechanism? To the left is something that I cannot see in he pictures taken by motor trend...

I noticed the double latch was missing in another thread about the motor trend picture of the D frunks. I suspect this might have something to do with the new "active bonnet" feature mentioned in the Euro NCAP tests. I bet that the vehicle pops the hood now if it senses a pedestrian collision and that necessitated they remove the double latching mechanism.
 
Okay, so unlatching the hood enables the front end to "crumple" more effectively. Got it, thanks.

It makes a little more sense in the case of a traditional vehicle with an engine under the hood that would push back against the pedestrian. However, even in the Tesla I'd imagine that if it's lifted it isn't resting on the bumpers the hood sits on and that makes it absorb the energy more. It's really not clear if that functionality is on US bound vehicles. Tesla has said absolutely nothing about this functionality, which I find surprising. The European and Australian orders have started getting new codes in the safety system field of the VIN (6 and 7) but Tesla still hasn't filed an update to the VIN decoding that explains what those mean, which means they aren't sending vehicles with those VIN codes to US bound customers (last update was 12/10/2013).

The Euro NCAP tests put more focus on crash testing for pedestrians than the US ones. So it may be that the US vehicles won't have this functionality at all for a while. Tesla doesn't have a lot of incentive to include it in the US because nobody tests for it. Tesla has so far as I can tell been very strange about not including things they don't have to in jurisdictions they don't. E.G. the security package for EU cars, Immobilizer for Canadian cars. I'd rather they'd deliver the best available technology to everyone.
 
AFAIK all of the P85D test drives are limited to ride alongs, not just the engineering car in Palo Alto. Mine is scheduled for Monday morning in Fremont - can't wait!

Congratulations! The rule around here is... Pics or it didn't happen.

First, the required pic before the narrative :biggrin:

P85DBadge_zps0bde0b2f.jpg


I had my test ride today. It was supposed to take place in Fremont, but the demo P85D car there had a charging issue. In true Tesla fashion, my host offered to take us over to Palo Alto to use their demo. Just an extra hour out of his day, but hey, this is how Tesla satisfies customers.

The experience was awesome. The acceleration at launch is unreal. My son was attempting to video a 0-60 run, and we all ended up laughing because of the nose smudge he got on his camera rear screen when the camera and his head snapped backwards because of the g-force.

While I was anticipating the acceleration, I didn't know what to expect of the handling. To me, the improvement there were actually more impressive than the acceleration. First off, the overall ride seemed a little smoother than my early P85+. But what I really liked was how the power at the front end pulls the car through a turn, overcoming the natural tendency of a heavy sedan to understeer. I'm certain that on a windy road or a slalom course the P85D will leave a P85+ in the dust. And that is saying something.

My only concern is the detrimental impact my right foot will have on wh/mi once I own this car.
 
It would be nice if people would pay more attention to other details like seats, handling, head room, road noise etc.....than acceleration. we get that it's fast off the line but how is it otherwise in real world driving.
 
It would be nice if people would pay more attention to other details like seats, handling, head room, road noise etc.....than acceleration. we get that it's fast off the line but how is it otherwise in real world driving.

I've already commented on road noise and handling. The seats are a HUGE improvement - the side bolstering feels appropriate for the level of performance of the car. The only criticism some might have is that they don't have the "14-way adjustability" that you get in BMW/Mercedes/Audi sport seats. But they supported me just fine so that is not a problem for me.
 
I've already commented on road noise and handling. The seats are a HUGE improvement - the side bolstering feels appropriate for the level of performance of the car. The only criticism some might have is that they don't have the "14-way adjustability" that you get in BMW/Mercedes/Audi sport seats. But they supported me just fine so that is not a problem for me.

Thanks, I think my post may have come across snottier than I meant it to. Did you notice how high up you sat in the seats?, did you sit lower in them than the standard seats?
 
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I've already commented on road noise and handling. The seats are a HUGE improvement - the side bolstering feels appropriate for the level of performance of the car. The only criticism some might have is that they don't have the "14-way adjustability" that you get in BMW/Mercedes/Audi sport seats. But they supported me just fine so that is not a problem for me.
How tall are you? I am a little over 6feet 4inches(195cm in this part of the world..) and would really be interested in the views from someone with similar height. New seats was the last thing that sealed the deal for me.
 
How tall are you? I am a little over 6feet 4inches(195cm in this part of the world..) and would really be interested in the views from someone with similar height. New seats was the last thing that sealed the deal for me.

I'm 6'1". My son is 6'4" and he also sat in the front and really liked the seats. He has aftermarket Recaros in his BMW and thought the Tesla seats compared favorably.
 
It makes a little more sense in the case of a traditional vehicle with an engine under the hood that would push back against the pedestrian. However, even in the Tesla I'd imagine that if it's lifted it isn't resting on the bumpers the hood sits on and that makes it absorb the energy more. It's really not clear if that functionality is on US bound vehicles. Tesla has said absolutely nothing about this functionality, which I find surprising. The European and Australian orders have started getting new codes in the safety system field of the VIN (6 and 7) but Tesla still hasn't filed an update to the VIN decoding that explains what those mean, which means they aren't sending vehicles with those VIN codes to US bound customers (last update was 12/10/2013).

The Euro NCAP tests put more focus on crash testing for pedestrians than the US ones. So it may be that the US vehicles won't have this functionality at all for a while. Tesla doesn't have a lot of incentive to include it in the US because nobody tests for it. Tesla has so far as I can tell been very strange about not including things they don't have to in jurisdictions they don't. E.G. the security package for EU cars, Immobilizer for Canadian cars. I'd rather they'd deliver the best available technology to everyone.

I believe this idea that the front of the hood is popped as part of the active safety system is incorrect.

The system raises the rear of the hood at the hinges. You an see it starting at about 1:17 in the European crash test video:

 
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@MarcG, or anyone about to take a test ride, any chance you could ask about how the different "modes" that Elon spoke about actually affect performance? How does "normal" differ from "sport" from "insane"? Tesla hasn't said much about this since the D reveal.
 
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320809de7f513113edb5d0f005042003.jpg

Bugeater... thanks for the pics.. especially this one which is the first glimpse I think we've seen of what the front drivetrain setup looks like.

I also just came across this pic of dual-motor skateboard from the GQ interview with Musk:

Tesla-Testdrive-080-gq-17nov14_b_813x494.jpg