Oct 13, 2014
DITB Sounds fun!
Especially if that wasn't a mistake, did he really extend his lower body out the window, as in from hip to toes? I would have liked to see how he used his iPhone in this position.
My emphasis in your quote.�
Oct 14, 2014
hsctiger93 Took our first extended road trip from Richmond to Winston-Salem, NC a couple weeks ago to attend a family wedding. Stopped at the South Hill SC which is at the back of the parking lot of a restaurant. Not your typical charger location, by the way. The restaurant is nice.
When we drove to the wedding location, the valet said he knew how to drive it, I watched as he drove it around, and everything seemed OK. I guess he must have left because when we asked them to retrieve it, they sheepishly asked if we could come with them. I immediately feared the worst only to find out they didn't know how to "turn it off" and didn't know how to "get it started." So, I showed them and they all felt a little stupid. Note to self: Show the valet!
We came awfully close to running out of juice. Stopped at Burlington SC and wife got impatient so we didn't fully recharge. Left Burlington with 230 miles of charge and 181 miles to drive. Since this was the first full-family trip with luggage it averaged closer to 335 kwh. Got home with 6 miles left on the battery. In case you've never cut it close, the car starts to limit your acceleration, sets speed limits, and will turn off the A/C as it gets closer to empty. Starts with about 20 miles remaining on the battery. Another Tesla moment!�
Oct 14, 2014
adiggs Side effect of the loaner program - I've had that when my Roadster is in a few times. People are like "you have a Model S TOO!?!?". The second loaner was a different color than the first one, and a few neighbors remembered that. They were like "you have a closet full of those things?"
�
Oct 14, 2014
Genebe This is why we've been waiting to get a Model S. We have a regular trip to a rural area that's exactly 250 miles, and there are no superchargers along the way (yet), and I don't want to stop at a campground for 2-3 hours to charge on what is otherwise a 4 1/2 hour trip! I'd hate to be 20 miles from my destination, at 11pm, in the winter, and have no power.
Sorry for the tangent.�
Oct 14, 2014
GoBlue88 Yesterday I was driving home from work. The Freeway exit puts me on a 4-lane road for about 2 miles with 1 traffic light halfway (the only intersection) and a speed limit of 55. About a quarter mile after exiting a freeway, a brand new Porsche Panamera blew by me probably doing about 80, but he got caught at the light. I pulled up next to him at the light and when it turned green, I left him completely in the dust, quickly getting it up to around 95 before I dialed it back (it was safe, no traffic or intersections were ahead for a mile). This apparently pissed him off, because as I was just starting to dial it back he blew by me in excess of triple digits.
I smiled the Tesla grin, knowing that while I used a few watt-hours of solar electricity to blast him off the line, he probably burned 2 gallons of gas to catch up and pass me.�
Oct 14, 2014
techmaven Yeah, I made that mistake once, before South Hill was available. You didn't stop at South Hill on the way home? Instead of range charging at Burlington, it would be shorter to pick up a charge at South Hill. To be particularly safe, I'd charge to that 220-230'ish and then pick up some charge at South Hill.
For me, Burlington to my house in Richmond is about 199 miles, so I have to range charge in order to drive with traffic flow. It's really a charging desert from South Hill to Richmond.�
Oct 14, 2014
andydoty I wonder if you ever get used to it. I've had mine since April and have noticed quite a few "picture takers". The flash of the iPhone (or Android) pointed at the back of the car as observed from the rear view mirror. The 70 mph 35mm camera out the side window (from the passenger). Just the general spectator on the side of the road.... Interesting...�
Oct 15, 2014
Btrflyl8e Here's a slightly different kind of Tesla moment: end of the workday yesterday I pulled out my phone to precool the car while I was packing up my laptop and gathering my stuff for the long walk out to where I park her. Get to the car and get in, step on the brake, and it tells me the key fob is not in the car! Please keep in mind it was the end of my work day, so my brain was used up. It didn't dawn on me that it had to be in my purse or I wouldn't be IN the car. After a moment of panic and fishing around in my purse and not finding the fob, I remembered the app upgrade! Grabbed my phone and started my car and was on my way. It was then that I realized I HAD to have the fob in my purse, because I went to the gym before work and so had to start the car to leave. Yeah, still hadn't put together the fact that my car unlocked when I walked up to it, it's so normal now. At the next traffic light, I dug around in my purse a little more and found the fob! So either my purse is made of some kind of crazy material that blocked the signal or I put it in just the right spot for it not to be recognized.
I was glad I did have it after all, but was even more thankful that if I had indeed lost it, or it was damaged, I could still have gotten home without delay! I LOVE this car. :love:�
Oct 15, 2014
Pilot_51 I think "personal Tesla moment" is fitting. Nice to see the start car feature being useful. I almost hope I lose my fob one of these days so I can have a similarly cool story to tell. :wink:�
Oct 15, 2014
ggr Sometimes I have my iPhone in my pants pocket, and if the fob ends up behind it the metal (or maybe interference) can make the car fail to see it.�
Oct 15, 2014
rocketdallas Hi everyone,
I just joined the community (received my car two weeks ago!), loved reading through the forums, and wanted to share one of my Tesla moments.
I drove my family to Costco over the weekend to pick up some things and thought I would head back to the car to rest a bit and wait for them. I dozed off for some time and woke up to an older couple with their faces pressed against the glass peering through my windows! Nearly gave me a heart attack. Big smiles and thumbs up from them then they left with me awkwardly giving a thumbs up back to them, dazed and surprised.
Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories and funny moments. I haven't been so excited about a new car in a long time and am glad to find other Tesla fanatics!�
Oct 15, 2014
ecarfan @rocketdallas, welcome, and as you can see there are plenty of "Teslots" (as my wife and I like to refer to them) on this forum
My recent Tesla moment was a woman who started talking to me in the grocery market parking lot while I was loading bags into the frunk. She asked me many questions about the S. I invited her to seat in the front seat and we spoke for quite awhile. She was trying to persuade her husband to spend more than $50K on a car and having some difficulty. I gave her some talking points.�
Oct 16, 2014
rocketdallas Thank you ecarfan. :smile: It's fantastic how we quickly we become passionate about our cars!�
Oct 18, 2014
DrGuest Yesterday, my wife and I left Bozeman to go to Driggs, ID and Jackson Hole, WY for the week end. We called ahead to stop half way in West Yellowstone at the " Yellowstone Grizzly RV Park" . We asked for 2 hours of charge to give us a buffer since this was our first Trip to Jackson, since before kids, as well as our Longest Model S trip with out super chargers. We registered and got assigned a spot to charge at a NEMA 14-50. We came back in to ask a couple questions. The owner had not seen us come in yet and was telling another employee, in a super loud voice, Yah, I got "Tesla Man" checked into #60. Yep, "Tesla Man" is all paid up for 2 hours and he's all set" . My wife and I were holding back trying to keep our " Tesla Grins " from erupting into full blown belly laughs. Just then we said hello and she spun around to Greet Us. We asked our questions and walked away towards the Grizzly Bear Discovery Center laughing so Hard. It's was Really Fun Being " Tesla Man" for a little while!�
Oct 19, 2014
FLDarren I was stopped at a light with a black Corvette at my 7 o'clock positioned where I could just see the driver and passenger in my side view mirror. The passenger put her phone out the window to take a photo. As soon as I noticed her phone a huge grin came across my face. I'm pretty sure that her picture included my smiling face.�
Oct 19, 2014
ron8853 Overheard restaurant conversation;
Gentleman explained his recent test drive in a Tesla. After raving about acceleration, technology, etc., he commented-"Going back to my Porsche was like going back to a covered wagon!"�
Oct 19, 2014
breser My girlfriend and I made a trip into town (we live about 5 miles out of town) to get lunch and some groceries. I parked the car near the grocery store and walked over to the sandwich shop. After we finished lunch we walked back to the car to grab our reusable bags and head into the store. As we were walking away an older gentleman pulled into an adjacent spot in his convertible Corvette and gets our attention. He wants to know if we are happy with the car. We probably spent about 10 minutes talking with this guy.
Yesterday coming home from going out to pickup some fish had a guy in a Porsche pull up next to me and give me a big thumbs up.�
Nov 3, 2014
DrGuest On Saturday I drove to Big Timber and to the Natural Bridge State Park. I was hungry, On the way is "Holly's Roadkill Saloon". Her motto is, "Straight From your grill to ours!" Tesla's don't have a grill but I ordered a burger, freshly picked up this morning they said.�
Nov 4, 2014
Kandiru Great dealer ride, who will ever even look there?�
Nov 4, 2014
Chuck P85D good thinking�
Nov 4, 2014
Brass Guy - I was a few minutes late leaving work today. Running late, so naturally got caught right behind a school bus. After about a half mile, the bus stopped to let off a few kids. I waited, thinking it's gonna be a long trip home. The bus started moving. As I crept forward, I glanced down a side street to the right to see a young kid, probably second grade or so, walking backwards down the street staring at my car, with a huge grin and double thumbs up! I didn't mind being behind the bus after that, and got thumbs up from another kid in the back seat.
It's amazing how young the kids are that know what the car is, when so many adults still don't.�
Nov 5, 2014
Rockster I took my one year old Model S to the nearby Nissan dealership for the state inspection. While I expected their familiarity with the Leaf to reduce the confusion surrounding inspecting an all electric car, I nonetheless hovered closely as they pulled the car into the inspection bay. After a few minutes checking turn signals, brakes, wipers, and such, I saw the technician begin feeling under the dash, presumably looking for a hood release. By the time I wandered across the bay, the tech had summoned two colleagues and all three of them were searching. As I approached the vehicle, one of them asked, "Is this your vehicle, Sir?" I responded that it was and he asked if I could open the hood for him. I offered that I could, indeed, open the hood, but there's nothing there. After I explained, the rest of the inspection was smooth sailing, primarily just the tech scraping off the old sticker and applying a new one. While he did so, one of the techs asked, "Is it true that you can't buy these in Texas? You must lease them?" As I explained the entire situation with the TADA and the steps one must take to own a Tesla in Texas, it became obvious that none of them had any idea what shenanigans the TADA had pulled.
When the tech finished, he asked if I would like to drive my car out of the service bay instead of him. I was more than happy to do so. I drove the car out of the service area, around the parking lot, and parked near the new car sales area so that I could go in and pay for the inspection. As I parked, two salesmen converged on my car, one of them exclaiming, "My dream has come true. I was hoping a red Tesla would appear today for me." Neither of them had seen a Tesla up close, so for the next 20 minutes, I gave them the Tesla tour, with which you all are so familiar. The Tesla moment ended with me giving one of the salesmen a ride around the block, driving their normal customer test drive route. By the time we got back, he was saying over and over, "I now have a personal goal of owning one of these one day."
I parked and went inside and paid for my inspection. When I returned to the car a few minutes later, a third salesman had joined the group and the first two guys were repeating everything I had told them about the Model S. After standing there for a few moments, watching from a distance, I walked over to them and said in my best sales voice, "So, what can I do to get you into a Model S today?"�
Nov 5, 2014
swaltner Classic!�
Nov 5, 2014
ACDriveMotor Nice one!�
Nov 13, 2014
Notacarguy I have owned the car for two days and had my first momemt. I dropped my son off at school where they have a program where the older kids help the little ones out of the car at the dropoff. The girl who was doing the helping came up and looked a bit confused until I put the car in park. When the handles extended her face lit up with surprise and she let me know that I had a very cool car as my son was getting out.�
Nov 13, 2014
Rockster It's great to see the younger generation appreciate a Tesla. Some do so just for the coolness. Some are already recognizing that there are better alternatives to gasoline. At my daughter's school, the high school football players open the doors for the kids' carpool. It's fun to watch the football players squabble over which one of them gets to greet the Tesla.�
Nov 13, 2014
Morristhecat I will never tire of that, young and old alike, it is always fun watching the look of confusion and then the smile. So fun!�
Nov 13, 2014
tomcherv Go to Jail should instead be "On a trip and need to rent an ICE car."�
Nov 19, 2014
gg_got_a_tesla There's no "tossing doubles" to get out of that nightmare�
Nov 19, 2014
mkjayakumar You drive an ICEmobile and you parked in an electric charging station - pay fine $300�
Nov 19, 2014
mibaro2 You completed a supercharging network across a country, bonus $500.
(or the equivalent of putting hotels on a property set)�
Nov 19, 2014
Pilot_51 I like where this is going, very entertaining ideas. Of course, I'm partially responsible for starting it. Anyway, it's a bit off topic, so I think an admin should move the Tesla Monopoly posts into a new thread.�
Nov 23, 2014
DITB After about 1,500 miles, I finally think I have something to contribute with in this thread. I even made a video of it, iPhone candid camera.
Waiting at Ocean Park in Hong Kong, for my family to arrive from the nearby Hong Kong Police Colleague, the car was parked next to a group of Chinese tourists. We hadn't been to Ocean Park ourselves, just used the car park attending a nearby event.
I was sitting about 50 feet from the car, and put my phone on the ground to record video while I was playing discretely with the fob, just looking out of the corner of my eye.
A guy is just about to take a picture of the rear of the car ...
I didn't see it until when I watched the video now - the timing of my opening the trunk was near perfect, too bad one cannot see the expression on his face.
I kept playing with venting sunroof, flashing lights, honking, unlock and lock to release the door handles and as you could see above, even opened the trunk. While recording the video itself, I couldn't use the Tesla app, only the fob.
As part of the audience went to see the front, I "popped the hood" when I could see they were quite close, and I could see from their reactions that they noticed it for sure. I then walked to the front of the car ...
As recycling isn't so widespread in Hong Kong, I gather the items like glass, metal, paper, plastic, batteries and so on, and take it to one of the tiny hard-to-find recycling points, where I get points for the items I return (they weigh each group of items). Those points can be used for buying items like toilet paper, detergent and other similar items. We used to go on our bikes, but it was simply too dangerous (roads are narrow and people drive quite aggressively, especially 16 seater buses, taxis and trucks). So we haven't been here for two years now.
Anyway, most of that stuff in the frunk is for that recycling station, but of course, no engine for them to look at. Maybe I should plasticise a graphic showing where the engine and battery is mounted - a picture tells a thousand words.
I tried my best in the few words of Mandarin Chinese I know, and found out quickly that no-one in the group spoke any more English than a few words. I know how say electric and car, so I combined the two (knowing there is one more word in the middle which I didn't remember). I think I managed to let them understand it's fully electric, and that the electric motor is between the rear wheels. All the girl with a few English words could say was "How much?". That could have been range, horse power or purchasing price - so I guessed "duo xiao quai" - how many bucks - and yes, that is what they wanted to know.
Ah yes, one guy said "mei guo che", American car, so I replied, yes, California - I think he understood that.
If anyone can make out anything else of the Chinese dialogue, please feel free to write it so I can post it here�
Nov 23, 2014
FLDarren I was sitting at a red light ready to turn left today when a crossing pedestrian screamed at the top of his lungs "Hey Superman, nice ride." I had my windows down. Yep, our weather is still nice. At first I felt embarrassed but then I flew away. :biggrin:�
Nov 23, 2014
KJennerator The Model S actually uses a sealed lead acid 12 Volt 35 Amp hour battery. This is the exact battery that large jump packs use. I work at Batteries Plus and deal with these all the time. Enough to jump small trucks. Just not my 1983 Mercedes Diesel�
Nov 23, 2014
Cosmacelf Jump start packs might use a 35 amp hour battery, but I bet they are optimized for high initial amps (crank amps). The Tesla SLA battery is a deep cycle battery, not meant to be used for starting an engine.�
Nov 24, 2014
Theshadows On top of that jump starting another car will very likely blow the 50 amp fuse between the terminals and your battery. Then if you need a jump you will be out of luck.
On top of that I would not risk it because of the 12v battery problems. If Tesla finds out you attempted to jump an ICE (which is very likely) they would likely void your 12v warranty.�
Nov 24, 2014
freds I would definitely resist the urge to attempt to jump start another vehicle. However in dire necessity (she would have to be awful cute) I might do like we did in the army when we needed to start a large tracked vehicle and the only power source was a small jeep. Heck we even did it without jumper cables and used lousy commo wire.
That was to hook it up and charge the other vehicles battery for a half hour or more, disconnect and then attempt to start the larger vehicle.
Easier to tell them a white lie and say my battery is 400volts and just offer them a ride, where you can corrupt them with the Tesla experience!�
Nov 24, 2014
Xfrank my american beauty became yesterday one year!
Partytime!:smile:
�
Nov 24, 2014
jerry33 The trick is to take their keys before connecting the cables. All too often they will attempt to start the vehicle while it's still connected.�
Nov 24, 2014
caddieo Moderator, why has this thread shifted to jump-starting????�
Nov 24, 2014
stevezzzz Your Model S looks classy. You and your friends, however, are over the top! :biggrin:�
Nov 25, 2014
Notacarguy At the DMV today getting ready to sell my old car.
Clerk: Do you enjoy your Aston Martin?
Me: My what?
Clerk: I saw you outside when I came in that's a big screen in your car.
Me: No, it's Tesla, and yes its great.
Clerk: A what?�
Nov 25, 2014
ckessel Heh, I haven't had that one. I've had the "Who makes Tesla?" several times.
What's extra funny to me about your exchange is I'm the reverse of the clerk. I'd never heard of Aston Martin before looking into Tesla. I only heard about Aston Martin at that point because people talked about similarities in style with Tesla.�
Nov 25, 2014
KenN Clearly you're not a 007 fan!�
Nov 25, 2014
Btrflyl8e Blasphemy.�
Nov 25, 2014
3s-a-charm Have electrician visit my garage to tell him I need some wiring done. He asks and I say I need to have a high-power wall charger wired from the panel with 80 amps because I'm getting an electric car. He asks what kind and when I say, "A Tesla", he pauses... puts his hand on my back and calls me "his hero". :biggrin:
- - - Updated - - -
Holy smokes... you're putting me to shame - I don't even go to that kind of effort for my own kids birthday parties!�
Nov 25, 2014
GoBlue88 I guess not knowing what a Tesla is is better than thinking it is a car is made somewhere other than the United States.
Neighbor's brother, who worked for GM for 35 years: How come you are parking your Lexus on the driveway now?
Me: I got a new car that is taking its' space in the garage. Want to see it?
Neighbor's brother: Yeah, sure!
<we walk into the garage>
Neighbor's brother: I know what this is! It's...a Tesla!
Me: Yep
Neighbor's brother: Why on earth would you buy a car made in India?
Me:�
Nov 25, 2014
TesAus Maybe he is confusing it with Jaguar which is now owned by Tata (indian car manufacturer). There are visual similarities......�
Nov 26, 2014
wonko I had a nice -un-Tesla moment last week. I've had my Tesla for 9 months now, and I do not miss having to pull over at gas stations at all.
Last Friday however, I had to drive a VW Passat for one trip (don't ask). On the way back, I pulled over at a gas station, put the nozzle in, and - without thinking - went inside to drink a cup of coffee while - um - charging.
If it would't have been for a guy at another pump yelling "Where are you going? You must stay by the car while fueling!", I probably would have enjoyed my coffee, walked back to the car, put the nozzle back, and driven off without paying, Just like at the SuperCharger... .�
Nov 26, 2014
cantdecide Goblue: was your neighbor taking a dig at Fremont? It is known for the ethnicity of its population being from India.�
Nov 26, 2014
GoBlue88 I think that was the case. Rest assured that I educated him that he was looking at a car built in America by an American manufacturer.�
Nov 26, 2014
SW2Fiddler Probably better than me - - I'd be pumping while the car is still running. I can't believe how quickly I acquired the get-out-and-walk-away habit!
Oops!
Rick�
Nov 26, 2014
GoBlue88 No, he's just a much older guy that isn't very plugged in. He worked for GM for 35 years, but he's been retired for about 20.�
Nov 26, 2014
ACDriveMotor I suspect that the Tesla has more American made content than most GM cars these days.�
Nov 26, 2014
mknox Nope. In fact it doesn't have enough North American content to even allow it to be imported to Canada duty free.�
Nov 26, 2014
GoBlue88 Probably not true until the batteries start coming from the Gigafactory.�
Nov 26, 2014
TexasEV Why do you have to stay by the car while fueling? In the U.S. we commonly start fueling and the walk into the building to use the toilet or buy a coffee or whatever. The pump shuts off when the tank is full and we take the nozzle out when we get back to the car.�
Nov 26, 2014
Brass Guy Not allowed here. In fact, in some states (like MA) there are no latches on self-serve pumps, and you're not allowed to prop anything in there to keep it pumping.�
Nov 26, 2014
ACDriveMotor As I recall from my distant past no latches in NY either. Used to be when I was a kid until someone did something stupid.�
Nov 26, 2014
jrreno In New Jersey you can't legally pump your own gas, I don't know if you can get a coffee while the attendant mans the pump.�
Nov 26, 2014
ItsNotAboutTheMoney You can do that here. One of the few times I went to one of the few remaining service gas stations somebody left their car and took minutes to get back, so I ended up waiting several minutes until she returned.
There aren't always latches. Having had the pump fail to stop once, I think it's a good thing.�
Nov 26, 2014
jerry33 With the latches there's enough time to check your oil level.�
Nov 28, 2014
DITB Stand next to the car and have a cigarette, I am sure they won't mind that.
(Just let me get to a safe distance first!)�
Nov 28, 2014
mknox No pump handle latches in Ontario, Canada but I found that the filler cap wedged in there does the trick just fine :wink:�
Nov 29, 2014
CaptainKirk I noticed that many of the Husky stations in the GTA actually do have latches, not sure why the other stations do not.�
Nov 29, 2014
SW2Fiddler Nine posts in a row about gasoline refueling in the "Tesla Moments" thread.
Nostalgia? Is it just the Sentimental Season?�
Nov 30, 2014
caddieo This! Let's get back to the funny and inspiring stories.�
Dec 1, 2014
DITB My nearest supercharger is 35 minutes drive away. Cannot charge at home nor work.
And this supercharger, Kai Tak in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, has 4 SC stalls in a parking lot of about 150 spots. Other 32 spots have 2.2 kW chargers, and I haven't seen those used, not even once (apart from being ICEd). There are signs that say the 32 spots are "EV charging spots", 100% ignored by any and every ICE car. The supercharger spots have no signs, information or anything - except for the red-white arches with "TESLA" written on them.
Yesterday (a Sunday afternoon), we went there to charge as we often do, and there was some kind of event. All spots taken, it took us 9 minutes waiting in a line of ICE cars idling (cough, cough), just to get in. We feared the worst, hoped the best. As I predicted, 1 MS was charging, 3 spots ICEd. But one of those spots had just been vacated, and an ICE pulled in, just before we got there. We opened the windows, and shouted that we reeeeeeally need that spot (in Cantonese), and he actually backed out, and thus "gave" us the supercharging spot. As soon as we had plugged in, we chased him up, where he was parking in another spot that had just emptied. We thanked him dearly and explained that we have an electric car and need to drive 35 minutes to this place, with only 4 spots we can use. He took it all in, and saw the car. We gave him a Tesla Motors brochure and hopefully, he walked off just a little more educated about Tesla Motors and EVs.
Unfortunately, Tesla Motors have a contract for the space of the superchargers there, not the very parking spots that are located next to them!
Management consistently says those spots are for everyone to use, no matter what car. What a shame ...�
Dec 1, 2014
basvk I honestly admire you guys for going through the trouble of buying a Tesla without possibility to charge at home and I really hope your pioneering opens the eyes of others (especially the city governors for installing more charging facilities and actively pushing towards electrifying private transport). Especially a crowded city like Hong Kong really needs this more than anywhere else.�
Dec 1, 2014
DITB Thank you, basvk.
I put down the deposit in December 2012.
Got the car September 2014, 21 months later.
I had no idea back then how charging was going to be, but nothing was going to stop me to get this car. There are chargers here, lots of them, but most of them are 2.2 kW only (230V/13A gross, around 6 mph charging speed). I do use any and every charging spot I can come across, even those super slow ones. In fact, they are so slow if you sit in your car and run the A/C, the car is charging less than 2 mph!
Anyway, there will be superchargers, also in my area. And there will be home charging, and even charging on my work. It just takes so long time, as the motivation isn't there. Instead there is fear. Fear of fires, lawsuits, power failures, losing the lottery and what not.
I starting asking the management in April about charging in the club parking garage. So far nothing, and albeit there are several 13A/230V wall sockets, they have informed me strictly that I cannot use those, not even if I offer to pay for the electricity I use. My charger can even be dialled down to either 8A or 6A (like 1.8kW and 1.3kW or so). They were in talks about charging recently with Tesla Motors. I believe they were discussing superchargers - but all I heard was a rumour that there isn't enough network capacity to supply a supercharger installation.
Then what?
This is the Tesla Moment thread, and not supercharger thread. All I wanted to share was how this person who didn't know anything about Tesla Motors or that he parked at a charging spot, ended up not only giving us the SC spot without argument or hesitation, but also that he walked away from there with a Tesla Motors brochure�
Dec 2, 2014
mhpr262 wow, that is some dedication. That would be a reason for me to rule out a Model S, assuming I could afford one in the first place that is ... :-D�
Dec 2, 2014
DjiM Since august 2014 (in three months' time), my wife and I have driven more than 10.000km (> 6000 mi) with only a 13A 220V charger (the UMC) at home (+superchargers on the road). It has never been an issue for us. The 13km/h that it charges at means that overnight, I will charge much more than I need on a typical weekday.
With our setup, charging the car at home would take about 30 hours to go from 0 to full. It's pretty funny to convince anyone that this is not a problem since you plug it in every single second the car is on the driveway.�
Dec 2, 2014
bareyb You've been posting here since 2012 with over 200 posts, and you don't have, nor can afford to buy a Tesla? Why are you here? Just curious...�
Dec 2, 2014
bareyb Are you for real with this question?!�
Dec 2, 2014
sandpiper I'm for real. Why? I could never imagine me hanging around an Automobile forum for over two years talking about a car I had no interest in buying or owning. Unless I'm misreading the post, it seems a bit... odd to me.�
Dec 2, 2014
mikeash Potentially several very positive reasons:
- I would assume, that he hopes to afford one someday - perhaps sooner than expected with the prices of the older ones coming down fairly quickly.
- He is interested in the technology, it's merits and it's larger implications
There are worse forums to hang around!�
Dec 2, 2014
alexeiw123 Why would you think he has no interest in buying or owning the car? There are a lot of people out there with *great* interest in the car but without the financial resources to put down $70,000 or more to actually make it happen.
For a random example, there are a lot of forums out there dedicated to discussing airliners and military hardware yet few of the participants actually own any.�
Dec 2, 2014
bareyb I'm a forum regular, have been for probably around a year now. I'm not a Tesla customer and the purchase price (much higher in Australia) prevents me from becoming a customer in the short term future, yet I'm still a daily forum user and contributor.
Why? Because this car strikes home with many of my interests as an Electrical Engineer.
Very keen on EVs
Very keen on cars
Very keen on renewable energy
Very keen on technology
I could afford a MS if I made some drastic changes to my lifestyle but I'm not prepared to do that just yet. I have so far felt like I'm still welcome amongst the community though. Do you feel as though it should be exclusive to customers? More than likely I'll be late to the model S, maybe even the model 3, but in terms of EV's as a whole I still feel like I'm an early adopter by being a part of the movement here online.�
1/1/2015
guest Hey, the more the Merrier. I can't recall another car forum where this has happened though, and I've belonged to quite a few. Of course none of those other cars are Teslas.�
Dec 2, 2014
SW2Fiddler 98% of Tesla Moments are with 'future owners' when you think about it!�
Dec 2, 2014
BigAirHarper I've also been a lurker on this forum for over a year with the intent to buy a tesla in a couple of years as I can't afford one now without making serious lifestyle changes, but I love cars and technology. Some of us just like to accumulate a wealth of knowledge to defend ourselves against the haters.
But back to more stories from my favorite thread on TMC...let's hear those Tesla moments so we can live vicariously through you.�
Dec 2, 2014
sickfox +1 :biggrin:
�
Dec 2, 2014
SteveS0353 Well, it's called
Tesla Motors Club - Enthusiasts & Owners Forum
Just about every Tesla owner is also an enthusiast, but I'll bet there are tons of non-owning enthusiasts too. I was, before I became an owner. Welcome all enthusiasts!�
Dec 2, 2014
AmpedUP 'Planning to buy next year, but have been haunting this forum for a long time...and would even if I couldn't buy.�
Dec 2, 2014
Takumi I'm here because of the Impact. Why are you here?�
Dec 2, 2014
techmaven I joined 6 months before deciding to buy a Model S. It should be very normal and healthy to have a number of interested non-owners participate in this forum.�
Dec 2, 2014
roblab Interesting that your UMC takes so long to charge your car. My UMC is on a 50 amp breaker, uses 40 amp at 220 volts, which is 8.8 kWh, which would fill your battery in about ten hours. Seems like you could up your circuit breaker or something. Then your car is full every morning, and there is no anxiety.
I would hate to try to recharge at the chargers that abide everywhere for Leafs and Volts. Some of them are 3.3 kWh, and that would take much longer.�
Dec 2, 2014
mkjayakumar To say this is just yet another 'automotive' site is a travesty. If someone thinks so, then they don't belong here.�
Dec 2, 2014
gg_got_a_tesla Yes, TMC members and guests come in a variety of flavors:
- Tesla car owners and potential owners
- TSLA investors
- EV enthusiasts in general
- Folks interested in topics on Energy, Environment and Sustainable Transport
- Tesla employees / lurkers too
This is definitely one of my favorite threads as well. It's great to hear the tales of Tesla-induced thrills and joy over and over.�
Dec 2, 2014
MikeL I recall an old "TMC moment", someone posted "is there anyone here that doesn't actually have a Tesla?"
a certain doug replied, "there's me". :smile: you'll have to go find it. Made me smile.
And, last Sunday . . . I was easily able and happy to steer the dinner conversation toward electric cars and the Supercharger network. Someone there was taken aback by the SCs placement in far off non-urban/small towns (around here anyway). The "almost everybody charges at night in their garage - those are for long distance" words put this look of realization on his face that I will long remember. Thanks Elon, now would you please make MY Tesla�
Dec 3, 2014
DjiM Fortunately, that is true
With the European UMC, the quickest possible charging rate is at 400V, 32A, three phase (22kW).�
Dec 3, 2014
Notacarguy Driving home a Mercedes low slung coupe ( I am not good with identifying cars) suddenly pulls into traffic behind me and gets really close to my bumper. I thought I had cut her off her something until she raised her phone and very clearly starts snapping some pictures.�
Dec 3, 2014
SW2Fiddler "I love your car. It cost about two hundred thousand dollars, right?"
- last night at the deli. She thought it was a Maserati...�
Dec 3, 2014
Notacarguy Two million......and then laugh maniacally.�
Dec 3, 2014
mattreidy I picked up my car just over a week ago and only told a few people at work about it so I didn't look like a show off. I work in an office with about 1,000 people in it and we have an attached parking garage. I've got the only Tesla here.
Yesterday, I went out for lunch and shortly after getting back to my desk, the building receptionist sent an email out to the whole company: "White Tesla owner, you left your lights on...".
Apparently someone noticed the car while the lights were still on after I walked away and felt compelled - a nice gesture, sure, but how many newer cars have that feature? (plenty)
Of course I checked my mobile app and the car was locked and the lights off.
Needless to say, I was a bit embarrassed and now the "cat's out of the bag" about my fancy new car... I got plenty of jokers stopping by and emailing me about it.�
Dec 3, 2014
DrGuest Hope this is not off topic, kind of an anti-Tesla moment. I had to rent a Ford Explorer for a week and the 3rd evening having it we went out to dinner. Returning to the car, I found that I had never pushed the off button and it had been running the whole time.�
Dec 3, 2014
PaulusdB Not exactly.
The European Tesla UMC's max. performance equals 400V 3-phase, 16A = 11kW.
Mobile chargers with your specs exist, but not from Tesla.�
Dec 3, 2014
Keysh2oboy I have had several moments over the last 7 months... and they never get old.
However, yesterday, I had one I want to share.
I cross a busy intersection in Wake Forest, NC, and see a large passenger bus (like a party bus limo, etc - would hold 20ppl max) sitting at the intersection waiting to turn right.
I drive by, in front of it, as I have the green light. The bus driver is watching me so intently as I roll by him and through the intersection.
He makes the turn behind me.. and is now following me.
We approach the next light, and he changes lanes, pulls to my left, and starts talking, all animated, through his bus doors (which are closed) and I cannot hear him at all.
So, I roll my window down, he has to put his bus in park to open his doors, then the opens then and says "OMG! That is the most beautiful car I have ever seen! I wasn't sure what it was"
I said 'Thank you" and told him it was a Tesla and then the light changes to green and we have to move along.
I could tell that man was so excited.
He was prob late 50's to early 60's and was just like a kid.... Big-eyed and happy... and wow'd at the beauty of these cars.
It was a good day!�
Dec 3, 2014
ggr Yeah, I've done that. Twice. Sigh.�
Dec 3, 2014
caddieo I've never left our ICE minivan with the engine running since there are other things on the key ring that mandate removal of the key and shutting off the engine. However, I have walked away from the minivan without locking it more than a few times and on at least a couple of occasions, have tried to put the minivan into gear by flipping the windshield wiper stalk (the shift lever is on the dash).�
Dec 4, 2014
hsctiger93 Had a man pull up next to me and shout at me "That's one of them electronic cars!" He was so excited to see it.
Had another man follow me into the Lowes parking lot and park face-to-face with me. He got out and shouted, "That's a Tesla!"
Yes, I live in Chesterfield County VA.�
Dec 4, 2014
ecarfan Lots of shouters where you live.
At a hospital where I work the parking lot attendants can identify all the Tesla's and go nuts every time they see my Roadster.�
Dec 4, 2014
Racerx22b Sort of a reverse Tesla moment.
While walking out of the West Palm Beach dealer after finalizing our build a couple walks out behind us and steps to a P85. Of course, I ask them how they like it. And of course, he loved it. As the wife with the lap dog sits in the back seat (that seemed odd) he goes on about how fast it is and how much fun it is to drive. So he hops into his P85 and I hop in my '14 Supercharged Range Rover Sport. We leave dealer and after a few lights end up side by side. He gives me the nod like "it's go time". With my 510hp I hoped I was going to be close to the P85 so I figured what the heck. I lower the suspension and turn the dial to "sport" mode. Light goes green and it's on. The run to the next light wasn't long so it was about a zero to 50mph drag race. He gapped me about a qtr panel off the light but I held strong to 50mph and then lifted as the next intersection was approaching. Mr. P85, with his wife in the back seat with a lap dog, never lifted and just blew through the light like a maniac (at least it was green). I just shook my head at the whole scene.
I realize none of this is responsible behavior but boys will be boys. Anyway, I ordered a 85 for my wife but if it was for me a P85D would be on the way. Although, the 85 demo we had was a blast even with the governor on.�
Dec 4, 2014
meloccom My Model S is on its way across the pacific as I write this but the wall charger was installed in my garage a few months ago.
My old car must have heard me talking about the imminent arrival of the new Tesla so this morning it refused to start. The problem, a dead battery, oh the irony!
So I call the local motoring organisation and I can buy a new battery and have it delivered which I opt for as the dead one is 5 years old.
20 minutes later the battery guys arrive, an older guy obviously showing the new kid the ropes. So as the car is dead we have to push it out of the garage to get to where the battery is. The kid runs to the back of the garage where the Tesla wall charger is located and rushes straight out and nearly shouts "Wow have you got a Tesla!" Much to the annoyance of the old guy who was expecting him to do most of the pushing. I tell him we hope to have it by Xmas, "it's not a Model S!" He continues excitedly, yes I reply then we discuss pricing and yes it's an 85Kwh but no it's not a Performance and no it's not dual motor but still his excitement is infectious and the old guy gives him a minute to enjoy the moment but I can see to him time is money and motion to the dead car, " I'll help push it out" which brings him back from the clouds.
They then replace the battery and I put the car away whilst they go to their van to organise the paperwork.
I meet them outside to pay and I ask innocently, "so will I call on you if I have problems with my Tesla battery?" The look on his face was was priceless and I think I nearly got a grin from the older guy at that point. The old guy asked him to do the payment process but it's obvious after a few moments that young guy is still too distracted for any meaningful learning to take place so the old guy takes over and complete the sale.
They drive away with the young guy leaning out the window, waving and asking if I will take him for a ride one day?
No idea if it will ever happen but I think I made the guys day. All that and I haven't even got my Model S yet.�
Dec 5, 2014
3s-a-charm Good one!
�
Dec 5, 2014
andrewket Nice story. Now repeat after me: tesla does not have dealers. Tesla does not have dealers. They have company owned stores, galleries, and service centers.�
Dec 5, 2014
DjiM :redface:�
Dec 5, 2014
Racerx22b Ok, Ok, Tesla term policeman.�
Dec 5, 2014
bollar Tesla certainly is a dealer in states which require a dealer license (e.g. Florida). What they don't have is independent dealers.�
Dec 5, 2014
AoneOne I've had a number of "Tesla Moment" in the past year: I've look in my rear view mirror and seen other drivers photographing me (or at least my car) with their cell phones, I've had drivers roll down their windows and ask about the car while we were stopped in traffic and I've even had one minibus driver open the passenger door to ask me why my car, unlike all the others on that cold morning, wasn't emitting clouds of steam from my non-existent tailpipe. His powers of observation and logic made that a very special encounter.
I've even been asked if my car were a Fisker, but the speaker quickly corrected himself. In Fisker's case, even bad publicity was still publicity.
I've never been challenged in a race, but once a Civic full of young men pulled up along side me on the turnpike (I was in the right lane) and gestured that they'd like to see how my "slow" S85 performs. There was too much traffic for any kind of race, but my lane was empty for a quarter mile or so ahead of me, and there was plenty of visibility to confirm the absence of troopers, and so I floored it for a few seconds to let them watch me pull away. I then slowed back to the speed limit and they soon caught up with me, gave me a thumbs up, and drove off.
Oh, and my aero wheels have gotten very mixed reviews. Usually, they're said to be "interesting" or some other polite term, but some people have responded very positively to their unique appearance, either for their design, or for their perceived efficiency.�
Dec 5, 2014
andrewket They have a DMV license to operate. I realize I'm splitting hairs, and I don't mean to come off as a jerk or term policeman. I do think in this case it's beneficial to use specific language since tesla is at war with the dealer associations. One of their arguments is that consumers will not be able to distinguish between a dealer and a company owned store.
Personally I think it's easy to tell. Are you getting screwed? It's a dealer.�
Dec 5, 2014
TexasEV Agree, a company store is not a "dealer" in any normal sense of the term, even if that is the legal term in some states based on licensing to sell cars. Would anyone call an Apple Store an Apple dealer? Or a Starbucks location a Starbucks dealer? Of course not. People are in the habit of calling where they buy a car a "dealer" because that was the only business model for so many years. We should encourage breaking that habit to emphasize that Tesla sells directly, not through what people are used to as "dealers".�
Dec 5, 2014
AoneOne Probably my most important Tesla moment was getting to show it to U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) at the Odyssey Day event held near Pittsburgh this fall. He didn't have time to take a test ride (that would have been fun), but he did spend a few gracious minutes learning about the car.�
Dec 5, 2014
bylund While plugging in at the Sundsvall SC I see someone being photgraphed in front of my car. I thought it was just someone who thought it would be cool to have a photo of himself and a Tesla. Turns out I was the first one to use it, and the local newspaper was doing a story about the new chargers, and by chance I showed up while they were interviewing the manager of the gas station where the SC is located. And it made the news http://www.st.nu/ekonomi/tesla-stationer-i-skonsberg (paywalled and in Swedish, but the image is there)�
Dec 5, 2014
Racerx22b The flipside of course is that people are creatures of habit. Going with an all electric plug in vehicle is probably already stepping out of their comfort zone. Trying to explain to them they don't have a "dealer" to go to but instead a company owned store that we don't call a dealer and that there are states that ban their sales altogether could be a turn off in itself. You know what they say, keep it simple .....�
Dec 5, 2014
bollar Don't worry. Some of us knew what you meant.�
Dec 5, 2014
bollar If it works for you, then by all means carry on.
I haven't found the term "dealership" to be a consequential matter when discussing the benefits of the car, or how to buy one. But, we all have to articulate the Tesla value proposition in the way that best suits us personally.�
Dec 5, 2014
TexasEV On the contrary, I've found the fact that Tesla doesn't sell through dealers is one of the things that people are most excited about when I tell them about the car, almost as much as you can drive between cities in an all electric car. Buying a car without going through the Texas auto dealers cartel really resonates with people, even those who aren't into electric cars.�
Dec 5, 2014
bollar Very good. I have not experienced that.�
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