What does driving a P+L actually feel like?

[ValleyGeek]

@CFrolander covered it very well.

I've had an X 75D since December of 2017 and always thought it was a very quick vehicle. I just took delivery of a Raven S P100DL a week ago and am truly blown away how much faster it is when in Ludicrous. Honestly, I giggled for about 5 minutes after I floored it for the first time - and that was after a year and a half with the acceleration of the X. What I would add to the descriptions others have given is that I describe the difference between the "Sport" and "Ludicrous" modes to be comparable to the difference between the "Chill" and "Sport" modes.

I've taken to driving it in Ludicrous over sport but have dropped down to sport a couple times when I want finer control of the pedal. It's potentially very touchy in Ludicrous due to the amount of power you have access in the higher end of the pedal. While "necessary" isn't a term I could apply to anything above the sport acceleration, it's definitely more enjoyable to drive if you like that feeling of being pulled back. The most practical difference I've noticed is that you do have significantly more power in the upper speeds 40-50 mph+ which is nice when wanting to get around something on the highway.

When I've been in Ludicrous+ or the Easter egg Ludicrous++ (as I call it) modes and I'm doing multiple launches I've noted that the range is nearly halved with the power required for conditioning and getting up to speed. The image below shows my efficiency from giving rides to coworkers all day Monday. I started with 90% charge and ended the day at about 14% - my commute is only about 10% of that...

 

[GalaxySurfer]

Is it that different. Pre Raven Model X 100D was 295 miles and P100D 289 miles. If your talking about real world miles I wouldn't know that info.

Theres also a toggle in display to show either battery % or miles, but the miles setting has 2 options rated and ideal, the ideal number is significantly higher

 

[GalaxySurfer]

Actually, you had to have a “P” model to get Insane. Ludicrous just replaced insane with the advent of the inconel battery contactors and pyrofuse capable of 1500 amps instead of the former 1200 amps. Retrofits for these parts became available for P85Ds once the P90DL came out. The performance motors are the same in both Insane and Ludicrous-equipped cars.

Still learn something new everytime i check this site.

 

[OBX John]

I had a 100D for two years and thought it was fast.

Just got a Raven Performance, and found out what fast really means.

When you floor it, it's like you are suddenly hanging from the steering wheel, holding on for dear life.

 

[Spelly88]

These are awesome responses. Keep ‘em coming.

So my wife doesn’t feel the need for speed, ever... for those in a similar situation, do you turn off ludicrous for them?

 

[Rogue Synapse]

So it’s not exactly the same, but I drive around in Insane mode at all times, and it’s pretty easy to just feather the pedal and keep things smooth ‘n easy when my wife and kids are in the car. Having that power on tap at all times certainly does make driving by myself a lot more fun, when I want to randomly stomp on it at a stoplight.

When my wife takes my car, she usually does choose to put the acceleration in Sport instead of Insane because it’s more comfortable for her. She drives an EV, too, so she’s used to the instant torque, just not the slap in the face that comes with Insane mode (or even more with Ludicrous mode).

 

[Saghost]

You already got a couple solid answers to the basic question, so I'll just endorse what CFrolander said about that - it is much, much faster, especially from a stop.

For your detail questions... No car has both Insane and Ludicrous; performance cars that don't get the ludicrous option have insane and insane+ instead of ludicrous and Ludicrous+

There's no efficiency penalty for leaving the car in ludicrous mode if you restrain your acceleration to the same rate it would be in Sport. (Where's the fun in that? )

Hammering it does come at a price, of course - doubly so for the Raven cars, since you're moving the effort from the high efficiency front motor to the less efficient rear one.

The main feature of Ludicrous+ is that it heats the battery pack to 50C to increase the power available. It doesn't feel like a big change IMHO, though I've only used it a little so far. Obviously, there is a significant energy penalty to heating the pack, and I'm not sure it's terribly good for longevity though I haven't seen anything definite.

Ludicrous cars also get a nice stats page option for the left instrument panel showing instantaneous and peak power for the battery, front, and rear motors, and acceleration that's unfortunately only available after going into Ludicrous+ and waiting for the pack to reach full temperature.

There's also a nice pack temperature display they added to the lower left quadrant of the energy/power display on the instrument panel that only shows in Ludicrous+.

Because of the pack heating, I do feel like the plus mode is really for special occasions (you may need as much as an hour to fully heat the pack if it started cold,) but there's no harm in leaving the car in ordinary Ludicrous mode all the time if you can resist flooring it when you shouldn't.

 

[brkaus]

It’s like a linear induction motor based roller coaster.

 

[Tifighter]

I leave it in Ludicrous. It only feels different when you really punch it; you can putter around in L all day and never know the difference. I still haven't used Ludicrous+ yet.

 

[BigMskiman]

I wanna know what it feels like to be a muscle car or BMW at a stop light, when my MX zips fully thru the intersection before they even let out the clutch

 

[Saghost]

I leave it in Ludicrous. It only feels different when you really punch it; you can putter around in L all day and never know the difference. I still haven't used Ludicrous+ yet.

I've started doing this too lately. It's certainly easy to putter around at low speeds and get exactly the acceleration you want, but I don't agree with the last statement.

In Ludicrous the car feels quicker and more responsive even at those lower accelerations compared to Sport or Chill. I think the whole pedal is remapped and more sensitive across the board, though Tesla's progressive pedal makes that extra power easy to manage.

 

[GalaxySurfer]

I leave it in Ludicrous. It only feels different when you really punch it; you can putter around in L all day and never know the difference. I still haven't used Ludicrous+ yet.

Ludi+ i notice most during a launch. But i also notice it on a rolling acceleration, its definately faster than ludi. It seems to perform better if you actually let the battery preheat. That can take up to an hour tho..

 

[CFrolander]

It seems to perform better if you actually let the battery preheat. That can take up to an hour tho..

just move to Phoenix, Ludi+ always ready no preheat needed during the summer

 

[KSilver2000]

For me, my car buying experience over time since getting my license has been continually increasing in HP and TQ. So, I don’t think I can buy anything slower than what ludicrous offers, except when there will be an all-electric minivan or truck. Then I can compromise the speed.

For me, I don’t care much about the 0-60mph time. I care more that I can always pass up a slower car while already driving 30-60mph.

And yes, I always keep it in Ludicrous mode. Just don’t press down as hard. My wife has no problems with it either.

 

[jdw]

So my wife doesn’t feel the need for speed, ever... for those in a similar situation, do you turn off ludicrous for them?

Oh yeah ... Chill mode could be renamed Happy mode (as in Happy Wife, Happy Life).

In fairness, after the initial wow, it probably isn't fun to sit in the passenger seat in Ludicrous mode. By myself, pretty much full time Ludicrous.

 

[kqnjml]

Would be nice if Tesla would tweak the Ludicrous+ mode for more frequent use. Heating up the battery takes too long and not practical.

 

[Saghost]

Would be nice if Tesla would tweak the Ludicrous+ mode for more frequent use. Heating up the battery takes too long and not practical.

But AFAIK that's pretty much all Ludicrous+ is.

Not clear on what you're asking for here - Tesla to change the laws of physics so more power is available from the pack at a lower temperature?

I do wish that the two + only information displays were available without going into Ludicrous+.

 

[kqnjml]

What I’m referring to is getting rid of Ludicrous + and somehow get more power at a slightly higher temperature without having to wait so long. Would be nice to have a little more juice than the current ludicrous mode without having to heat up the battery.

But AFAIK that's pretty much all Ludicrous+ is.

Not clear on what you're asking for here - Tesla to change the laws of physics so more power is available from the pack at a lower temperature?

I do wish that the two + only information displays were available without going into Ludicrous+.

 

[OBX John]

What I’m referring to is getting rid of Ludicrous + and somehow get more power at a slightly higher temperature without having to wait so long. Would be nice to have a little more juice than the current ludicrous mode without having to heat up the battery.

It would be nice to get the Ludicrous+ stats without waiting.

 

[GalaxySurfer]

I wouldnt say ludi+ is for normal driving..