Realist gets Real ;-)

[Discoducky]

What an amazing read! Huge win for Tesla and for Realist

I got the car last week. Done 900km so far. P85D, Black, 21Wheels, all Options but no piano roof

I am deeply impressed by the improvements over the first p85+ I tried in Dez. 2013. This car feels way more refined, simply better in every way. It's very smooth, charging works excellent,no problems so far. This is a very well engineered car now.

After the first days with the Tesla it becomes clear that this car really comes from a different world. It's entirely different to the i8. The Model S wants to be an everyday car. Usability is excellent, comfort is good, it's easy to drive and the drivetrain is truly unique.

The i8 is much more a conventional GT supercar yet with unbelievable efficiency and a truly remarkable drivetrain as well. Apart from the P85D's super launch it's a lot faster. Above 60mph it will smoke the Tesla regardless SoC. Anyway I am not complaining about that, as the i8 is not nearly as practical AND it's actually closer to a classic ICE in the way it feels and reacts. It's still got a 3 cycl. in the back.

Therefore the Tesla is indeed in it's own league. It's just not really a performance car. If you want that, get a Porsche turbo.

Nevertheless I will attack the Nordschleife in this thing just to see what its capable of.

Would be interesting to hear what details about the superchargers won you over?

Funny to read that. I admit at that time I had no clue how this superchargers really work.
In fact the superchargers are essential to the car’s success. Without them I’d never bought the P85D.In my opinion range anxiety is still the main issue for most costumers when buying an electric car. This issue could prevent the established car manufacturers to go purely electric. I believe we will see many plug-in hybrid cars in the near future but the Tesla could stay unique for quite some time.

 

[chickensevil]

I completely agree. And the best part about the ONE place you can't get to is that it is exactly where they will eventually put the Supercharger. For us, the One Place was El Centro, CA, where we have a commercial property. It was really marginal to do a round trip from San Diego. We could have done it, by continuing on to Yuma, AZ, and filling up before the return journey, but that was an extra couple of hours driving. Now there's a supercharger less than a mile away.

Wow, some place in CA that was inaccessible? *shocked*

I kid, I kid... But that right there should drive home that these things take time, and even their key market has taken time to get decently saturated with chargers. So even if there isn't a dot on the map where someone wants to go for the 2016 rollout, I guarantee that 2016 isn't "the end" of new locations for Tesla and probably by the end of this year they will give us new maps that include an even larger saturation of superchargers all over the globe. Even 2016 in the US there are locations that are still missing charger dots that I hope they decide to fill in.

But I wouldn't trade the last year of ownership for anything, including that trip to Ohio that I still haven't made. I have told my family (who I am neglecting because they live in Ohio) that they can suck it up and deal with it

 

[neroden]

After the first days with the Tesla it becomes clear that this car really comes from a different world. It's entirely different to the i8. The Model S wants to be an everyday car. Usability is excellent, comfort is good, it's easy to drive and the drivetrain is truly unique.

Truth is I can travel anywhere in Europe at a decent pace for free with the Supercharger. And the car feels so safe and secure. My wife never ever liked a car more than this one.

Now you understand!

The Model S is designed as the perfect daily driver car for the average household. It just happens to handle like a sports car. And it just happens to have a ride as smooth as a Rolls Royce. And it just happens to be big enough and comfortable enough to be a good road trip (touring) car, when enough Superchargers are built.

And for various reasons no other car company is willing to seriously compete in this segment.

This makes for very good sales. (Personally, I think not enough attention has been given to the "Smoother than a Rolls Royce" aspect.)

 

[bga]

P85DS? (S=Superconducting)

Pouring liquid nitrogen on it...

Even better if the motor has superconducting magnets and windings:
Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.｜Superconductivity Web Site EV Mortor

Zero resistive losses!

Amazing that Sumitomo has actually tried it.:smile:

 

[mspohr]

Now you understand!

The Model S is designed as the perfect daily driver car for the average household. It just happens to handle like a sports car. And it just happens to have a ride as smooth as a Rolls Royce. And it just happens to be big enough and comfortable enough to be a good road trip (touring) car, when enough Superchargers are built.

And for various reasons no other car company is willing to seriously compete in this segment.

This makes for very good sales. (Personally, I think not enough attention has been given to the "Smoother than a Rolls Royce" aspect.)

This.
Incredibility smooth and quiet (with air suspension). The best road car ever for long trips.