Do Tesla driver's realize how much power they have?

[craigster59]

I was talking with speeder the other day and mentioned my disgust with some Tesla drivers. They hop into the HOV/carpool lane and leave a 30 car cushion between them and the car in front. Go around to pass and see that they're in "self drive" mode and texting or talking on the way to the office while the car "pays attention" to the road.

Frustrating.

[Deschodt]

I have a 480hp Polestar2 (factory software upgrade). Possibly not as fast as a dual motor Tesla due to calibration (Volvo tries not to break your cervicals) but damn close. I also have 30y of track days under my belt.

...and it's bonkers to me we can buy those cars without any extra training. More so than the fact you can also buy a MacLaren or 918 Spyder without training, because those are "everyday" cars. It's not just the power overall, it's the immediacy of it, you can DO things with those cars that are akin to "teleportation" in traffic. People around you are not ready for all of it, I'm honestly shocked there have not been more accidents, not just from the EV side of people failing to control that power, but from how EV capabilities can affect regular non EV traffic around them. People in general do not expect that kind of acceleration from a car at 0-40 or 50-80, they aren't prepared to deal with it - both as a drivers and as part of the traffic flow.. You expect it maybe from something looking like a Huracan, but here, no sound and it looks like a fridge (the Tesla, I like my polestar)
By that I mean, you may be accustomed to looking in your mirror and think " I'm good to change lane, that car cannot get to that spot before I get there" - well they CAN

The other day I was caught up at a light by a guy asking me what my car was, he was shocked how fast I went light to light (empty road) 0-30. I was not even trying, the car does it so smoothly it's the new normal. We're mixing Horses with early Model Ts at the moment (add self driving and we are doomed)
.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by McLovin

I was at a Tesla delivery center a couple of years ago.

An elderly couple (looked like late 70s at least) just bought a new Tesla.

My guess is they were given zero instructions on how it works.

So, they’re sitting in the car in the parking lot getting ready to leave. The car was backed into the parking spot.

I’m 15 feet away, off to the side of them (spoiler alert: thankfully not in front of them).

Sitting. Sitting.

What I think happened: unlike old gas cars, teslas can be set to not “creep” forward.

So she had her foot on the brake. Took foot off the brake. Car didn’t move. Car is dead silent. So she doesn’t know what’s going on, but likely thinks the car isn’t “on.”

So no harm in jamming down on the gas pedal.

BAM! 350 feet of instant torque to the wheels. The car literally shot out of the spot, went 20 feet before being stopped by the corner of the building.

The sound was incredible, like an explosion. It was very lucky no one was in front of them, this was a busy day and busy parking lot with tons of people milling around.

Literally totaled the car in the first 20 feet of ownership.

Originally Posted by McLovin

Yikes! That's horrible! I feel for them. That was probably a terrifying experience. Glad it was not worse by something/someone besides the building being in front of them.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by john70t

That's the "secured lumber" over the drive tires (aka center or rear engine) part I wus talkin about.
Plus you are not Mustang-Certified.

Ah, gotcha!

[Daves911L]

Riding last summer with a co-worker. Good dude but a bit of a cowboy type, and can be a real a**hole when he feels like it. Anyway, morning rush hour on 470 near the drag strip and we’re rolling along in his big Ford P/U and when we pass this guy in a Tesla. 30-something yupster, suit, tie, reading his newspaper with a cup of coffee. Full “hands- off” mode and obviously doing it to show off to the peons on their low-tech old school vehicles. Entirely too smug as he grins up at us.

So Matt says “watch this”. Veers hard right in front of the Tesla and stands in the brakes. Sure enough, we can see in the rear view coffee flying all over in the Tesla. Matt grins and “damn, that’s some f***in good technology they got in those Tesler things”. Like I said, he can be a real a**hole.

[Zeke]

Jay Leno has a video about an electric '68 p-car converted by a company that uses Tesla rear drive assemblies exclusively. They need donors.

[McLovin]

Originally Posted by masraum

Yikes! That's horrible! I feel for them. That was probably a terrifying experience. Glad it was not worse by something/someone besides the building being in front of them.

It was so terrifying that my dad, who is around the same age as them and was there to pick up his new Tesla, cancelled it.

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by Deschodt

I have a 480hp Polestar2 (factory software upgrade). Possibly not as fast as a dual motor Tesla due to calibration (Volvo tries not to break your cervicals) but damn close..

I think a P2 is on par with a regular dual motor. Add the software upgrade to the dual motor and you have a poor man’s Performance model.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by Deschodt

It's not just the power overall, it's the immediacy of it, you can DO things with those cars that are akin to "teleportation" in traffic.

Auto maker use tricks.
The 2005 Corolla has acceptable power overall but is a slug accelerating on the highway.
A power plant is what it is. Nothing more.

They decided to "spruce it up" by tweeking the throttle curve rheostat/potentiometer/whatever so that 10% throttle becomes 25% throttle.
A little gas becomes a lot of gas.
(oooh look at all this powah!)

I lube the cable and butterfly and OEM air filters peddle not sticking etc but it sucks in the wintertime on ice.
Just another stupid electronic thing to have to have to out-think.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by McLovin

It was so terrifying that my dad, who is around the same age as them and was there to pick up his new Tesla, cancelled it.

Wow. Well, good for him for realizing that it may not have been a good fit for him.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by john70t

Auto maker use tricks.
The 2005 Corolla has acceptable power overall but is a slug accelerating on the highway.
A power plant is what it is. Nothing more.

They decided to "spruce it up" by tweeking the throttle curve rheostat/potentiometer/whatever so that 10% throttle becomes 25% throttle.
A little gas becomes a lot of gas.
(oooh look at all this powah!)

I lube the cable and butterfly and OEM air filters peddle not sticking etc but it sucks in the wintertime on ice.
Just another stupid electronic thing to have to have to out-think.

I remember years ago, around 2000, I travelled a lot and rented cars. 2 locations, same week, 2 different monte carlos. One car, stop the car, let off the brakes, and floor the gas and the car would spin the tires. Tons of off-the-line power, but then felt pretty gutless at upper RPMs. Next location, another Monte Carlo. This one, try the same thing and it's completely gutless, but if you keep the power on, it really "kicks in" between 3000 and 6000 rpm with a huge surge. Both were 3.8L 6-cyl, IIRC. I suspect most of the difference was in the electronics.

My boxster has Sport-Chrono. Hit the sport button and the off-idle acceleration improves, but I think that's mostly because the throttle pedal has been remapped, not because there's any sort of power bump.

[sc_rufctr]

Forget power or propulsion... Most drivers we share the road with don't know what their cars are capable of.

I have a friend who's a licensed semi-professional race car driver. She said to me recently that she feels much safer on a track because all of the other drivers are professionals.

[The Synergizer]

They're absurd vehicles.

Tesla Plaid ¼ Mile Time: 9.3 seconds at 152.2 mph

Corvette Z06 ¼ Mile Time: 10.6 seconds

Dodge Challenger Hellcat Redeye ¼ Mile Time: 10.8 seconds

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by McLovin

It was so terrifying that my dad, who is around the same age as them and was there to pick up his new Tesla, cancelled it.

Are you serious?

[TimT]

she feels much safer on a track

Agree, everyone is going the same direction... no oncoming traffic..

[David]

I drove one of our company's F150 Lightnings and was amazed and surprised our company let's people drive these things. I enjoyed it but I'm sure it would be scary to most drivers.

Of course I've probably never driven a car without putting the throttle to the floor at least once while driving but I'm sure the vast majority of drivers don't.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by David

I drove one of our company's F150 Lightnings and was amazed and surprised our company let's people drive these things. I enjoyed it but I'm sure it would be scary to most drivers.

Of course I've probably never driven a car without putting the throttle to the floor at least once while driving but I'm sure the vast majority of drivers don't.

Both on the 911 tech board here at PP and on multiple miata boards, I've seen folks post about how slow 911s and miatas were. Eventually after some questions posed by board members it was determined that a lot of those folks were shifting at ~3000 rpm, and never exceeded that. Most of the time, the boards managed to convince them to rev the cars up to 5000-6000 rpm, and they came back thoroughly impressed with what they'd been missing. I've known a few folks that were scared to rev a car up, all of the mechanical ferocity scared them. I don't think I've ever NOT redlined any car that I've driven.

I remember talking to a guy that I worked with years ago that wanted a vehicle to sound and feel like he was sitting on his couch, no sound, no bouncing around, just stillness and comfort.

[sc_rufctr]

Originally Posted by TimT

Agree, everyone is going the same direction... no oncoming traffic..

They're also predictable. I've seen some truly stupid things on the road lately and often I suspect there was a smart phone involved.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Daves911L

Riding last summer with a co-worker. Good dude but a bit of a cowboy type, and can be a real a**hole when he feels like it. Anyway, morning rush hour on 470 near the drag strip and we’re rolling along in his big Ford P/U and when we pass this guy in a Tesla. 30-something yupster, suit, tie, reading his newspaper with a cup of coffee. Full “hands- off” mode and obviously doing it to show off to the peons on their low-tech old school vehicles. Entirely too smug as he grins up at us.

So Matt says “watch this”. Veers hard right in front of the Tesla and stands in the brakes. Sure enough, we can see in the rear view coffee flying all over in the Tesla. Matt grins and “damn, that’s some f***in good technology they got in those Tesler things”. Like I said, he can be a real a**hole.

If I'd had coffee, it would have gone out my nose.

[Ronbo]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

Do they have power settings? (not that anyone would use them)

Yes, there is a “Chill Mode” setting that gives a more relaxed and gentle acceleration than Standard Mode.