Thoughts on a 2012 P85 Loaner

[HX_Guy]

Recently had my car at service for 3 days and the gave me a 2012 Model S P85 wth ~33K miles on it. The car was pretty "base" it felt, aside from air suspension...and I say that because it had no AP or TACC, though I'm thinking those did not exist back then?

• The air suspension was great, and it's kind of ruined the standard suspension in my car for me now. Not so much the ride quality, as it was pretty comparable, but the way the car felt. With the air suspension, the ride felt smoother as there are not as many vibrations in the steering wheel and especially floorboard. With the standard suspension, you can feel the tires against the road (even if its no a harsh road) - the air suspension felt more luxurious.

• The P85 performance was great, definitely noticeable difference in acceleration. Kind of liked that too.

• Tesla has come a long way on the interior. Maybe may not feel that way because overall its the same but it definitely is not. The seats in the 2012 were terrible compared to the Next Gen in mine. Not just the bolstering, but the design. Beige leather with random alcantara inserts and random grey bead stripe (or whatever you'd call that). Then the mix of chrome AC vent trim surround with aluminum around the main screen looked terrible. Their choice of dash wood was also very bad.

• Dual motors in my car are worlds better than RWD of the P85. Im very used to just stomping on the pedal and there is no hesitation, no ESP kicking in. Not so much with the P85, it cut me off a few times when pulling out of a parking lot making a left turn and stomping on the pedal.

 

[Gouldness]

Appreciate your thoughts, as I'm looking at CPO 85's and wondering about the P variant (being a car guy).

As for

it cut me off a few times when

was that just traction control? I believe that can be turned off. Many P85's burn up their tires, thus needing the + version for a larger contact patch.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

My 2013 P85 has better build quality than the cars coming off the line today. I was reminded of that yesterday during my 270 mile roundtrip drive to Sedona. Not a single rattle or squeak. NOT ONE!

 

[sorka]

P85 loaners(twice) were fun. I like how you can break the rear lose in a corner

 

[thecloud]

Recently had my car at service for 3 days and the gave me a 2012 Model S P85 wth ~33K miles on it. The car was pretty "base" it felt, aside from air suspension...and I say that because it had no AP or TACC, though I'm thinking those did not exist back then?

Correct. The P85 was only available with AP hardware in a short window of time, starting in mid-September of 2014. The P85 model was dropped from the lineup about a month later in favor of the P85D, not long after the dual-motor announcement in October 2014. Based on production estimates and what some owners have been told by Tesla, roughly 375 RWD performance-motor cars were built with AP.

Of course, pre-AP P85s are pretty awesome cars as well!

• The air suspension was great, and it's kind of ruined the standard suspension in my car for me now. Not so much the ride quality, as it was pretty comparable, but the way the car felt. With the air suspension, the ride felt smoother as there are not as many vibrations in the steering wheel and especially floorboard. With the standard suspension, you can feel the tires against the road (even if its no a harsh road) - the air suspension felt more luxurious.

Totally agree. Performance-oriented drivers tend to favor a coil suspension to feel more connection to the road, but the air suspension definitely provides a smoother ride. When it was new, the air suspension felt weirdly "floaty" compared to my prior cars with standard suspensions, as if the passenger compartment was a boat gently floating above the road surface. I don't notice it anymore, so either the suspension has worn in (whatever that entails) or the sensation just became routine.

• Tesla has come a long way on the interior.

They've taken some steps forward. I think it would be hard for me to give up all the frunk space that I'm used to in the P85, though.

• Dual motors in my car are worlds better than RWD of the P85. Im very used to just stomping on the pedal and there is no hesitation, no ESP kicking in. Not so much with the P85, it cut me off a few times when pulling out of a parking lot making a left turn and stomping on the pedal.

So you are stomping on the pedal while throwing a left turn in a performance RWD car? Sounds like traction control, for sure.