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Stories about buying a Tesla, which causes sale of 911, Ferrari, etc.

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Sorry Tesla enthusiasts, MS and MX are replacements for gas SUVs and premium sedans, but are no replacement for true drivers cars. I am lucky enough to be able to have a MS as a commuter (replaced a Range Rover), but it is nowhere near as exciting as my weekend driver’s car. Sure when I first got it, I skipped a few weekends in the performance car while enjoying the novelty of the MS. But now I’m back to looking forward to the weekend after the week with the, well, frankly, a bit sterile driving experience in the MS.
To each his own. If all I wanted was a commuter car I would be driving a Camry :)
I no longer have a weekend car so the S is an everyday ride with enjoyable long trips playing the air drums with 2 hands on AP :)
I do love the planted to the road feeling on mountain roads. With such a big, heavy car it is an engineering marvel. The only thing I miss from an ICE is my Yukon for Home Depot trips and the like
 
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I have always loved Porsches and owned quite a few over the years. I still have one and I have to remind myself to drive it every couple of weeks or else it just sits there. Yesterday I was at the SC and someone had just traded in a 991 Turbo S for a P100D.
 
Traded in my BMW M5 four years ago for a P85+. l like the Tesla better in every way although I did miss the exhaust sound at first. So I downloaded a bunch of Car and Driver's "Exhaust Notes" like this one Audi R8 4.2 Spyder MP3 and would play it while accelerating for awhile (turn the bass all the way up, it's surprisingly convincing). But you get over that pretty quickly - haven't used it in years except as a party trick...
 
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Once I can track my Tesla without it being down on power I will leave ICE for good. When I mean track I don't mean drag strips.

It might happen sooner than that though if they get around to making a new convertible.

My fiance will never part with her Mini Cooper.
 
There's a Model S based racing series starting next month called the Electric GT Championship. They obviously have to have the cooling problem sorted, otherwise the races would be one lap three minute affairs. If their battery solution isn't *too* extreme I'm going to do it on my car. If it uses the entire frunk, I'm in. Half the rear? I'm in. Basically anything that lets me still use it daily, I'm in. Waiting in anticipation to see how they managed it.
 
There's a Model S based racing series starting next month called the Electric GT Championship. They obviously have to have the cooling problem sorted, otherwise the races would be one lap three minute affairs. If their battery solution isn't *too* extreme I'm going to do it on my car. If it uses the entire frunk, I'm in. Half the rear? I'm in. Basically anything that lets me still use it daily, I'm in. Waiting in anticipation to see how they managed it.

I think that’s likely to be a stillborn effort. Shame as I was looking forward to it, but I don’t think they had the $ in place. I’ll go look for updates...
 
Once I can track my Tesla without it being down on power I will leave ICE for good. When I mean track I don't mean drag strips..
A lot of people keep saying this. Keep seeing hundreds of these comments under every Tesla article in mainstream car mags "Im not buying a Tesla until I can run a full lap on Nurnburg Ring" Seriously? If this was that important to everyone, why is Ford F150 America's most sold car, can't take it to Nurnburgring any more than a Tesla.
Is this some sort of Don Quijote fantasy world that people live in? As fun as it is to drive on a track (yes I have raced both MC and cars on track) I have noticed that it is a minority of the population who take their cars to the track. And of that minority there is an even smaller minority who take big expensive family sedans to the track. Neither seen a Tesla, nor an S class or a 7 series on a track other than on youtube. Even the sports cars that this Thread was about, most of them never see a track.

You easily rack up $10k in repairs plus a month in the body shop at even the slightest touch with another car on the track if you want to bring a Tesla back to road worthy looks. Is this what all these commenters are doing after the weekend? Or do they store their Teslas banged up waiting for the next track day? Just curios because it must be a mass movement based on what I read in treads.
 
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A lot of people keep saying this. Keep seeing hundreds of these comments under every Tesla article in mainstream car mags "Im not buying a Tesla until I can run a full lap on Nurnburg Ring" Seriously? If this was that important to everyone, why is Ford F150 America's most sold car, can't take it to Nurnburgring any more than a Tesla.
Is this some sort of Don Quijote fantasy world that people live in? As fun as it is to drive on a track (yes I have raced both MC and cars on track) I have noticed that it is a minority of the population who take their cars to the track. And of that minority there is an even smaller minority who take big expensive family sedans to the track. Neither seen a Tesla, nor an S class or a 7 series on a track other than on youtube. Even the sports cars that this Thread was about, most of them never see a track.

You easily rack up $10k in repairs plus a month in the body shop at even the slightest touch with another car on the track if you want to bring a Tesla back to road worthy looks. Is this what all these commenters are doing after the weekend? Or do they store their Teslas banged up waiting for the next track day? Just curios because it must be a mass movement based on what I read in treads.

I take it you’re not much of a track rat. :rolleyes:
 
I take it you’re not much of a track rat. :rolleyes:
Track rat meaning I drive very weekend, no. Are you? Got about 100 hours so far. Most of them on Karlskoga Motorstadion - Wikipedia in Sweden.
If I were to take a guess though, this is more track time than some of the thousands of the people have who keep commenting "I'll buy a Tesla when it can do a full lap on the Nurnburg Ring, because until then, its just a shopping cart/commuter car"
 
A lot of people keep saying this. Keep seeing hundreds of these comments under every Tesla article in mainstream car mags "Im not buying a Tesla until I can run a full lap on Nurnburg Ring" Seriously? If this was that important to everyone, why is Ford F150 America's most sold car, can't take it to Nurnburgring any more than a Tesla.


Olle,

Many of us regularly road course our cars, and Tesla isn't suited for that yet. When the person you quoted said that consistent lap times would make them leave ICE for good, they weren't talking about pickup trucks and all the rest you mention, they mean they can finally replace the track-only ICE cars that right now *can't* be replaced by a Tesla because the tech isn't quite ready to support our hobby.

Some of us make a second home at the local track and will trailer out cars far and wide to drive on others. I don't know if I could give up ICE completely - I enjoy vintage racing too much I think - but I understand teh sentiment that spawned your confusion. We've already replaced our ICE daily drivers, and we're not far off from replacing ICE on the track as well.

It's a hobby. It's not for everybody, but for those that have the bug it's addictive and permanent.
 
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Olle,

Many of us regularly road course our cars, and Tesla isn't suited for that yet. When the person you quoted said that consistent lap times would make them leave ICE for good, they weren't talking about pickup trucks and all the rest you mention, they mean they can finally replace the track-only ICE cars that right now *can't* be replaced by a Tesla because the tech isn't quite ready to support our hobby.

Some of us make a second home at the local track and will trailer out cars far and wide to drive on others. I don't know if I could give up ICE completely - I enjoy vintage racing too much I think - but I understand teh sentiment that spawned your confusion. We've already replaced our ICE daily drivers, and we're not far off from replacing ICE on the track as well.

It's a hobby. It's not for everybody, but for those that have the bug it's addictive and permanent.
Totally respect your hobby and I actually love road coursing and wish I could afford more of it/had time for it. My point was that big family cars aren't what you usually see on the track. Ok some people take big cars but that doesn't seem to be the most fun part, and that therefore Model S doesn't miss the mark. In active street driving, which is more of its element, you rarely get the power loss. My post wasn't directed against the person who wanted to keep his 335i for the track.
 
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Track rat meaning I drive very weekend, no. Are you? Got about 100 hours so far. Most of them on Karlskoga Motorstadion - Wikipedia in Sweden.
If I were to take a guess though, this is more track time than some of the thousands of the people have who keep commenting "I'll buy a Tesla when it can do a full lap on the Nurnburg Ring, because until then, its just a shopping cart/commuter car"

Go back and re-read topic. This isn't about pickup trucks or even 335 BMW's. The topic was replacement of high-end sports cars with a Tesla. At their current performance level, these cars have performance that is above what can safely be exploited on the street. Thus, the last decade (2 actually) has seen an explosion of popularity for track days in the US.

While the straight-line performance of a Tesla is impressive, these cars cannot complete a single 10/10th lap of any course without suffering invertor temps that derate performance. They simply cannot sustain use in a track-day atmosphere, and worse yet are subjecting the battery to damaging thermal loads that could have consequences for the lifespan and capacity of the battery. Someday that may change, but that is the current reality.

I'm not sure why you have decided track days are just auto-journalist fantasy or that all track days require you to "touch other cars" and suffer $10,000 damage. You may be doing it wrong. :eek: In the US, it is very accessible, typically $200-300 per day...and very relevant to auto enthusiasts who also have the means to afford a Tesla.

P.S.- Next time I'm at the Ring, I'll snap a picture of the signage to help you with your spelling. Might make your posts a bit more credible...;)
 
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I bought a 2016 MS P90DL new. To me, it was the best car I had ever driven (and still pretty much is). But, it still is not quite a 911. The P90DL actually handles quite well. I've driven Smoky Mountain roads pushing motorcycles through the twisties. But, the size and weight of the car still had me desire a 911 (991.2 C4S), which I bought 4 months later.

I'm not one that cares for the noise of a 911. But, there is nothing that beats the handling. For me, the only thing better would be an all electric 911. It will come...it has to since Germany is banning ICE by 2030.
I wouldn’t count out the next Tesla Roadster dethroning the 911. In any event, I believe it will be here before Porsche builds an electric 911.
 
I bought a Panamera S-Hybrid three years ago and love how it drives. But it spends way too much time in the shop getting the same repairs under warranty. The "check engine" light goes on even while driving home from the dealer! I calculate it spends 4-6 weeks in the shop per year but I am still making payments and paying insurance on a car I can't drive. Having the hybrid has a plus side, it convinced me a full EV covers 95% plus of all the driving I do, so I will be testing a Tesla S P100 this week and if it drives as well as the Panamera I will bid the Porsche a fond farewell rather than suffer service bills once the car falls out of warranty.
 
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While the straight-line performance of a Tesla is impressive, these cars cannot complete a single 10/10th lap of any course without suffering invertor temps that derate performance. They simply cannot sustain use in a track-day atmosphere, and worse yet are subjecting the battery to damaging thermal loads that could have consequences for the lifespan and capacity of the battery.
Indeed. The fundamental performance advantage of an electric drivetrain - to be able to "dump" a very large portion of stored electrons immediately (for ICE's this would be like using nitrous) to give excellent acceleration, is also its fundamental disadvantage in that doing this continuously causes the driveline and battery to heat up outside safe parameters (just as using nitrous all the time degrades an ICE).

Hence - in response to the OP - I really don't see performance cars that are used as such being replaced by the MS/MX - or even a roadster.
 
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As others have stated, a Tesla, even a P100D is not in the same class as a 911, or a Ferrari 488. Maybe a Panamera or a GTC4Lusso/FF, although I'd say even that's a stretch. The S is a 7 seat large sedan, not a sports car. That doesn't mean people won't cross shop it with sports cars, but its not in the same class.

The S hides its weight very very well, but its still a very heavy car and a very large car. It has a great driving experience for a large family car, but it doesn't hold a candle to a 911, or a Ferrari, or even a BMW 335i.