Yes, that's exactly what would happen. You just need to break a lifetime habit of lifting fully off the accelerator when presented with a dicey situation which can be challenging.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Winter Driving Experiences
- Thread starter kevincwelch
- Start date
-
- Tags
- Driving Dynamics Model S
Yes, that's exactly what would happen. You just need to break a lifetime habit of lifting fully off the accelerator when presented with a dicey situation which can be challenging.
Andyw2100
Well-Known Member
Thanks. That's what I thought. I didn't think it would be easy to break the lifetime habit. I just thought slcuervo was suggesting it wasn't possible to approximate the behavior of an ICE in the Model S.
I haven't had to set regen to low either, but it wouldn't be a bad idea until you get used to feathering the accelerator pedal in slippery conditions. I'm not sure how well ABS will counteract rear wheels that over decelerate, but it is possible that traction control limits regen if it senses a disparity between front and rear tires.
I've thought of that, but I'm not 100% sure if regen was causing the drift, or not. I have to experience it again to be more certain... But it would certainly be a solution - the other one would be to learn not to lift the foot off completely, like it has been discussed on previous posts.
- - - Updated - - -
Black ice it was. Tricky bas**rd, that one!
3s-a-charm
Active Member
Those of you who drove last winter (and I suppose this winter already) when the ruts start to form in residential roads with more than average snow... how is the ground clearance with suspension lifted to max height in the Model S? This is honestly my biggest concern of winter driving especially with the new radar placed so low in the front bumper that I will do damage going over the inevitable ruts made by other vehicles in the roads. Last winter we had some pretty nasty side streets and I was okay as I had an X5 with good clearance. Maybe on those days I'll stick to the X5?
Hi
i was driving mine from March onwards but I didn't experience any issues. I have air suspension which allows increased clearance on demand. I think anything too high for that would be an issue for most sedans.
I've been driving vehicles with regenerative brakes for the last twelve years. It's just not an issue (assuming you knew how to drive in winter conditions in the first place).
glhs272
Unnamed plug faced villian
Regen is modulated due to wheel slip. Meaning when lifting off the go pedal and regen kicks in, if the rear wheels begin to slip the regen gets cut back until it gets better traction. This process seems to have gotten better with the later firmware revisions (or at least it feels that way to me). I used to set regen to low when it was very slippery. It was a little uncomfortable when regen kicked in and the back end became disconnected to the road... But with this latest bad weather, it seemed regen was well behaved and was execellent at modulating the regen to where I couldn't notice that there was wheel slip but the regen cut back. So I always felt like I was in full control and full contact with the road.
I actually needed to set regen to low last weekend wile coming back from the mountains on icy roads in Colorado. While descending, I found that my car would pull to the left only while regen-ing because the road was leaning to the left. Setting regen to low helped, but it still pulled a bit. It was a surprising experience going through it for the first time. I was on Michelin Xi3 snow tires, as well. Feathering the pedal was the only way to keep the car in control.
If you grew up driving a standard-shift (as I did), you will know that you can't just pull your foot all the way off the accelerator on ice, because you'll get engine braking and then stall out. You have to either feather it, or more likely *shift into neutral*. (Which you can in fact do on the Tesla while moving.)
So for some of us this wasn't a change in lifetime habit at all.
So for some of us this wasn't a change in lifetime habit at all.
You can do it (pull the foot all the way) on a front wheel drive, because it is much easier to control even if the tires brake. But with a rear wheel drive it's different
Assuming both FWD and RWD vehicles have stability control, there isn't much difference. There would be if there was no stability control.
Kalud
Active Member
Just posting this here. This is my second winter with my Model S. Love this car, its just awesome in the snow, with appropriate dedicated snow tires (Hakka R2's)
For those wondering about clearance or rwd, unless you have a sharp incline, you can be assured that the car handles snow nicely. I drive on "always low" setting.
Oh and I wish we could get snow storms everyday :
For those wondering about clearance or rwd, unless you have a sharp incline, you can be assured that the car handles snow nicely. I drive on "always low" setting.
Oh and I wish we could get snow storms everyday :
mknox
Well-Known Member
Toronto got a real blast of winter today... and I had to drive through it to drop my car off at the Service Center and pick up a loaner. This seems to be my pattern: had a loaner in a doozy of a winter storm last year too. Once again, the difference between my Hakka R2's and the loaner's Pirellis is HUGE. I have become a huge fan of those Nokian tires. The only advantage AWD would give me is the ability to pull away from a stop faster. Once underway, braking and steering is excellent in the snow with these tires.
Hi, @Kalud,
Just curious: what benefits do you perceive from driving on "always low"?
Thanks,
Alan
Kalud
Active Member
I prefer the look, otherwise there is no benefit at all. It was a comment aimed to those asking about the use / need of air suspension for winter driving. I'd like to say that its useful sometimes when there is a lot of snow and you are basically stopped, otherwise, with some momentum low is just fine
Hi, @Kalud,
I understand your point about the look.
For myself, I tend to leave the car at standard height through most of the year. But I have found that raising the suspension to high or very high can be helpful with some unplowed driving situations. Would love to have seen another Tesla with the coil suspension handle the same conditions, for a real apples-to-apples comparison.
Alan
I understand your point about the look.
For myself, I tend to leave the car at standard height through most of the year. But I have found that raising the suspension to high or very high can be helpful with some unplowed driving situations. Would love to have seen another Tesla with the coil suspension handle the same conditions, for a real apples-to-apples comparison.
Alan
I prefer the look, otherwise there is no benefit at all. It was a comment aimed to those asking about the use / need of air suspension for winter driving. I'd like to say that its useful sometimes when there is a lot of snow and you are basically stopped, otherwise, with some momentum low is just fine
I started my first ski-trip in Tesla today. OK, its a short one only 125km one-way to Blue Mountain resort and the road was all clean and dry. What I am really proud of is that I made the trip using up 132km worth of rated range,which means I almost matched rated energy usage with 4 people + lots of luggage with ski equipment in the car. I was drafting behind a truck for a good part of the trip, because on PlugShare I could not find any charging station anywhere near the place, not even a basic 30 level 2, so I was worried that if the car sits in the cold for 2 days with no charging I might have problem with the 250km round trip in the cold and having some elevation change too.
Starting from a full charge, showing a rated range of 430km, when I arrived I had 298km left, which looked promising. But then it turned even better, we are staying at the Grande Georgian Lodge, which has an underground parking with lots of 110v 15A plugs spread around, and I could find a spot where I could plug in. Sure, its only the slow trickle-charge but it still beats the vampire-drain in a freezing outdoor parking lot.
Starting from a full charge, showing a rated range of 430km, when I arrived I had 298km left, which looked promising. But then it turned even better, we are staying at the Grande Georgian Lodge, which has an underground parking with lots of 110v 15A plugs spread around, and I could find a spot where I could plug in. Sure, its only the slow trickle-charge but it still beats the vampire-drain in a freezing outdoor parking lot.
Similar threads
