Tesla tech is great, but other companies are starting to push

[bandido]

This is not a troll post, but I am starting to get worried. My drivetrain is amazing, but the new tech features that are often teased are not being delivered. I got a chance to see the interior and software on the newest BMW M5. The car loaded is less than $120k, still not cheap, but for a 600+hp AWD gas guzzler, it has amazing tech! I know Tesla loves minimalist, whilst charging maximalist, but we need to see the gap close on interiors and tech.

My friend pulls up his car on his phone and can look around it where parked. Very cool!! I do not need that feature, but other than "Autopilot", being electric and turning on my AC remotely, I lose in almost every tech category. A loaded model S is $30k more money, without still much needed, blind spot monitor, top view cameras, HUD and some type of decent phone/media interface. Thoughts...

 

[xyeahtony]

That is cool but I find the ability to turn on your a/c remotely or use your phone as a virtual key if you lose/forget/misplace ur key fob far more valuable.

After all, what good is looking around your car if its still 150 degrees inside when you get back to it

 

[scaesare]

This is not a troll post, but I am starting to get worried. My drivetrain is amazing, but the new tech features that are often teased are not being delivered. I got a chance to see the interior and software on the newest BMW M5. The car loaded is less than $120k, still not cheap, but for a 600+hp AWD gas guzzler, it has amazing tech! I know Tesla loves minimalist, whilst charging maximalist, but we need to see the gap close on interiors and tech.

My friend pulls up his car on his phone and can look around it where parked. Very cool!! I do not need that feature, but other than "Autopilot", being electric and turning on my AC remotely, I lose in almost every tech category. A loaded model S is $30k more money, without still much needed, blind spot monitor, top view cameras, HUD and some type of decent phone/media interface. Thoughts...

I am amazed by the people who are swayed by what I consider to often be frivolous and "luxury" that they just can't live without.

Sure the 3d thing is neat. But to me it's lipstick on a pig. Things that matter to me: drive train, fuel type, performance specifications, underlying locomotive technology, etc...

Lighted vanity mirrors, air conditioned seats, and 47 way adjustable seats are nice, but it's window dressing. If the underlying platform is not up to my standards, I honestly really couldn't care less.

Maybe I'm old school, but I'll take my early '13 S with it's lack of cupholders over a V-12 BMW or Benz with vibro-lumbar-massage any day of the week...

 

[Dutchie]

Did you drive the BMW? Bet you'll be glad you got a Tesla.

 

[Ludalicious]

Every app comes with a bobble head to show just how much bigger it gets while driving a BMW

 

[ucmndd]

Wow, a fancy 3D stitched picture of your car in a parking lot. That sounds like something that will be useful exactly once, showing it off to somebody right after you get the car and right before you promptly forget it even exists.

As for the interior, no thanks. Show me a 2012 BMW interior that looks as good as a 2012 Model S interior looks today. They age terribly.

 

[bandido]

After all, what good is looking around your car if its still 150 degrees inside when you get back to it

That is a great point!, Living in Arizona I can leave my AC running all day!!

 

[chispas]

A good friend who has a bmw series 7 was telling me that their app sucks because it takes forever to do anything. He told me that it takes a couple of minutes to unlock the car from the app.

This being said, I’m sure that other manufacturers are catching up, and there is where the software core of Tesla has to make a difference, we will see in a few months if they do or they don’t (eg: dashcam from mobile, eap, FSD features, etc.)

 

[gsteele]

Wow, a fancy 3D stitched picture of your car in a parking lot. That sounds like something that will be useful exactly once, showing it off to somebody right after you get the car and right before you promptly forget it even exists.

As for the interior, no thanks. Show me a 2012 BMW interior that looks as good as a 2012 Model S interior looks today. They age terribly.

Uh, my wife’s 2012 335i interior is holding up better than my 2016 MS and it has 10k more miles on it. I think Tesla really ought to improve material quality a bit.

 

[AMPd]

Wow, a fancy 3D stitched picture of your car in a parking lot. That sounds like something that will be useful exactly once, showing it off to somebody right after you get the car and right before you promptly forget it even exists.

As for the interior, no thanks. Show me a 2012 BMW interior that looks as good as a 2012 Model S interior looks today. They age terribly.

Unfortunately my 08 M5 interior is in much better shape than my 15 model s
Those next gen seats don’t hold up well at all, also the car has more creaks and rattles than the bmw

BMW interior and build quality in a model s would be amazing

 

[whitex]

Wow, Tesla fans swoon over "Santa Mode" and "Sketch Pad", but shrug off surround view from an app (and I'm sure from within the car as well)? Tesla's latest "big" feature for me was automatic Exit Profile, which still doesn't work as well as my 2004 or newer Lexus cars did. I'm sorry folks, Tesla has an advantage in the electric drive train and charging infrastructure, but that's about it, and that advantage is shrinking fast. One could make an argument that AP2.5 is the most advanced lane keeping out there, and they would be right but that advantage is shrinking even faster as far as production cars that you can buy, and when comparing to Waymo cars you can't buy but can ride in (in AZ), Tesla is already significantly behind. For everything else, interior, phone integration, blind spot monitoring, and other features, most cars in the same price range do those things better. Once the supercharger equivalent network built with billions of VW's settlement money will reach current supercharger coverage, and once the announced EV's go into production, Tesla will either have to catch up or switch to selling batteries, if they still have that advantage by then.

I bought 4 Teslas so far. I love the way they drive (especially the + suspension no longer available). AP IMO is a gimmick and a dangerous at that. FSD is a marketing lie like the 691hp P85D - car is capable but will never do it because not all of the car is capable. Once the other guys catch up with EV drive train, I bet Porsche will drive amazing, as will other cars in the $100K range. I will definitely give Tesla a chance when buying new cars, but gotta tell you, put an EV drive-train in some of the $100K ICE cars today and today's Tesla will not measure up.

I wish Elon would have spent all his ingenuity on making a revolutionary car for the driver, rather than AutoPilot. We should be having best phone integration, best suspension, best blind spot monitoring, best EAB, etc, etc. Tesla would have been in an amazing position to compete, rather than race before the other guys get an EV drive train. If Elon is betting everything on FSD by the time the other guys get EV's, chances are slim to none.

 

[logan]

ITT: Men who have no idea what it's like being a woman alone at night going back to your car.

 

[Brian-MS90D]

Why is this even a discussion? Everyone knows Tesla is and has been behind on ultra luxury comforts and toys. They aren't just behind; they aren't even trying and they're not hiding it.

I disagree that Tesla's success will hinge on the discussed luxury comforts and toys. In support of my opinion, I point to the Model 3 reservation backlog (unprecedented in industry) and increasing sales for "old" design vehicles Model S (and soon X). Is there any other car as old as the Model S that still has increasing sales?

Now all of that being said, I don't blame any consumer for choosing traditional cars for their luxury comforts and toys. Go for it and enjoy them! I just think the debate of whether Tesla will fail because they don't have them silly. A Tesla isn't for everyone. A BMW isn't for everyone. Same for iPhone/Android. Etc etc

 

[DukeofURL]

The Model S is still revolutionary (for a car you can buy today), but the evolutionary competitors are catching up fast and may eclipse them in the next 2-3 years, unless they clean up their act. You can't rest on your laurels, and that may seem to be what Tesla has been doing lately, but I think it's more that their focus has been wide. Maybe even too wide. While Porsche and other manufactures creep up to their bread and butter of the Model S, Tesla is busy over in another market, revolutionizing Semis and to a degree, even supercars (such as the next Roadster).

I don't think it's a question of them not acting, more of whether their actions are best for their future.

 

[scaesare]

Tesla has an advantage in the electric drive train and charging infrastructure, but that's about it

In other news: computers have an advantage over the abacus in speed and capacity, but that's about it...

 

[Gwgan]

Maybe now that they are a real car company Musk declares Tesla 'a real car company' they can start to focus the audio interface. It is not like they do not know where they do not excel but when the engineers still swarm to mission critical problems they are not available to address others.

 

[jeffro01]

I wish Elon would have spent all his ingenuity on making a revolutionary car for the driver, rather than AutoPilot.

I couldn't disagree more... FSD is the future of transportation and whoever can get there first will have a huge market advantage. Sure, some people "want" to drive but most of us would rather kick back and take a nap... Tesla is a lot like Apple in this regard in that they engineer for the future even if the consumer isn't quite ready for that future yet...

Jeff

 

[jddssc121]

I am amazed by the people who are swayed by what I consider to often be frivolous and "luxury" that they just can't live without.

Sure the 3d thing is neat. But to me it's lipstick on a pig. Things that matter to me: drive train, fuel type, performance specifications, underlying locomotive technology, etc...

Lighted vanity mirrors, air conditioned seats, and 47 way adjustable seats are nice, but it's window dressing. If the underlying platform is not up to my standards, I honestly really couldn't care less.

Maybe I'm old school, but I'll take my early '13 S with it's lack of cupholders over a V-12 BMW or Benz with vibro-lumbar-massage any day of the week...

The amount of active/passive safety tech on Audi, MB, etc compared to Tesla is crazy. Tesla is behind in many areas. And ya, ZOMG AUTOPILOT IS GONNA CHANGE THE WORLD and all, but right now, it does not remotely compete with those systems from competitors.

It's totally fine to prefer a Tesla anyhow (i do as well) but to say anything that Tesla doesn't do that another company does is "window dressing" is just silly.

 

[Cheburashka]

I can turn my AC on remotely on my 3 year old Chevy Spark via the MyChevrolet app, which comes with every Chevy these days.

Beyond the drivetrain and maybe AP, Tesla is way behind on in-car tech..

 

[scaesare]

The amount of active/passive safety tech on Audi, MB, etc compared to Tesla is crazy. Tesla is behind in many areas. And ya, ZOMG AUTOPILOT IS GONNA CHANGE THE WORLD and all, but right now, it does not remotely compete with those systems from competitors.

It's totally fine to prefer a Tesla anyhow (i do as well) but to say anything that Tesla doesn't do that another company does is "window dressing" is just silly.

Fortunately that's not what I said.

But there's a segment of folks for whom things like heated gear-shift knobs and powered headrests seem to be deal breakers.

Seriously, in another thread somebody was making the argument that they didn't think range was that big of a deal as compared to a more traditional dash.