Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

reuters.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

341–350 of 769 posts

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#341

Post by 542354234235 »

swader999 wrote: post #272
542354234235 wrote: post #228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Battery tech has changed a lot since 2008.

I don't think so, cold and cycle degradation still impact range the same. Maybe battery heaters?

Battery heaters for the cold, and software and hardware improvements for charging. Current batteries can dynamically manage how they charge to optimize battery life. Batteries can precondition on the way to a fast charger. Almost all EV’s batteries are warrantied to be at least 70% capacity to 100,000 or 8 years. Battery tech improved in a thousand small boring ways, not in a flashy headline grabbing new innovation.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#342

Post by avidiax »

bumby wrote: post #319
detourdog wrote: post #247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got an i3 with a range extender and a 2 gallon gas tank. The gas tank range can't exceed the battery range and still be an EV. I use the battery almost all the time but knowing I can gas and go 80 miles is great. I drove 1,400 miles to Florida and back. It wasn't noticeably worse experience than an ICE.

I'm curious if they recommend purging the tank (or using the gas) periodically? Gas does expire.

They have a maintenance cycle that forces the engine to run sometimes. That uses up some of the fuel and keeps all the parts lubricated.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#343

Post by mannykannot »

e136 wrote: post #312
dinom wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> able to get a tow truck capable of transporting my car (turns out you need one that has a full bed because of the regenerative breaking Sounds incredibly short-sighted that the regenerative braking can't be temporarily disabled by the driver... two people can push a "regular" car to a nearby gas station in a pinch. Even one person can push a smaller car around a parking lot if necessary. That said, they often send…

Most cars have one or more clutches to put the car in neutral. This is required so the engine can idle while the car stands still, among other reasons. Electric cars don't need to idle and therefore don't have any clutches in the drivetrain. Adding clutches just for allowing the user to push around the car seems needlessly complicated and over optimizing for a scenario that will not occur for the majority of cars.

I would have thought regenerative braking could be disabled by simply electrically isolating the motors. You still have the mechanical resistance of turning the rotor, but I would also think that is easier than turning over an IC engine.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#344

Post by bumby »

dinom wrote: post #333
purpleidea wrote: post #261

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tesla cars are way heavier. Nobody is pushing one with their friend. Unless it's downhill.

> Unless it's downhill. Wouldn't that be ok since the parent's root problem was no cell-phone signal? Edit: of course walking is an option too :-)

>To make matters worse I was in a mountain valley and had no phone signal

I read the above as an indication that they were in a valley where mountains were blocking any chance of a signal. Going further "downhill" wouldn't help in that case.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#346

Post by CryptoBanker »

sneak wrote: post #199
HWR_14 wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is why class action lawsuits exist. I can throw my $20 in with a thousand other people who all have the same problem. Or, more likely, when looking at that big a settlement, we can find a lawyer who works on contingency.

It's likely that you waived your rights to a class action against Tesla when you agreed to some EULA.

And that clause will never be enforceable in court

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#347

Post by caconym_ »

dinom wrote: post #259
malwrar wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I actually got stranded once for some hours because of the mileage indicator! Was driving back from a campsite that I turned out to not have charging compatibility with, but thought I had plenty of margin to get to the nearest charger. As I drove through the mountains however, I began noticing that a.) my battery was depleting much faster than expected and b.) I wasn’t seeing any houses and very few motorists. I watc…

> able to get a tow truck capable of transporting my car (turns out you need one that has a full bed because of the regenerative breaking Sounds incredibly short-sighted that the regenerative braking can't be temporarily disabled by the driver... two people can push a "regular" car to a nearby gas station in a pinch. Even one person can push a smaller car around a parking lot if necessary. That said, they often send…

It's common for cars with AWD systems where the rear drivetrain can't be disconnected by a clutch to require flatbed towing, less because the car can't physically be moved with the power off and more because spinning the wheels at a sustained high speed will cause damage to the drivetrain and potentially the engine. E.g. my moldy old Subaru requires flatbed towing, because spinning the rear wheels while the fronts are immobile will destroy the limited-slip center diff, but it's totally possible to push it along with all four wheels on the ground.

I think AWD Teslas have an independent motor and drivetrain for the rear wheels. Naively, one would expect that if you unload the rear axle motor/generator you could just tow the car with little resistance and no damage, but in practice the picture is probably more complicated. I would love to hear from an expert.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#348

Post by NelsonMinar »

vagab0nd wrote: post #51

Not just battery and range. I've had problems with the passenger side airbag not enabling, and turn signal not working. Both scary issues. Made appointments with the support. Both were cancelled outright by them (!). They tried to convince me that there was no problem, and it was all due to the way I use the car. They seemed to try everything to get out of appointments. My wife had to use the back seat for a month wh…

"turn signal not working." Oh that explains why Tesla drivers never seem to signal! ;-)

Seriously, sorry you've had such a bad experience with Tesla service.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#349

Post by Lendal »

pilingual wrote: post #309
Lendal wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While there are things to hate on with Tesla cars, range is not one of them. I have a Model Y and for the most part I like it. I plug it in when it needs charging. What's so hard about that? I've been on several 6000+ mile journeys across the country and never had a problem, even out west where charging is more sparse. The thing I hate most about my car is that I spent $10K on "Full Self Driving" and rarely use it. I…

What was your thought process when you spent $10,000 on "FSD?"

I thought it would be cool. I didn't consider the fact I don't actually like it when someone else is driving. I don't like being a passenger even if a person I trust is driving, so why would an AI be different? Apparently I like to drive more than I thought I did.

Also, I didn't realize how many restrictions there would be. You have to keep your hands applying constant tension on the steering wheel, and there's actually a camera that watches your eyes now. So you can't even eat a sandwich without the car freaking out and punishing you for looking at your food too long.

Re: Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of driving range complaints

#350

Post by dinom »

bumby wrote: post #344
dinom wrote: post #333

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Unless it's downhill. Wouldn't that be ok since the parent's root problem was no cell-phone signal? Edit: of course walking is an option too :-)

> To make matters worse I was in a mountain valley and had no phone signal I read the above as an indication that they were in a valley where mountains were blocking any chance of a signal. Going further "downhill" wouldn't help in that case.

Fair enough, I was thinking back to the time something similar happened to me "mid-mountain".

This Tesla must've been in one heck of a stop where "hiking wasn’t an option as it was pretty hot and we had no water", lol. Does Tesla make a motocross bike?

Post reply on HN