7 ms·

Crumple zones are all good, but why would you put that kind of power in the hands of an inexperienced and risk-happy 18-year-old driver? Looks like this was a P

Crumple zones are all good, but why would you put that kind of power in the hands of an inexperienced and risk-happy 18-year-old driver? Looks like this was a P model (red calipers) which also means it has Ludicrous mode. Perhaps Tesla could offer some innovation in the form of a de-tuned mode that triggers in the absence of a certain set of keys or pin entry.

hartator 10y ago
You have to start driving sometimes anyway, but yeah probabaly not a +$100k car.
- CapitalistCartr 10y ago
  A minivan for two years. They're safe. Then, after a couple years and their first crash, they can move up. But rich parents often aren't willing to "deprive" their children.
  - r00fus 10y ago
    My parents gave me a station wagon but otherwise completely agree.
  - mrich 10y ago
    Out of curiosity, why are minivans safe?
    - Gracana 10y ago
      I don't know if there's anything inherent in their design that makes them particularly safe, but they're marketed and used as children-carriers, so safety is one of their most important features.
  - darkr 10y ago
    ..or tell them if they want a car then go get a part time job and buy one. My first car cost my £50 (and £1100 to insure..). As it was 20 year old heap of junk, every other month something would break, and I'd have to look up how to fix it and then go down to the scrap yard with a socket set, £20 in my pocket and pull that part off a scrapped car. I learnt how to fix cars and I never had a crash because I knew it would mean certain death in that danger machine.
  - shirro 10y ago
    Minivans are anti-teslas. They are tippy and have almost no crumple zone. In a front impact the engine block ends up where your legs were. If you have the money for a Tesla then you would be crazy not to put your kids in one. Ideally you would want to put it in some sort of valet mode to limit the performance.
    - CapitalistCartr 10y ago
      Minivans test well in safety. They are far from "anti-Teslas". If you don't like them, there are a variety of relatively safe, inexpensive vehicles from which to choose.
    - aidanf 10y ago
      The Tesla Model S scored 82% for adult protection and 77% for child protection in the Euroncap crash tests: http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/tesla/model-s/7897 http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/tesla/model-s/7897 That's quite a bit below best in class: http://www.euroncap.com/en/ratings-rewards/best-in-class-cars/2015/ http://www.euroncap.com/en/ratings-rewards/best-in-class-car... If you have the money for a Tesla you then you would be crazy not to put your kids in a Volvo (if safety is your priority).
  - trgn 10y ago
    It's totally true, we totally expect young drivers to wreck a car early in their driving careers, and they often do, and we're totally fine with it, it's part of the course. That mindset strikes me as completely insane to be honest (btw, I damaged my parent's car as well in my first year of driving). Why not something like that you have to start driving for a few years with a small car (like a kei-car of some sorts), and then you can graduate to a compact. And then after six years or so, you can drive something heavy and/or fast. I would be so much more at ease in traffic, knowing that those deathtrap crossovers, trucks, and SUVs around me aren't piloted by a texting teenager.
    - goodcanadian 10y ago
      Yeah, to paraphrase my mother, "If I thought you were going to crash it, I wouldn't let you drive it." I actually learned to drive first on a ride-on lawn mower when I was barely heavy enough to keep the dead man switch active: hit a bump and the mower would switch off. Then I graduated to ATVs and finally to the farm pick-up truck when I was 12 or so. By the time I had a license, I was a quite capable and reasonably safe driver. Honestly, I think it may be best to learn before you are a teenager when you are still scared of the big machines.
      - trgn 10y ago
        that sounds like a great way to learn how to drive
      - marincounty 10y ago
        My parents taught me how to drive when I was around 13. By 15.5 driving was just driving. As a teen driver, I took a few chances, but was not a wild driver. I remember thinking, I just want my vechicle to last. Fooling around, and racing was just not my first priority? It was a different time in history though. These days a parent would be jailed for teaching a kid how to drive in Sears parking lot after closing hours. My mom was my driving teacher. Happy Mother's Day!
    - gambiting 10y ago
      On the other hand, my first car when I started driving was a 0.7L, 2 cylinder, 36BHP Fiat Cinquecento. That 0-60 time was probably around 2 minutes, downhill. But thinking about it now - it's a horrible car for a young driver. It had no power steering, no power brakes, no ABS, I got into several slides in winter because the wheels would just lock when breaking, no air bags, it was so underpowered that it had difficulty starting moving uphill, which led to more than one dangerous situation on the road. In contrast, modern cars have more power, sure. But they also avoid collisions automatically, they have 15+ airbags around you, they have parking sensors, dead zone sensors, traction control, hill assist and other features that make it safer and easier to drive. If I have children one day they are definitely going to drive something modern, no matter what the time to 60 is.
  - flyinghamster 10y ago
    Even a minivan can have surprisingly high performance. A Honda Odyssey can run rings around classic sports cars. https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/soccer-moms-revenge/ https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/soccer-moms-reven...
- analog31 10y ago
  ... and probably not with all of your friends in the car. In my state, a beginning driver can't drive with passengers who are not family members.
  - loeg 10y ago
    In my state, you're not supposed to speed and fly into fields either. (Maybe Germany has a passengers law too — the kid was ignoring other laws already.)
    - ygra 10y ago
      There are no passenger laws in Germany (not in that sense, at least). Beginning drivers would probably be drivers who are still in their probationary period (until they're 21 or have their driver's license for at least two years, whichever comes later). I am in that period, although probably more than a decade older than most such drivers, and have no restrictions as to what passengers I can take. The main point of deterrent during that period is when you break the law, you have to attend a seminar and the period lengthens by another two years. Do that twice, and you lose your license for at least three months. An accident as this is likely the cause of driving too fast for the conditions, so that'd probably require attending such a seminar.
greglindahl 10y ago
You mean like valet mode? http://www.teslarati.com/depth-look-valet-mode-tesla-model-s/ http://www.teslarati.com/depth-look-valet-mode-tesla-model-s...
bad_alloc 10y ago
> ... a 18-year old took her father’s Tesla Model S ... That hints the car might have been taken without the parents knowledge. Then again this happened near München, so it might have been some overaffluent teens in their usual ride paid by daddy. It's not uncommon to see rich college students in a Porsche around there.
- vostok 10y ago
  Is there a good deal of wealth around München? Where does it come from? A kid with a Tesla sounds like "entrepreneur" or "inherited" level of wealth rather than "good engineer" level of wealth.
  - jakobegger 10y ago
    The Tesla belonged to her father.
  - eru 10y ago
    Munich is one of the richest German cities. You can dig into eg the Wikipedia article about economy of Bavaria if you are interested in background.
eclipxe 10y ago
Just because it is a P doesn't mean it has Ludicrous. P models before the Dual Motor are not Ludicrous capable. And after Dual Motors only those that opt in to Ludicrous have it.
- vvanders 10y ago
  Even the non-P is in a territory that I wouldn't trust anyone to drive without a developed frontal lobe. Our 85D does 0-60 in 3.9s and that's more than enough power to get you in trouble quickly.
  - jzwinck 10y ago
    It doesn't matter if teenagers can get in trouble quickly--they have all day to do so.

hartator 10y ago

You have to start driving sometimes anyway, but yeah probabaly not a +$100k car.

CapitalistCartr 10y ago
A minivan for two years. They're safe. Then, after a couple years and their first crash, they can move up. But rich parents often aren't willing to "deprive" their children.
- r00fus 10y ago
  My parents gave me a station wagon but otherwise completely agree.
- mrich 10y ago
  Out of curiosity, why are minivans safe?
  - Gracana 10y ago
    I don't know if there's anything inherent in their design that makes them particularly safe, but they're marketed and used as children-carriers, so safety is one of their most important features.
- darkr 10y ago
  ..or tell them if they want a car then go get a part time job and buy one. My first car cost my £50 (and £1100 to insure..). As it was 20 year old heap of junk, every other month something would break, and I'd have to look up how to fix it and then go down to the scrap yard with a socket set, £20 in my pocket and pull that part off a scrapped car. I learnt how to fix cars and I never had a crash because I knew it would mean certain death in that danger machine.
- shirro 10y ago
  Minivans are anti-teslas. They are tippy and have almost no crumple zone. In a front impact the engine block ends up where your legs were. If you have the money for a Tesla then you would be crazy not to put your kids in one. Ideally you would want to put it in some sort of valet mode to limit the performance.
  - CapitalistCartr 10y ago
    Minivans test well in safety. They are far from "anti-Teslas". If you don't like them, there are a variety of relatively safe, inexpensive vehicles from which to choose.
  - aidanf 10y ago
    The Tesla Model S scored 82% for adult protection and 77% for child protection in the Euroncap crash tests: http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/tesla/model-s/7897 http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/tesla/model-s/7897 That's quite a bit below best in class: http://www.euroncap.com/en/ratings-rewards/best-in-class-cars/2015/ http://www.euroncap.com/en/ratings-rewards/best-in-class-car... If you have the money for a Tesla you then you would be crazy not to put your kids in a Volvo (if safety is your priority).
- trgn 10y ago
  It's totally true, we totally expect young drivers to wreck a car early in their driving careers, and they often do, and we're totally fine with it, it's part of the course. That mindset strikes me as completely insane to be honest (btw, I damaged my parent's car as well in my first year of driving). Why not something like that you have to start driving for a few years with a small car (like a kei-car of some sorts), and then you can graduate to a compact. And then after six years or so, you can drive something heavy and/or fast. I would be so much more at ease in traffic, knowing that those deathtrap crossovers, trucks, and SUVs around me aren't piloted by a texting teenager.
  - goodcanadian 10y ago
    Yeah, to paraphrase my mother, "If I thought you were going to crash it, I wouldn't let you drive it." I actually learned to drive first on a ride-on lawn mower when I was barely heavy enough to keep the dead man switch active: hit a bump and the mower would switch off. Then I graduated to ATVs and finally to the farm pick-up truck when I was 12 or so. By the time I had a license, I was a quite capable and reasonably safe driver. Honestly, I think it may be best to learn before you are a teenager when you are still scared of the big machines.
    - trgn 10y ago
      that sounds like a great way to learn how to drive
    - marincounty 10y ago
      My parents taught me how to drive when I was around 13. By 15.5 driving was just driving. As a teen driver, I took a few chances, but was not a wild driver. I remember thinking, I just want my vechicle to last. Fooling around, and racing was just not my first priority? It was a different time in history though. These days a parent would be jailed for teaching a kid how to drive in Sears parking lot after closing hours. My mom was my driving teacher. Happy Mother's Day!
  - gambiting 10y ago
    On the other hand, my first car when I started driving was a 0.7L, 2 cylinder, 36BHP Fiat Cinquecento. That 0-60 time was probably around 2 minutes, downhill. But thinking about it now - it's a horrible car for a young driver. It had no power steering, no power brakes, no ABS, I got into several slides in winter because the wheels would just lock when breaking, no air bags, it was so underpowered that it had difficulty starting moving uphill, which led to more than one dangerous situation on the road. In contrast, modern cars have more power, sure. But they also avoid collisions automatically, they have 15+ airbags around you, they have parking sensors, dead zone sensors, traction control, hill assist and other features that make it safer and easier to drive. If I have children one day they are definitely going to drive something modern, no matter what the time to 60 is.
- flyinghamster 10y ago
  Even a minivan can have surprisingly high performance. A Honda Odyssey can run rings around classic sports cars. https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/soccer-moms-revenge/ https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/soccer-moms-reven...
analog31 10y ago
... and probably not with all of your friends in the car. In my state, a beginning driver can't drive with passengers who are not family members.
- loeg 10y ago
  In my state, you're not supposed to speed and fly into fields either. (Maybe Germany has a passengers law too — the kid was ignoring other laws already.)
  - ygra 10y ago
    There are no passenger laws in Germany (not in that sense, at least). Beginning drivers would probably be drivers who are still in their probationary period (until they're 21 or have their driver's license for at least two years, whichever comes later). I am in that period, although probably more than a decade older than most such drivers, and have no restrictions as to what passengers I can take. The main point of deterrent during that period is when you break the law, you have to attend a seminar and the period lengthens by another two years. Do that twice, and you lose your license for at least three months. An accident as this is likely the cause of driving too fast for the conditions, so that'd probably require attending such a seminar.

greglindahl 10y ago

You mean like valet mode? http://www.teslarati.com/depth-look-valet-mode-tesla-model-s/ http://www.teslarati.com/depth-look-valet-mode-tesla-model-s...

bad_alloc 10y ago

> ... a 18-year old took her father’s Tesla Model S ... That hints the car might have been taken without the parents knowledge. Then again this happened near München, so it might have been some overaffluent teens in their usual ride paid by daddy. It's not uncommon to see rich college students in a Porsche around there.

vostok 10y ago
Is there a good deal of wealth around München? Where does it come from? A kid with a Tesla sounds like "entrepreneur" or "inherited" level of wealth rather than "good engineer" level of wealth.
- jakobegger 10y ago
  The Tesla belonged to her father.
- eru 10y ago
  Munich is one of the richest German cities. You can dig into eg the Wikipedia article about economy of Bavaria if you are interested in background.

eclipxe 10y ago

Just because it is a P doesn't mean it has Ludicrous. P models before the Dual Motor are not Ludicrous capable. And after Dual Motors only those that opt in to Ludicrous have it.

vvanders 10y ago
Even the non-P is in a territory that I wouldn't trust anyone to drive without a developed frontal lobe. Our 85D does 0-60 in 3.9s and that's more than enough power to get you in trouble quickly.
- jzwinck 10y ago
  It doesn't matter if teenagers can get in trouble quickly--they have all day to do so.