Tesloop Raking in the Miles →

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Since the Model S was launched Tesloop has incurred a combined maintenance cost of roughly $19,000 or about $0.05/mile. This cost breaks down to $6,700 for general vehicle repairs and $12,200 for regularly scheduled maintenance. The Model S’ full service record is available here. The record includes comparable estimated costs of running the service with a Lincoln Town Car instead of a Model S or Mercedes GLS class instead of a Model X. Tesloop estimates that a Lincoln Town Car or Mercedes GLS class’ combined maintenance cost to be around $88,500 ($0.22/mile) and $98,900 ($0.25/mile) respectively over 400,000 miles.

Some pretty impressive numbers!!! I still have yet to use any of my 6 passes that I bought a while ago but I’ve heard plenty of positive reviews!

Back in June 2018 one of Tesloop’s Model X 90Ds, dubbed Rex, achieved 300,000 miles on its original battery and drive units in 1.75 years. Battery degradation over the 300,000 miles was ~10%. Tesloop has also included the Model X’s full service record, see here. Since achieving the milestone the Model X’s rear drive unit has been replaced.

Looks like we may be keeping the X for MANY years to come! We have personally driven around 19,000 since acquiring her on Dec 2017. Needless to say, it’s been VERY enjoyable.

What Battery Degradation? →

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The data clearly shows that for the first 50,000 miles (100,000 km), most Tesla battery packs will lose about 5% of their capacity, but after the 50,000-mile mark, the capacity levels off and it looks like it could be difficult to make a pack degrade by another 5%.

The trend line currently suggests that the average battery pack could cycle through over 300,000 km (186,000) before coming close to 90% capacity.

And apparently 80% nearing the half million mile mark. Hopefully the car lasts as long. :) Cheers to the future!

Ludicrous Speed Really is Ridiculous →

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The Ludicrous Speed upgrade combined with the "Fast and Furious"-ready Model S P90D makes for some shocking acceleration numbers. With Ludicrous mode engaged and using the new launch control feature, 60 mph in the Tesla comes in a staggeringly quick 2.6 seconds with the driver experiencing a peak of 1.1 g up through 14 mph. Given the Model S P90D hangs with hypercars in acceleration from 0 to 60 mph, the list of cars the P90D beats to 60 mph is a long one, including everything from the vaunted Nissan GT-R to the big, bad Lamborghini Aventador and Bugatti Veyron. Only two cars that we've tested can outright beat the P90D to 60 mph: the Porsche 918 Spyder and Ferrari LaFerrari. As for the "other" hybrid hypercar, the McLaren P1, the Tesla ties it in a race to 60 mph.

Just to summarize a summary, faster than the Nissan GT-R, Lamborghini Aventador and Bugatti Veyron. Ridiculous! (And so is the price at $130,000 but then again, those super cars cost more). If you see an underlined P90D, he/she just might be a tad ludicrous.

Tesla's Autopilot →

Once you’re on the highway, an autosteering feature can maintain your speed, keep an appropriate distance from the cars around you, and keep you in your lane — even around big bends and turns. It doesn’t just let out a loud beep when you start to drift out of your lane; it physically controls the wheel.

This would be an ideal vehicle for my commuter to Long Beach not to mention getting one of those fancy HOV stickers too!

via  Electrek

via  Electrek

The Search for the Commuter Car (cont.)

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A few months ago, I wrote about VW's awesome performing TDI Sportswagen Wagon along with my aspirations to buy one. With the 2016s around the corner, I called up a few dealerships last Friday about deals on the 2015s. Not surprisingly, I got a response to start with that they'd be discounting them around $2k.

That was last week. Of course, we have all come to find out that VW has been duping the EPA by programming their TDI vehicles to hide the truth; that they were emmiting up to 40% of the standard requirements. All this while still producing an amazing 50+ mpg! The NYTimes and other various news outlets have created an infographic on exactly how they were able to hide the pullutants which is quite ingenious as we've come to find out that other car manufacurers have been trying to game the system for quite a while .

So what now? Looks like Honda's new 2016 Civic, their Fit (which was in the running for Motortrend's Car of the Year, losing to VW's Golf) or Toyota's new Prius might have to be the key to "saving" me money on my weekly commute to Long Beach. Although, driving up to 28,000 a mile measured at 3x a week (most unlikely), maybe a more comfortable car with autopilot would fit the bill much better. =)

I'll be updating my "search" for a while. Right now, with my current 1999 BMW Wagon, I'm at ~ $0.14 a mile where the VW would have been $0.05. The Honda Fit and Toyota Prius would respectively cost $0.08 and $0.06. These calculations do NOT include the monthly payments or maintenance fees or tax, title and insurance. But that's where I'm at right now. All the new calculations show that over time, the Fit would be the way to go. If you want to peep my Google Sheet, check it out here.