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Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

money.cnn.com

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Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#61

Post by danielweber »

peeters wrote: post #58
TwiztidK wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Are we forgetting the data from the NYT review clearly showed Broder driving around in circles in a car park? It didn't. It showed him driving .6mi after exiting the highway but there is no proof that he was driving around in circles in a parking lot.

In fact, the author has explicitly confirmed that he had to do 1-2 laps of the parking lot to find the unilluminated charging station in the dark. While that might qualify as "driving in circles", it did not appear to be intentional, and is a valid issue that one might have.

Musk probably looks on the product as his baby, and if you insult my baby, I won't be totally rational in my response.

Really, he shouldn't have mentioned that 0.6 miles at all. If 0.6 miles makes the difference in how a car performs, just drop it.

But since Musk thinks this guy was insulting his baby, the 0.6 miles (in _circles_!) looks sinister to him.

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#62

Post by jstanley »

prawks wrote: post #52
analog wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Diesel also needs special considerations in colder weather (the fuel becomes too viscous at lower temperatures). Just a different set of problems to petrol, not a dealbreaker imo.

As someone who had an 80's diesel car as his first, I can verify that even leaving them in a high school parking lot during a cold winter school day in Maine is a bad idea. I had to wait about a week for the weather to warm up before the glow-plugs were enough to start it. However, I believe a Tesla is a different case. I always keep my car's fuel tank above half-filled to preserve the fuel filter (and you should too…

How does keeping the tank fuller preserve the filter? All the crap in there sinks to the bottom anyway, no?

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#63

Post by jws »

NamTaf wrote: post #9
ck2 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it possible and would it help to warm the batteries ala glow plugs for diesel?

I believe it presently does. In fact, I believe that's the reason why the battery charge level dropped overnight in Musk's presentation of data and why, according to some folk, plugging it in to a normal power socket isn't enough to actually charge it as the battery pack draws more power than the socket can supply simply keeping the thing warm. Such a process will of course drain the battery which still achieves the…

I'm sitting in front of a 1500 watt radiant heater, it seems implausible that 1500 watts isn't enough power to keep a car sized battery pack in an enclosed space warmed to operating temperature.

For an idea what 1500 watts will do, I keep a 400 square foot room with only an R8 (US) ceiling and unheated space below at a 20°F differential to outside with this heater. It can't keep up when it gets too cold out, but my room has about 200 times the surface area of a Tesla battery pack.

Edit: maybe more than 20°F. I just shut it off for the day at °85F inside and 37°F out, so 48°F difference, but it is sunny, so the roof and two walls are warmer than 37°F. Data collection is hard. If only I worked in a uniform spherical room located in empty space…

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#65

Post by RaphiePS »

taligent wrote: post #46
analog wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The experience with Top Gear has probably influenced the reaction here. I don't find it childish to strongly defend your product if you believe a journalist has written a hack job on it.

>I don't find it childish to strongly defend your product if you believe a journalist Childish really is the best word for it. It wasn't a measured, intelligent response. It came across as a "beat the journalist up" because they posted a bad review. Reminds me of the sort of thing you see bad restaurant owners do when they respond to diner's complaints.

A bad review is not the same thing as a dishonest review.

It wasn't that Broder simply disliked the car. Musk felt he had falsified data to make Tesla look bad.

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#66

Post by jlgreco »

atacrawl wrote: post #57
taligent wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I don't find it childish to strongly defend your product if you believe a journalist Childish really is the best word for it. It wasn't a measured, intelligent response. It came across as a "beat the journalist up" because they posted a bad review. Reminds me of the sort of thing you see bad restaurant owners do when they respond to diner's complaints.

It came across as a "beat the journalist up" because they posted a bad review. Reminds me of the sort of thing you see bad restaurant owners do when they respond to diner's complaints. I disagree completely -- a better analogy would be that a restaurant owner gets pissed off because the reviewer complains of a fly in his soup when circuit cameras reveal this was never the case.

And then everybody rushes to the defense of the reviewer saying "He was just explaining what a fly in the soup would have been like!" and "Yeah, but the soup was cold and took to long to come out!"

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#67

Post by analog »

taligent wrote: post #46
analog wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The experience with Top Gear has probably influenced the reaction here. I don't find it childish to strongly defend your product if you believe a journalist has written a hack job on it.

>I don't find it childish to strongly defend your product if you believe a journalist Childish really is the best word for it. It wasn't a measured, intelligent response. It came across as a "beat the journalist up" because they posted a bad review. Reminds me of the sort of thing you see bad restaurant owners do when they respond to diner's complaints.

Yes, he picked a fight. This is an effective PR method, though it would be better if it wasn't.

It will make some people rally to his cause more, and it will turn some people off (likely the ones who wouldn't buy the cars anyway).

If you wanted to criticise the response you could call it cynical, but I think you'll agree that's a long way from being childish.

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#68

Post by brewdad »

jstanley wrote: post #62
prawks wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who had an 80's diesel car as his first, I can verify that even leaving them in a high school parking lot during a cold winter school day in Maine is a bad idea. I had to wait about a week for the weather to warm up before the glow-plugs were enough to start it. However, I believe a Tesla is a different case. I always keep my car's fuel tank above half-filled to preserve the fuel filter (and you should too…

How does keeping the tank fuller preserve the filter? All the crap in there sinks to the bottom anyway, no?

I think he meant the fuel pump. It can overheat if fuel levels get too low.

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#69

Post by TylerE »

jws wrote: post #63
NamTaf wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe it presently does. In fact, I believe that's the reason why the battery charge level dropped overnight in Musk's presentation of data and why, according to some folk, plugging it in to a normal power socket isn't enough to actually charge it as the battery pack draws more power than the socket can supply simply keeping the thing warm. Such a process will of course drain the battery which still achieves the…

I'm sitting in front of a 1500 watt radiant heater, it seems implausible that 1500 watts isn't enough power to keep a car sized battery pack in an enclosed space warmed to operating temperature. For an idea what 1500 watts will do, I keep a 400 square foot room with only an R8 (US) ceiling and unheated space below at a 20°F differential to outside with this heater. It can't keep up when it gets too cold out, but my r…

Of course, for every hour of operation of the heater, you're using up about 1.5% of the battery capacity.

Re: Test drive: DC to Boston in a Tesla Model S

#70

Post by cube13 »

free652 wrote: post #55
DigitalSea wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might not prove he drove in circles in a parking lot, but you have to admit there are discrepancies in the data that have not been explained fully by the NYT editor that don't prove he didn't deliberately try and drain the battery all for having the scoop review that tries and dispels Tesla's claims of efficiency.

There are a lot of claims that were not proven by Musk, like driving through the downtown Manhattan.. When Lincoln Tunnel is nowhere close to Downtown.. (or properly Lower Manhattan) Let's not start nitpicking, that stop was new for the reporter. He stopped once on the different side of the highway (North bound) and on this side of highway (South bound) the tesla station was in a completely different place. So yea, i…

It was the northbound trip before the first charge. For the southbound trip, the car was effectively dead on the tow truck(it didn't have enough charge to disengage the parking break):

http://jalopnik.com/towing-company-the-nyt-tesla-model-s-was...

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