SR Purchasing Doubts

[tvad]

Because he may not be able to comfortably afford an extra $10K. And he said he has an ICE to take for longer trips.

He said he sometimes needs a friend to lend him the ICE car. There's a significant difference between having (owning) an ICE car, and relying on a friend to lend an ICE car...and this for an activity that's important to the OP ( I mean, damn, he hikes in upstate NY winter!).

I'm suggesting some careful consideration needs to be made about the trade-offs. Does he risk not hiking because he can't get an ICE car for that hike?

Or, does he buy a hybrid vehicle that gets excellent mileage, and is climate friendly (Honda RAV Hybrid?), and suits his needs until he can afford a longer range EV?

Or, does he stick with what he has?

The choice doesn't seem particularly clear to me.

 

[ElectricIAC]

Why get an inferior hybrid from a compromise brand?

 

[tvad]

Honda RAV Hybrid

Edit: Toyota. Not Honda.

 

[seattlite2004]

Edit: Toyota. Not Honda.

That Toyota RAV4 Prime is pretty compelling. Plug-In, AWD, heated steering wheel, AA/CP, HUD. No real compromise other than it ain't a Tesla.

 

[ElectricIAC]

That Toyota RAV4 Prime is pretty compelling. Plug-In, AWD, heated steering wheel, AA/CP, HUD. No real compromise other than it ain't a Tesla.

The worst compromise of all, really.

 

[seattlite2004]

The worst compromise of all, really.

Nah...

 

[ElectricIAC]

Nah...

I still have love for full ICE cars personally but after trying a BEV (one of the industry best) and living with it in an arguably non-ideal environment a PHEV just feels like a step backwards, and I’ve owned and or leased several PHEV over the last few years.

In the OP’s shoes and budget I feel that an SR would work just fine and take what you don’t spend now on *more car* and use it to adapt to those times when your BEV simply won’t do the task.

 

[pdx_m3s]

Whatever you do, don’t skip out on Autopilot (if your planning on SR instead of SR+). It fundamentally changes your relationship with driving... for the better.

 

[Talax74]

you loose heated seats and autopilot...

SR and SR+ have both front heated seats.
Difference between the 2 car is:
1) 20 miles of range (software)
2) Autopilot

 

[ElectricIAC]

It may seem trivial but $5K is a lot more money to someone shopping a $36,200 car (SR no extras destination inclusive) than it is to someone shopping a $58,200 car. (Performance no extras destination inclusive)

 

[toolman335]

I'm working on a few assumptions that I'm not certain about:
1- The SR and the SR+ do NOT have AWD, correct?
2- I didn't think that you could order the 36k model online anymore, correct? I believe the lowest price is now $40k(the tax rebate is basically gone).

I understand that you don't NEED the long range in a cold climate. You can get by. I live in New Hampshire, and we get some pretty darn cold temps but maybe not as consistently bad as upstate NY/Minnesota. I consistently lose 30% on a cold day. I'm blown away by the 50% claims. Regardless, it's a lot.
I understand that you don't NEED AWD. You can get by. We all have Tommy Toughguy stories about how we got by with rear wheel drive in the winter when we were kids. All I know is that we've had 5+ bad storms in my first winter with this car and it performs superbly in all conditions. It saved me from one accident that I know a front wheel drive vehicle wouldn't have. I also have a steep driveway and this car can blow through snow, get in the garage, and I don't have to park on the street while I snowblow.
For $10k, I chose to get autopilot, AWD, and in so many words I paid to recover all of the lost range that is lost in the winter(LR). Spread the $10K out over a 5-6 year loan. You'll feel it, but I can promise you it's worth it. Avoiding one accident has made me more than convinced that I made the right decision. It's worth it right there.
I can't imagine living in a brutally cold climate and not having LR w AWD. If you can't charge at home in a cold climate I wouldn't buy an EV. By far my favorite part about owning one is charging at home in the garage. It never gets old. Charging at freezing cold superchargers should only be for road trips.

 

[toolman335]

I know you all talked about only occasionally needing an ICE a few times a year for his longer trips.
Well, I probably only NEED all wheel drive 10 times per year. But I tell you what, it's all worth it if it saves me from getting stuck and/or avoiding an accident, and allowing me to drive anywhere that I want. The AWD and LR take away any and all anxiety about safety and range. If you don't spend the $10k you will end up thinking about what you could have had. A lot. You'll think too much about basic concepts of the car. You'll find yourself dwelling, obsessing, and staring at the remaining range far too often. You will be miserable driving in bad conditions. You can actually put a price-tag on removing anxiety lol. It's $10k(it might be $9k now?). Any therapist would love to have a price for making problems going away like this lol.
If you lived in a milder climate buying the SR is the way to go. Easy decision.
I've been to Cooperstown in the winter. AWD and LR is the way to go.

 

[Fernand]

SR+ for the autopilot for sure. Neither dual motor nor a bigger battery are important in your case. And you're not going to be playing freeze your ears to save battery. But buying an intelligent car without the intelligence, now that makes no sense. It IS a totally different way to drive, it's great. You'll thank us later.

For California mostly freeway driving, NOA with auto lane changes is critical for me, like the difference between taking the train and arriving relaxed, versus stress & bumper & twist your head off looking for a lane opening stop & go driving. F'get abbadit. I had a Model S loaner with no AP, no NOA, nuthin', and the S was comfy but it was like going back to a rotary desk phone and a Roladex. Or being stuck in 1956 with Biff in one of the Back to the Future movies. That's how much of a difference it is.

In your location it may not matter, depends on your highways, but if you commute or drive much on multilane highways, finance the FSD. It's a sci-fi super fast car for $47k total. Thinking about paying cash later "when it's perfected"? It's plenty perfected on the freeways right now, and a cash add-on purchase always comes at a bad time. I added FSD to my EAP (to get 3.0 hardware and the next chapters of AI development) for $3k, and now my Amex never gets down to zero ;-)
.

 

[rdcisneros3]

The AWD and LR take away any and all anxiety about safety and range. If you don't spend the $10k you will end up thinking about what you could have had. A lot. You'll think too much about basic concepts of the car. You'll find yourself dwelling, obsessing, and staring at the remaining range far too often. You will be miserable driving in bad conditions. You can actually put a price-tag on removing anxiety lol .

This is silly, and not accurate. If Tesla had released the SR with 310 and the LR with 375, you'd hear the same thing.

Peruse these forums and you'll encounter many LR owners with range anxiety, battery concerns, etc.

Get what works best for your driving and financial situation. If that's an SR+, and you have an ICE to handle the rare situations where an EV is inconvenient, go for it and don't fall for the propaganda.

 

[TLLMRRJ]

I am really despising AutoPilot after multiple dangerous and unsettling phantom braking episodes, and then people on here saying that’s normal, we all get them, and it’s been a problem forever despite many firmware upgrades.

It’s way more work for me to hover my foot over the accelerator waiting to catch as quickly as possible that next one, and wondering when it will come.

Then it’s down right annoying to have to work on the demands of a computer to put force on the steering wheel every 30 seconds despite having my hands on the wheel at all times. Needs a better way of sensing hands on the wheel.

Then it gets confused so easily by freeway exits and jerks the car around.

So I wouldn’t spend a penny more to get this useless technology. After the novelty wears off, you’ll find it’s more fun and easier to just drive yourself.

 

[Fernand]

Yeah, yeah. Most people have no trouble learning how to use it, and love it, and some people have trouble and "despise it" then get all huffy about "useless technology" and tell everybody they're better off with the rotary desk phone. There's personal preference, that's what choice is all about.

There's a difference between TACC/AS and NOA too. Which do you have? And you've had your car 3 weeks? It really takes longer than that to get the hang of any automation system. FWIW it took me about 3 months. First thing to learn is that there's no bonus points for keeping AP on 100% of the time, especially at first. It's an assist, not a replacement.
.

 

[toolman335]

This is silly, and not accurate. If Tesla had released the SR with 310 and the LR with 375, you'd hear the same thing.

Peruse these forums and you'll encounter many LR owners with range anxiety, battery concerns, etc.

Get what works best for your driving and financial situation. If that's an SR+, and you have an ICE to handle the rare situations where an EV is inconvenient, go for it and don't fall for the propaganda.

Propaganda? lol. What do I have to gain by spreading my propaganda? Am I working on commission here?
There is a huge difference between 310 and 240, and 375 to 310. It's magnified in the winter.
The best example of range anxiety is to have a 240 mile car running on 30-50% range loss in the winter. You're really pigeon-holing yourself and backed into a corner. Tesla road trips are the best, but they sure wouldn't be if you have to stop at a supercharger every 100 miles(so you don't go much below 20%). That is brutal.
In round numbers you gain 30% of range going from 240 to 310(for $10k- plus you get AWD in winter climate).
You gain 20% going from 310 to 375(that costs around $40k).

 

[Metalmanstan]

Whatever you do, don’t skip out on Autopilot (if your planning on SR instead of SR+). It fundamentally changes your relationship with driving... for the better.

I drive 10 miles RT on curvy "city" streets. Basically where I live, you don't use cruise control at all unless you are on the highway, and I do that rarely. I also really don't want to pay that amount of money for auto pilot. I don't need it really and I could use that for accessories for the car. The one thing that I will miss is the adaptive cruise control. Loved that on the prime. I do drive long distances for trips, but the placement of the superchargers helps out wherever I go. Don't need to slow down or anything, just more stops than with a LR and I'm fine with that.

I have gone to the mountains in the winter with my FWD prius and it handled it like a beast and I have done the same with my wives RWD Optima. Both handled the snow and ice fine. You just have to know how to handle the roads during that weather. To be honest, the only time I would need an AWD is when I'm going for a search and rescue in a storm(i'm on a SAR team). I could take my dad's jeep on emergency situations. Plus, I've heard that the balance of the car is superb for slippery situations even though its RWD. Lived here for 30 years now and been driving in winter without AWD for all of them. I think I'm ok without it.

I've had a plug-in for 3 years now and I think it's for me time to move on to all electric.

 

[Metalmanstan]

Propaganda? lol. What do I have to gain by spreading my propaganda? Am I working on commission here?
There is a huge difference between 310 and 240, and 375 to 310. It's magnified in the winter.
The best example of range anxiety is to have a 240 mile car running on 30-50% range loss in the winter. You're really pigeon-holing yourself and backed into a corner. Tesla road trips are the best, but they sure wouldn't be if you have to stop at a supercharger every 100 miles(so you don't go much below 20%). That is brutal.
In round numbers you gain 30% of range going from 240 to 310(for $10k- plus you get AWD in winter climate).
You gain 20% going from 310 to 375(that costs around $40k).

Indeed it is. But in Winter, I barely go over 70 miles away for travel. We hibernate up here. There's not much to do in the winter except go to hockey games and hike occasionally. Both cities I go to are under 80 miles and 50 miles and both have superchargers.

 

[Fernand]

It sounds like you've got things pretty well figured out. You don't need AWD or LR. And in your case NOA isn't important. But I wouldn't go all the way strippy SR- unless you really can't afford the SR+. You'll like the seats and doodads, and the sound system, and you'll end up using the (included w/ SR+) basic autopilot at times as a better cruise control, all the little differences for not much money.