Naturally, there’s a screen for setting up or observing battery charging (done through the driver’s side taillight).
#2022 tesla model s driver
The navigation system makes you feel like you’re looking at an entire city map, so a driver will always want to pinch it to visually zoom in on where they were driving.Īlso, you can open garage doors, call up radio stations ad nauseam, use voice command to find apps, ask it for directions, order lunch, etc. Touchscreen? OK, it’s way too much and controls virtually every function known to mankind short of rocket launching, but since this is Tesla, that’s likely to come. Ironically the steering wheel was heated, totally unneeded in much of the South and Southwest.
That maneuver reminds of early 1960s cars with over-boosted power steering that could be spun with a finger. Not possible here, so spin that power steering yoke with your hand on one side of the yoke or a finger under one of the spokes. Where I noticed it feeling particularly odd was during parking maneuvers or turning a tight corner where one would naturally grab the top of a steering wheel to turn it sharply. It takes some getting used to but is easy to master, especially for highway driving. I must say, though that Las Vegas roads are generally so smooth that it’s not like testing a car in the frost-heave capital, Wisconsin.įirst that yoke. Smooth and silky, it’s what I’d call a Buick or Lexus ride, but with a more performance-oriented stiffness to make the car feel connected to the road. Ride, due to that weight (the car weighs more than 4,500 pounds), and a long wheelbase is excellent too. The car feels well planted, handles turns with a precision you’d expect, and its AWD means that even if you were running it in soggy weather or on slippery streets, it’d perform with gusto and confidence. The Type S gets all that power from a 100 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, which due to its substantial weight, also gives the Tesla a low center of gravity that makes it handle like, well, a sports luxury sedan. Consider that a new rear-engine Chevy Corvette makes 495 horsepower with 470 pound-feet of torque, will do 0-60 in 2.9 seconds, and has a top speed of 184 mph, says Car and Driver. Well, the dual AC electric motors, one powering the front wheels, one the rear, create (and I’m not making this up) 825 horsepower along with 960 pound-feet of torque. Power and handling are pure sports sedans. Oh, and it’s really a hatchback as the back window and trunk open as one. It’s sleek, including door handles that fold into the body panels’ sides and pop out when it’s time to open a door. Let’s take a look and be forewarned this is not exactly like most of my test drives as it was such a short duration.įirst, the Type S is a sport luxury sedan in all the ways you picture one in your mind’s eye. So how’s a Tesla drive? What are its advantages? And what are Type S’s drawbacks? Whether you like Elon Musk or not, Tesla is the top-selling electric car maker. It was the whole Tesla experience that was different. I have driven other electrics, so that part wasn’t new. Like your electric razor or hair dryer, the electrons flow instantly. No lag, no waiting for a turbo to kick in. All are fast because electrics deliver instant torque via direct drive electric motors and single-speed fixed gear transmissions.
If muscle cars or exotics with neck-stretching acceleration are your obsession, well, electrics should be your new best friend. It really should, from a performance standpoint, at least to many of us. Plus, gas prices have forever been crazy high on the West Coast, and pollution is a big concern there too.
Makes sense as Teslas are made just over the border in Freemont, California. Ferrari understands.īut marketing aside, the trendy Tesla was at my disposal for a couple of days in stinking hot Las Vegas, where I estimate a good 10% of cars are now Teslas. Tesla, you see, is the Apple of automakers where its own early-adopter cultish clan that, by scarcity, word of mouth, and superiority of intellect, chooses its future customers. Tesla didn’t provide me the bright Pearl White Model S Long Range. No, this wasn’t my usual one-week test drive of a manufacturer’s new vehicle. Finally, I have driven the future, a Tesla.
0 kommentar(er)
