Thoughts After a Week Driving

[Bebop]

Where does one go to reupholster?

You can go to a “Auto Upholstey Shop”. Try searching in Yelp or perhaps in a google search. I think you would have much more luck in a major city area. Not sure if you are in rural Connecticut or by a big city.

But of course if you do go down that route you want to do your due diligence and be very picky in terms of who you work with.

 

[Ken7]

I’ve got textile seats and find them very comfortable. I don’t find them stiff at all. I actually like their look better than leather.

 

[stan23]

Well put.

Well put. M3 is a different kind of fun. Both are great. For me, at the end of the day, the rocket torque wins the day for the kind of highway driving I do on a daily basis these days.

Yes, for day to day stop and go type driving. The Tesla is hard to beat. A lot of the M3 power is post 80mph, which is useless for city driving.

 

[D.E.]

I've got a reversed new owner perspective. I've got ~4k miles on my S75D.

After driving the Tesla almost exclusively, I got back into our other car yesterday.

The power in the Tesla is silent, instant, and effortless. The other car seems sluggish and there is a lot of engine sound with acceleration. It gives the impression the engine is working much harder to accelerate. There is vibration from the engine. I was used to all this before. I didn't push it, backing off the acceleration.

I'm used to the regenerative slowing of the Tesla. The other car coasts with the foot off the accelerator. That felt a little odd.

I didn't expect quite so much going back to the internal combustion car. I expected it to be old and familiar. It wasn't.

I've had a couple of BMWs in the past, a 540 and a 330 convertible. I enjoyed both of them. I think the Tesla is better for me. I put a short shifter in the 330. I found the opportunities for use of the convertible top down were limited. When it got warm enough, there was pollen. (We have lots of pollen, in the spring a yellow dust coats everything. I'd never really been sensitive to pollen but became sensitive later on.) On the interstates with the top down, trucks passing were very loud. Then there's need for sunscreen and hats. After the 330, I'm pretty much over topless and sunroof cars. I liked the 330's standard transmission. The short shift was great. I don't miss a standard transmission in the Tesla. It just feels as if it is in the proper gear all the time. There is no downshifting to accelerate out of corners, there is just all the effortless power I want all the time.

As I understand it, with the heavy battery and aluminum body, the center of gravity is just 18” off the ground. There's no body roll with turning. The car is silent over bumps. The other car is much older but there are lots of little rattles, not loud ones, but it isn't at all quiet.

The Tesla is a heavy car. It usually feels light and nimble like a sports car. With emergency maneuvers, though, the heavy nature of the car reemerges. A truck changed lanes into my lane. I was beside the trailer, 70 MPH, and had to swerve to avoid being hit. The tires performed well but with a crunching sound as they slipped with the sudden change in direction. It was the sound a heavy car makes, not the lighter sound a lighter car makes. The direction change wasn't as quick as with a small light car, there was more understeer. It was all well controlled but it was a feeling you'd get with a sudden move in heavy Lincoln, not a sports car.

I'm pretty much ruined by the Tesla. I knew the Tesla was nice but the move back to the other car was eye opening, bringing home just how nice the Tesla is and how quickly one gets used to it.

Best,
David

 

[RichF]

which m3 did you have? e90/92? I'm coming from e46 m3. just sold mine a few weeks ago (and waiting for my 75d). congrats and where's the pix?
i remember after test driving the ms and drove my m3 home, it literally felt slow so i knew the model 3 won't work for me (which i'm still currently in reserve for).

btw is homelink automatic? so no need to press a button because it knows where home is?

 

[Chopr147]

I assume you mean get EAP and don't get FSD? Else, color me confused...

My phrase abbreviations could use some work

 

[Chopr147]

The Tesla is a heavy car. It usually feels light and nimble like a sports car. With emergency maneuvers, though, the heavy nature of the car reemerges.

\

Good point! The S feels nimble,quick and planted to the road but..............
After driving it for about a year maybe I forgot how heavy it is. Had to do an emergency swerve like you said and was surprised a bit at having to cut it left , then hard right again because of it's weight. I stayed in the lane mostly but A lighter car would have handled it better. Once my heart rate lowered back to normal I was like yea, that's right this car is heavy

 

[futurem3owner]

There was a fair bit of wind noise coming from the driver's window soon after I got my Model S. I initially relied on it to gauge if I was going way over the speed limit but it started to get too noisy. So, I had the service center fix it yesterday. Now, it's truly whisper quiet in the cabin which is great except now, I constantly have to keep a eye on IC with me having a lead foot. I should've asked the technician to allow a small opening to get a little bit of wind noise through

 

[calisnow]

Gave up my M3 and have been driving my 2017 silver 75D for about a week now and here's what I can say about it. Curious how it relates to others' experiences ...

What I love:

• Ride quality is awesome. Not too stiff, not too soft, just right. And quiet.
• Handling is awesome. I don't miss my M3 one bit -- which is saying a lot.
• Acceleration is off the charts. Everything that's been written about how fast it takes off is indeed true. Makes it really fun to drive. (Though I recommend a radar detector.)
• The touchscreen is as advertised -- easy to see, intuitive, and for me, not distracting at all. I've found that getting out the full-screen Navigation back to the "home" screen can be tricky -- but a minor complaint. Love how big the backup camera appears -- making it so very easy to use.
• The sunroof -- it's bigger than most. Love it.
• Charging overnight in my garage. Full "tank of gas" every day. Very nice.

What I don't like at all:

• The seats. Two issues for me: I ordered "multi-pattern black seats" thinking (perhaps naively) that they were leather -- after all, it's what you expect after writing a check for 90k. Web site doesn't say they're textile -- which, in my view, is misleading -- and there's no way to tell from the thumbnail image. And the only cars I saw in the showroom and test drove had leather. So I was surprised to say the least. To be clear, they look great and will probably wear better than leather. But their texture is very stiff and coarse -- which I find very uncomfortable. The other issue is the wings or bolsters or whatever you call them. On my M3 they could be adjusted in and out. On the 75D they can't. So until I lose 15 pounds, they're going to feel on the tight side.
• Left leg legroom. So what I'm finding is that the driver's side area for your left leg has a shape that essentially forces you to keep your leg straight. There's no place to put your foot if you want to spread your leg to the left. That may be better for my posture and it's entirely possible that I'll get used to it, but for now I find myself wishing I could put my foot in a place where it simply cannot go.

Verdict is still out:

• Front window visibility -- reminds me of my old Saabs in a way. And ironically it's the diametrical opposite of the Model X which one of the most amazing front windows. Most of the time I don't think about it -- but occasionally find myself wishing there was a higher view out the front.
• Fit and finish -- the doors take a little more oomph to fully close than I would've expected. I think some minor adjustment will fix the issue; I'll know next week.
• Navigation software. I'm waiting for the day when Waze will be fully integrated.
• Auto Pilot -- haven't paid for it yet Keep getting tempted ... then keep holding off. What's nice is I can go to MyTesla, push a button and boom -- 6K later -- be using Auto Pilot.
• HomeLink works intermittently. I'm thinking because it locks on GPS coordinates to recognize when it's within range. Who knows. But I've had to reprogram it several times.

All in all, very happy with my purchase. Just wish I could do something about the seats.

Feel you on the windshield - it's just fine unless you've driven a Model X - which is the gold standard in visibility.

 

[calisnow]

Where does one go to reupholster?

One goes to an auto upholstery shop - but find a good one. I'm sure there are many good ones in CT. You will find more expertise on that on a luxury/exotic car forum where folks recommend that kind of thing to each other more frequently. Go to www.ferrarichat.com and search a bit for "connecticut upholstery shop" and I'm sure you can quickly sort out some recommended places. Just don't say you found them on the Ferrari forums so you don't stuck with the "special" Ferrari owner price!

 

[calisnow]

And to assuage your fears - a decent shop can do work as good as or better than factory. It looks like a mysterious art form to us but to craftsmen who do it all day it's no mystery. Of course once you start down that road you can do customizations to the seats as well - have them modify the bolsters for you to make more comfortable, etc.

 

[Bebop]

One goes to an auto upholstery shop - but find a good one. I'm sure there are many good ones in CT. You will find more expertise on that on a luxury/exotic car forum where folks recommend that kind of thing to each other more frequently. Go to www.ferrarichat.com and search a bit for "connecticut upholstery shop" and I'm sure you can quickly sort out some recommended places. Just don't say you found them on the Ferrari forums so you don't stuck with the "special" Ferrari owner price!

This is such a great point. And I had the idea of literally going to a luxury car dealership and simply asking if they know anywhere/anyone to do this kind of work.

 

[RichF]

And to assuage your fears - a decent shop can do work as good as or better than factory. It looks like a mysterious art form to us but to craftsmen who do it all day it's no mystery. Of course once you start down that road you can do customizations to the seats as well - have them modify the bolsters for you to make more comfortable, etc.

Thanks -- that's a great idea. My biggest fear would be how such a shop would handle all the electronic connections -- but I guess it's something a good shop would be able to do no problem.

 

[calisnow]

This is such a great point. And I had the idea of literally going to a luxury car dealership and simply asking if they know anywhere/anyone to do this kind of work.

Your idea is a good one as well - it is unlikely a Lexus dealer will recommend a place that does substandard work. No harm in trying - but some might try to force you to go through them - they will sub the work out to get a mark-up of course.