4 ms·

> It certainly feels somewhat disingenuous to mention nothing, of what arguably should be, the central discussion point: The Model S (more specifically the car'

by glass- 14y ago

> It certainly feels somewhat disingenuous to mention nothing, of what arguably should be, the central discussion point: The Model S (more specifically the car's Li-Ion battery pack) performs unusually poorly in frigid conditions. If you listen to the interviews Musk gave with the likes of Bloomberg about this, he explains how they have taken care to make the car perform well in the cold. Things such as moving heat from the motor into the battery-pack and, when it detects cold temperatures, closing shutters at the front of the car to insulate it.

wamatt 14y ago
That's a good point. Although, irrespective of how thoughtfully Tesla may have attempted to mitigate the fundamental problem through novel engineering, the reality seems to reflect something else. Having now entered the market in full swing, car owners are confirming this is a valid issue (especially in the very cold climate states). To be fair though, sub-zero temperature battery issues generally affect EVs across the board.[1] However, Tesla is positioning itself as the first mainstream car manufacture to go all out on EV. Thus, surely the onus ought to fall with them, when it comes to educating the 'ICE(internal combustion engine)-driving' public as to the potential pitfalls and differences between ICEs and EVs? Instead the company seems to be ignoring the issue, hoping it will go away. It's not within the public's experience, that if you leave your vehicle unplugged overnight, in extreme cold, the range can have reduced itself significantly by the next morning. Contrastingly, operating under normal conditions, the manual allegedly states (Page 25) about a 1% discharge rate per day. [2] Now ordinarily I might say this is a once off. But it would appear, lack of adequate customer education is a recurring concern. Consider the case of an early adopter (Max Drucker) that had his Tesla Roadster bricked [3][4]. He was told he needed to pay $40 000 for a new battery pack because he was 'negligent'. His transgression? Leaving it unplugged for 2 months in a temporary garage while renovating his home. What could be negligent, is Tesla failing to highlight possible issues pertaining to their EV vehicles and how they differ from ICE expectations. Burying important or even critical details in the manual/warranty docket, seems questionable. Still a huge supporter of what they are trying to achieve, but their refusal to admit any fault and tendency to blame the customer, is a tad off-putting. [1] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/27/AR2011012706170.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01... [2] http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/12188-Battery-discharges-at-a-rate-of-1-per-day-(page-25-Model-S-owners-manual) http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/12188-Battery-... [3] http://www.examiner.com/article/it-s-a-brick-tesla-s-batteries-under-question http://www.examiner.com/article/it-s-a-brick-tesla-s-batteri... [4] http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/bricked-tesla-roadsters/ http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/bricked-tesla-roadsters...

by glass- 14y ago

wamatt 14y ago

That's a good point. Although, irrespective of how thoughtfully Tesla may have attempted to mitigate the fundamental problem through novel engineering, the reality seems to reflect something else. Having now entered the market in full swing, car owners are confirming this is a valid issue (especially in the very cold climate states). To be fair though, sub-zero temperature battery issues generally affect EVs across the board.[1] However, Tesla is positioning itself as the first mainstream car manufacture to go all out on EV. Thus, surely the onus ought to fall with them, when it comes to educating the 'ICE(internal combustion engine)-driving' public as to the potential pitfalls and differences between ICEs and EVs? Instead the company seems to be ignoring the issue, hoping it will go away. It's not within the public's experience, that if you leave your vehicle unplugged overnight, in extreme cold, the range can have reduced itself significantly by the next morning. Contrastingly, operating under normal conditions, the manual allegedly states (Page 25) about a 1% discharge rate per day. [2] Now ordinarily I might say this is a once off. But it would appear, lack of adequate customer education is a recurring concern. Consider the case of an early adopter (Max Drucker) that had his Tesla Roadster bricked [3][4]. He was told he needed to pay $40 000 for a new battery pack because he was 'negligent'. His transgression? Leaving it unplugged for 2 months in a temporary garage while renovating his home. What could be negligent, is Tesla failing to highlight possible issues pertaining to their EV vehicles and how they differ from ICE expectations. Burying important or even critical details in the manual/warranty docket, seems questionable. Still a huge supporter of what they are trying to achieve, but their refusal to admit any fault and tendency to blame the customer, is a tad off-putting. [1] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/27/AR2011012706170.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01... [2] http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/12188-Battery-discharges-at-a-rate-of-1-per-day-(page-25-Model-S-owners-manual) http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/12188-Battery-... [3] http://www.examiner.com/article/it-s-a-brick-tesla-s-batteries-under-question http://www.examiner.com/article/it-s-a-brick-tesla-s-batteri... [4] http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/bricked-tesla-roadsters/ http://www.wired.com/autopia/2012/02/bricked-tesla-roadsters...