I've seen similar systems installed over the years in the Boston area including my parent's home. What tends to happen is they work very well for a few years then they fail as the contacts corrode.
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Winter Driving Experiences
- Thread starter kevincwelch
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- Driving Dynamics Model S
Throttle modulation at low torque seems pretty good to me, so why wouldn't you turn off TC for the case where you need a little tire slip to get started from a dead stop, then turn TC back on? Of course, that's just a workaround until Tesla updates the TC algorithms for winter driving (pretty please, Tesla: are you reading this thread!?).
I'm planning to try that if the situation arises again. The first time I was just trying to get the car moving before the light went red again, and I didn't want to hunt for the TC button. Now I've noted where it is so will be able to switch quickly.
As a service to the community and as we say a picture is worth a thousand words:
-8C (17F) - 19" Pirelli winter tires - (the TPMS error is normal has sensors have not been programmed yet by Tesla Service)
Tesla Model S in the snow - Promenade Street.MOV - YouTube
Tesla Model S in the snow - at school.mov - YouTube
And now... the same situation with another car...
Chevy Volt - Snow Promenade - YouTube
Chevy Volt - Snow at school - YouTube
-8C (17F) - 19" Pirelli winter tires - (the TPMS error is normal has sensors have not been programmed yet by Tesla Service)
Tesla Model S in the snow - Promenade Street.MOV - YouTube
Tesla Model S in the snow - at school.mov - YouTube
And now... the same situation with another car...
Chevy Volt - Snow Promenade - YouTube
Chevy Volt - Snow at school - YouTube
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Thanks for the videos PatP.. just for clarification on the Promenade, did you purposely park on hilly road to show how the car gets stuck ? or were you actually driving up the hill and the car got stuck by itself ?.. as you managed to get up the hill in the end...
I have a surprise for you all very soon... I expected this comment... Wait 10 minutes.
Considering those videos are with the winter tire package, it's a bit scarey. I'd expect much better performance than what was shown.
Has anyone in the Boston area tried their cars out after the current snowstorm? There should be plenty of poorly plowed streets available for testing around Boston and Cambridge. :biggrin:
Has anyone in the Boston area tried their cars out after the current snowstorm? There should be plenty of poorly plowed streets available for testing around Boston and Cambridge. :biggrin:
Are the wheels turning and the car not moving it do they not even turn? I can't hear anything.
ok, got it.. so if you were in stop and go traffic then this would pose a big problem.. luckily your car found some traction and it let the TC kick in slowly.. i think the problem is what Doug_G alluded to earlier - about the TC being "too aggressive" - it was stopping the wheels from turning at all.. Tesla needs to tweak the TC a bit to let the wheels turn a little to get you moving slightly and then you should be fine... but yeah I can see how Montreal's bad weather + un-plowed roads + hilly roads can be trouble for the Model S when in stuck in traffic.
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you can see by the power usage, that PatP is pressing down on the pedal giving it 'gas' ( power' ) - but not going anywhere.. so the wheels weren't turning because you see the TC warning lights on
No, they don't turn. However, even with TC off, it's not better - they spin but car doesn't move. I have to say the car is okay on flat snowy roads.
IMHO, the TC is a major culprit in both situations, but most clearly in the promenade street clip. You had at least one drive wheel on plowed pavement (i.e. not in the side snow strip), and that should have got you moving. In stop & go traffic, this is not a pleasant situation (to say the least), but I would be curious to see how the car behaves on the same road if stopped while not pulled to the side (would need to be done at odd hours with little to no traffic).
As it is now, the S seems to behave like a normal powerful ICE RWD car in these (specific) situations - not very well.
In your second clip, it seemed as if you were in an unplowed or less cleared street, but I could not tell if there was much of a grade, could you describe the setting?
Thank you for taking the time to make these, if it can help Tesla improve the S.
Yes it is scary, and if this is your daily commute, and the type of environment you drive in on a regular basis - then either Tesla needs to tweak the TC , or this may not be the car for you... but I have had no issues in my several drives in Toronto through the snowy / slushy roads here... but i am not going up/down hills a lot, and the roads get cleared pretty quickly here
I agree. This is why I was alerting reservation holders and potential buyers who are living in those conditions to postpone. They will be really frustrated. For me, it's one of many cars and I can live with it although I'm REALLY disappointed as I was expecting way better given my Tesla Roadster experience. Tesla should be straight forward and people should stop saying the car is as good as any FWD or AWD... We must face reality.
Tesla should speak up... soon. I'm really sad about this. Half of the US and a lot of Europe gets snow... this is serious!
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