Tesla’s Model S Gets “Ludicrous” Mode, Will Do 0-60 in 2.8 Seconds

Post by ctdonath » Fri, Jul 17, 2015, 8:56 PM UTC

coldpie wrote: post #105

tthayer wrote: post #89

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Agreed. The 2015 Mazda3 we just bought has a horrible info/nav system that crashes and frequently stops responding. I'm guessing the actual chance of it ever being fixed at 0%. Tesla's get an automatic OTA update that would fix that kind of thing and it wouldn't be something you'd have to 'deal' with for the rest of your ownership of the vehicle.

I will never buy a vehicle with both an infotainment system and a steering wheel. Subaru lost a sale of a brand new car when the dealer sat down, turned the key, and the radio showed.... a loading bar. Fuck that. I deal with shitty software enough everywhere else in my life. I'm not going to put up with that in a 4000lb piece of metal going 70 MPH.

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jul 17, 2015, 8:57 PM UTC

CydeWeys wrote: post #97

bravo22 wrote: post #92

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The batteries in a Tesla aren't very green and sadly they are quite large. Big automakers think in volumes of millions of cars, Tesla delivers about 25K (EDIT: looks like 40K projected for this year[1]) cars a year. http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2015/05/12/tes...

Isn't it an overstatement that the batteries aren't green? Yes, there are environmental impacts from the production, but still a lot less than the environmental impacts of all the oil that would otherwise be produced and burnt to fuel the car over its lifetime, no?

Post by damoncali » Fri, Jul 17, 2015, 8:58 PM UTC

outworlder wrote: post #49

pbreit wrote: post #20

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What a fantastic read! I wonder if they get any tech or materials from SpaceX?

Well, SpaceX uses inconel. They also must have a quite good understanding of pyrotechnics, as they need to use that in a lot of places, eg. stage separation. So I'd say yes, at least on the tech transfer part.

Post by Dylan16807 » Fri, Jul 17, 2015, 9:00 PM UTC

JoshTriplett wrote: post #83

larrys wrote: post #32

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Note that 0 to 60 is not always what matters. I have a Porsche Macan S (small SUV) which has 0 to 60 times in the 5 second range. But the acceleration from 50 to 95 (the point that your realize you are going to fast) feels almost split second. The 2012 911 that I had had much better 0 to 60 times (in the 4's) but even with a 7 speed manual transmission didn't have the kick that the Macan has at the upper end. [1] (An…

The difference is that there aren't posted acceleration limits, only speed limits. (And more generally, speed reduces available reaction time and increases your inertia in a collision, which is why it's the sensible thing to limit.) The only limits on acceleration are the general requirements to drive safely. So 0-60 is a lot more interesting than -95, unless you're driving on the autobahn.

Post by Someone » Fri, Jul 17, 2015, 9:02 PM UTC

waterlesscloud wrote: post #120

jakemoshenko wrote: post #113

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Here I am trying to imagine a vehicle with infotainment but without a steering wheel. It raises so many questions! Do you assume that we will purchase self driving cars frequently enough that the infotainment will keep pace? Do you anticipate purchasing a personal train or fighter jet? Do the handlebars on a motorcycle count as a steering wheel?

I'm trying to imagine a personal car without a steering wheel without an infotainment system. Of course such vehicles will have infotainment. I've long been thinking about what sort of content would work best. Short, serialized content released on a weekday schedule would certainly be an opportunity. Perfect watercooler fodder.