Pleather for all...

[jeffro01]

Have you sat in a car with the new seat material?

I don't need to sit in the car to know that pleather will never be as good as the real thing. Ever. I left this out of my original post but I'll drop this in now for the hell of it... I see this as yet another idiotic "green" decision that placates a vocal minority of people while alienating the wider majority... News flash vegans/vegetarians, meat consumption isn't going anywhere anytime soon and the more you convince companies to stop using animal byproducts the more waste you create... At least the cow hides are getting used and not thrown away...

Jeff

 

[jeffro01]

You will be waiting for a long, long time.

I don't think so... I think some of you are sadly mistaken if you think Tesla can just skate along like they are now without any consequences... I'll go back to gas when my Model S lease is up if I have to... Especially if CA doesn't extend the white sticker carpool lane exemption past 2019... At that point, theres even less of an incentive to buy another Tesla...

Jeff

 

[whttiger25]

I don't need to sit in the car to know that pleather will never be as good as the real thing. Ever. I left this out of my original post but I'll drop this in now for the hell of it... I see this as yet another idiotic "green" decision that placates a vocal minority of people while alienating the wider majority... News flash vegans/vegetarians, meat consumption isn't going anywhere anytime soon and the more you convince companies to stop using animal byproducts the more waste you create... At least the cow hides are getting used and not thrown away...

Jeff

This clearly has nothing to do with being "green". Tesla is certainly not marketing it, thus there is no evidence they did this to be green. If that was the basis for the decision, wouldn't they issue a press release highlighting the fact?

No, the reasons are costs and durability. Pleather, functionally, is a better material for the purpose of a car seating material. It's very high end, it actually feels as soft as napa leather, it's easier to clean, and lasts 10 times as long. And yes, it's also cheaper.

Anyway....if you really want real leather, that's one thing. But try sitting in the seats. They are nice, they feel high quality enough to be in a 100k car. So if your issue is just that it isn't cow hide, then your argument is emotional. Which is fine. Cars purchases are very emotional and thus there is nothing wrong with your opinion. But the fact is, this pleather feels as good as leather and lasts 10x as long.

 

[whttiger25]

I don't think so... I think some of you are sadly mistaken if you think Tesla can just skate along like they are now without any consequences... I'll go back to gas when my Model S lease is up if I have to... Especially if CA doesn't extend the white sticker carpool lane exemption past 2019... At that point, theres even less of an incentive to buy another Tesla...

Jeff

I think the supercharger network is a crucial piece of the puzzle that no competitors will have access to or create for their own for a very, very long time. That network will provide Tesla a substantial competitive advantage for a long time and the competition knows it.

 

[Petra]

Tell that to the people who set the MSRP... Like it or not, when spending this amount of money on a car people have basic, I repeat basic, expectations as to what they are getting in return...

Jeff

Like I mentioned up thread, if it feels better than Tesla's leather offerings, wears better than the leather, and is easier to clean than the leather, then wouldn't the change represent a net gain in product worth to the customer? Again, set aside the knee-jerk expectations and experience the product. This doesn't need to be about environmentalism--it's a better product.

 

[jelloslug]

I don't need to sit in the car to know that pleather will never be as good as the real thing. Ever. I left this out of my original post but I'll drop this in now for the hell of it... I see this as yet another idiotic "green" decision that placates a vocal minority of people while alienating the wider majority... News flash vegans/vegetarians, meat consumption isn't going anywhere anytime soon and the more you convince companies to stop using animal byproducts the more waste you create... At least the cow hides are getting used and not thrown away...

Jeff

Tesla never mentioned the change as "vegan". In fact, if you ask them about it they will tell you that it is not. The fact that you have already judged the material as inferior even though you have not seen it in person says it all right there.

 

[ucmndd]

I don't need to sit in the car to know that pleather will never be as good as the real thing. Ever.

So true. I can't think of a single example where man-made materials have improved upon the perfection of nature.

Just like I'll never buy another piano without real ivory keys, I'll never buy another Tesla without real dead cows. Because principles matter.

I exclusively light my house with whale oil lamps for the same reason.

 

[jeffro01]

So true. I can't think of a single example where man-made materials have improved upon the perfection of nature.

Just like I'll never buy another piano without real ivory keys, I'll never buy another Tesla without real dead cows. Because principles matter.

I exclusively light my house with whale oil lamps for the same reason.

Really? Come on... Don't be "that guy"...

Jeff

 

[jelloslug]

I don't think so... I think some of you are sadly mistaken if you think Tesla can just skate along like they are now without any consequences... I'll go back to gas when my Model S lease is up if I have to... Especially if CA doesn't extend the white sticker carpool lane exemption past 2019... At that point, theres even less of an incentive to buy another Tesla...

Jeff

If there were any manufacturers that were actually serious about making a real, long range car or SUV AND the required supporting infrastructure your statement might hold some merit. As it stands right now though, your alternate choices to Tesla are a compact hatchback with almost no fast charging network, an upcoming SUV with no firm release date, rated range, or even a price, and a bunch of one off prototypes and renders.

 

[jeffro01]

Tesla never mentioned the change as "vegan". In fact, if you ask them about it they will tell you that it is not. The fact that you have already judged the material as inferior even though you have not seen it in person says it all right there.

No, what it says is I won't accept a change that cheapens the quality of the interior no matter how many of you seem to think this is somehow an improvement. Don't for one moment think this has nothing to do with the social/political side of this. Tesla has been slowly catering towards the animal justice warriors since that stupid question was allowed at the investors meeting a couple of years ago...

Jeff

 

[MorrisonHiker]

Take the Pepsi Challenge!

 

[jeffro01]

If there were any manufacturers that were actually serious about making a real, long range car or SUV AND the required supporting infrastructure your statement might hold some merit. As it stands right now though, your alternate choices to Tesla are a compact hatchback with almost no fast charging network, an upcoming SUV with no firm release date, rated range, or even a price, and a bunch of one off prototypes and renders.

Perhaps, I can't disagree with you as to what's available today or the immediate future...

Jeff

 

[ucmndd]

Really? Come on... Don't be "that guy"...

Jeff

Sorry. I have a hard time taking arguments seriously when they use absolutes like "ever".

Leather is "premium" because of historical perception and precedent. Not because of any sort of material superiority that will never be overcome.

Perceptions can change as technology and time marches on.

 

[jelloslug]

No, what it says is I won't accept a change that cheapens the quality of the interior no matter how many of you seem to think this is somehow an improvement. Don't for one moment think this has nothing to do with the social/political side of this. Tesla has been slowly catering towards the animal justice warriors since that stupid question was allowed at the investors meeting a couple of years ago...

Jeff

You said it yourself that you don't actually know what the material is like. Virtually everyone that has been in a Tesla with the new material will tell you that it's an upgrade to the leather that was previously offered. I have touched, sat in, and driven an Model X with the new material and I can say that it is superior to the material in my Model S and the material in the BMW that I had before. I was very skeptical that it would look nice in pictures but be garbage in real life but that is far from reality. As for Tesla "animal justice warriors", offering a leather free car at an extra price and not even mentioning it anywhere in their website or option list is hardly them catering towards them at the expense of their "normal" customers.

 

[sandpiper]

Like I mentioned up thread, if it feels better than Tesla's leather offerings, wears better than the leather, and is easier to clean than the leather, then wouldn't the change represent a net gain in product worth to the customer? Again, set aside the knee-jerk expectations and experience the product. This doesn't need to be about environmentalism--it's a better product.

If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, and tastes like a duck.... then heck, break out the cutlery. It's good enough for me!

 

[X Fan]

You said it yourself that you don't actually know what the material is like. Virtually everyone that has been in a Tesla with the new material will tell you that it's an upgrade to the leather that was previously offered. I have touched, sat in, and driven an Model X with the new material and I can say that it is superior to the material in my Model S and the material in the BMW that I had before. I was very skeptical that it would look nice in pictures but be garbage in real life but that is far from reality. As for Tesla "animal justice warriors", offering a leather free car at an extra price and not even mentioning it anywhere in their website or option list is hardly them catering towards them at the expense of their "normal" customers.

\\

+1....White material in X is my favorite (ever) and I've owned BMW's, Mercedes & Porsches with their "fancy" leather products....

 

[jelloslug]

Sorry. I have a hard time taking arguments seriously when they use absolutes like "ever".

Leather is "premium" because of historical perception and precedent. Not because of any sort of material superiority that will never be overcome.

Perceptions can change as technology and time marches on.

Very true, "premium car" used to have to be filled with plastic wood and fake vinyl convertible tops to be considered "high end".

 

[Mike K]

Soylent green is people.

 

[mkspeedr]

I appreciate quality leather. Wearing a leather motorcycle suit daily and crashing at a high rate of speed provides excellent data points to wear, construction, feel and abrasion tolerance of different quality leather.

The leather in my Ford truck, compared to my Tesla or other high end vehicles varies significantly - like my leather racing suits.

I would gladly welcome a better higher quality, softer, long lasting, easier cleaning, higher abrasion resistant better solution. Man made or synthetic - a better solution is a better solution.

 

[spentan]

I have the white interior in 3 of my Xes (the other 2 are black on black), and the white interior has held up better than the black leather.

This is comparing 2 model Xes, both with close to 70000 miles each. I'm very happy that all the new options are the stain resistant synthetic.

 

[wbhokie]

I have an S with leather, and my wife's X has the white "pleather". IMO, the pleather is far and away better. Tesla's leather wasn't great to begin with. The ultra white is softer, more durable, and more comfortable. I was sold on the white seats the first time I sat on them... and I already had a Tesla!

Things change. It's just odd to see statements like "leather is always better" coming from owners of electric cars. If you are willing to embrace the technology at that price point, I'd assume you would be willing to at least "try" something else new in your car. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn't. I wonder what will happen if they start making non-rubber tires. People will revolt!