The Everything Tesla/EV Argument Thread

[CurtP]

Originally Posted by jw38

In April, I rode in a friend's Model X with him from Los Angeles to San Antonio. Let's start with the good:

1. OK...the acceleration is fun

Now the bad:

1. It's by far the loudest vehicle I've ever ridden in. The road noise is horrible.
2. Virtually every moment of the trip was dictated by where the next charging station was.
3. There was absolutely no consideration for side trips for sightseeing because that would have taken us off the routes for the charging stations.
4. Almost all of the Supercharger charging stations had at least one non-functioning charger. Most had at least 2 that didn't work.
5. I had listen to my friend compain about all of the issues he's had with the vehicle.
a. It had 84k miles on it and he was on his 4th set of tires (he drives like an old lady)
b. It's on it's 4th set of front axle CV joints. The first two were covered under warranty,
but the last two cost him $2500 a whack. Apparently, Tesla knows about the issue,
but they won't do anything for their customers.
c. In order to lessen the issue with the front axle CV joints, once on the highway, he had
raise the suspension to the "middle" position via the center screen because the
suspension automatically defaults to the "low" setting, causing CV joint wear.
d. Tons of electrical "glitches" as he calls them.
6. So much for no routine maintenance.

I could go on, but it would be senseless to do so.

He needs to have all the suspension bushings checked/replaced, especially if he’s wiping out the insides of the tires. The bushings are too soft for the weight and wear out prematurely. That was the only way to get a compliant ride without coming up with a whole new suspension design. Maybe that’s causing his excessive road noise too. Ball joints and wheel bearings should be inspected as well.

There are some 3rd party companies making adjustable control arms now. Don’t know how they impact the ride quality though. I’d imagine they’re using harder bushings.

[Steve_R]

I understand the fun with instant acceleration. I understand the convenience of plugging it in at your house. The "no routine maintenance" argument is just plain stupid.

[LATB]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

Neither are EV owners except for a few Libs in California. We have many EV owners on here and I never saw anyone make any statement that they bought an EV to save the planet. For me, it's acceleration, no routine maintenance and extremely low operating cost. I don't give a f about how green the car is.

You are a minority in the acceleration desire thing.
I suspect that the vast majority of EV owners are driving them because of the save the environment angle.
Because the cost to buy one far outweighs any fuel and maintenance savings.

[GTOguy]

Originally Posted by LATB

You are a minority in the acceleration desire thing.
I suspect that the vast majority of EV owners are driving them because of the save the environment angle.
Because the cost to buy one far outweighs any fuel and maintenance savings.

100% of the ones I've met over the past 15 years are in it for the Virtue Signaling. I met ONE guy who was in it for the Virtue Signaling (he kept his Suburban hidden in his garage most of the time) who remarked that the fast acceleration was a bonus. Not ONE of the other many, many owners mentioned performance. They all bragged about 'doing their part' to save the planet.

This is based on my living and travelling all around CA and the western US.

[Mick]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

Your travel style is not normal. We have done road trips with friends and they want to stop more and longer than we do.
All those Restaurant chains along the highway are doing it wrong and they are always empty during breakfast, lunch and dinner hours because people don't stop for food.

I totally disagree. After everyone has had a chance to walk around, use the bathroom, get something to eat, and the tank is full, what else am I supposed to do before getting back on the road? FWIW: I have no interest in buying or selling blowies in the men's room.

[RedLS1GTO]

Originally Posted by Mick

I totally disagree. After everyone has had a chance to walk around, use the bathroom, get something to eat, and the tank is full, what else am I supposed to do before getting back on the road? FWIW: I have no interest in buying or selling blowies in the men's room.

He's been claiming since the beginning that "normal" people take breaks to sit in McDonalds or Taco Bell for an hour at a time to eat their hot meals.

Multiple times per trip.

If you don't sit for an hour every 250 miles while you eat your fast food, you are a danger to everybody around you due to your excessive fatigue.

[Onebadcad]

My rules for road travel have been the same since I was 16, then with three daughters, and today.

1) Pack the night before, fill up the tank,,, flashlight, 2 quarts oil, jug of antifreeze, gallon of water
2) Up early to hit the road
3) 20+ over the speed limit
4) stops for fuel is when we eat, pee and poop
5) fuel stops are food stops, grab your grub and eat it on the road
6) get in, go fast, get there quicker!!

This stopping to eat crap is for amateurs and old ladies with blue hair, if I wanted to spend more time on our roads I would become an uber driver.

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by RedLS1GTO

Now let's take out the bullshit filler lines that you left in to make it look longer and look at the actual list.

6,000 miles -
Oil and filter replacement
Tire inspection - your Petunia needs this too

12,000 miles -
Oil change
Brake system inspection - 5 seconds, not maintenance
Exhaust system inspection - 5 seconds, not maintenance
Tire rotation and inspection - your Petunia needs this too

24,000 miles (about two years)
Oil change
Replace spark plugs - Bullshit
Replace engine air filter - 5 minutes
Inspect other filters - not maintenance

48,000 miles (about four years)
Oil change
Transmission fluid and filter replacement (if towing often) - you don't tow so N/A
Inspect other fluids - Not maintanance
Parking brake adjustment - Bullshit.

So just to sum it up. In 4 years... the total maintenance is a few oil changes and a $10 filter. That 4 years of maintenance can be done in less time than it takes you to sit in a McDonald's and wait for yours to charge once.

Keep trying.

If you drive to a oil change place, you are usually spending at least 20 mins as there are usually other people as well. You also have to drive TO the oil change place and back. So, if the oil change place is like 15 mins from your home, it's another 30 mins of time.
I'm actually EATING and not losing any time when my car is charging at the supercharger. I'm not "WAITING" for the car. Often, the car is done before we finished eating.

[Steve_R]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

If you drive to a oil change place, you are usually spending at least 20 mins as there are usually other people as well. You also have to drive TO the oil change place and back. So, if the oil change place is like 15 mins from your home, it's another 30 mins of time.

Our local Chevrolet and Ford dealer will come to the house and change the oil, or they'll come pick up the car, service it, and deliver it back to the house. They might bring lukewarm Taco Bell or McDonald's food to us but I've never asked.

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by jw38

In April, I rode in a friend's Model X with him from Los Angeles to San Antonio. Let's start with the good:

1. OK...the acceleration is fun

Now the bad:

1. It's by far the loudest vehicle I've ever ridden in. The road noise is horrible.
2. Virtually every moment of the trip was dictated by where the next charging station was.
3. There was absolutely no consideration for side trips for sightseeing because that would have taken us off the routes for the charging stations.
4. Almost all of the Supercharger charging stations had at least one non-functioning charger. Most had at least 2 that didn't work.
5. I had listen to my friend compain about all of the issues he's had with the vehicle.
a. It had 84k miles on it and he was on his 4th set of tires (he drives like an old lady)
b. It's on it's 4th set of front axle CV joints. The first two were covered under warranty,
but the last two cost him $2500 a whack. Apparently, Tesla knows about the issue,
but they won't do anything for their customers.
c. In order to lessen the issue with the front axle CV joints, once on the highway, he had
raise the suspension to the "middle" position via the center screen because the
suspension automatically defaults to the "low" setting, causing CV joint wear.
d. Tons of electrical "glitches" as he calls them.
6. So much for no routine maintenance.

I could go on, but it would be senseless to do so.

So, your friend's car is representative of all of them

I got 37500 miles on mine and zero technical issues. My Model X Plaid is by far the most quiet vehicle I ever owned. I can talk to someone in the 3rd row without raising my voice. It's virtually silent.. All you hear is some wind noise at higher speed but nothing loud. Maybe something changed with the refresh model. I got about 30k miles out of my tires and if it wasn't for the factory negative camber, I would have gotten 40k miles out of the tires. I since used shims to space the camber arms to eliminate the negative camber issue and I expect my current tires to last 40k+ miles.

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by LATB

You are a minority in the acceleration desire thing.
I suspect that the vast majority of EV owners are driving them because of the save the environment angle.
Because the cost to buy one far outweighs any fuel and maintenance savings.

I know many EV owners and maybe 1 or 2 out of like 20 worry about the environment.

[DDSLT5]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

I know many EV owners and maybe 1 or 2 out of like 20 worry about the environment.

I believe these stats. Most ppl that buy EVs are simply enjoying the newest cool tech. They don't give a flying **** about the environment. That's for the Toyota PIUS owners!

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by Steve_R

Our local Chevrolet and Ford dealer will come to the house and change the oil, or they'll come pick up the car, service it, and deliver it back to the house. They might bring lukewarm Taco Bell or McDonald's food to us but I've never asked.

How much do they charge for that home service? I remember the last time I had a synthetic oil change done on one of my Vettes, I paid like $80 and that was around the year 2001.. It's probably well over $100 for a synthetic oil change now..

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by DDSLT5

I believe these stats. Most ppl that buy EVs are simply enjoying the newest cool tech. They don't give a flying **** about the environment. That's for the Toyota PIUS owners!

For me, going EV was an easy decision after looking at our monthly gas expense. We spent $750 per month on gasoline for both our cars. That's over $8k per year just for fueling our cars. Our off peak electric charging rate is 5 cents per kwh and even if I would charge exclusively at home without using free chargers, I would not spend over $25 per month in extra electricity for my car and another $10 for the wife's.. $35 total cost instead of $750 is quite the difference. The difference is basically a car payment for a nice $50k car.

[Steve_R]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

How much do they charge for that home service? I remember the last time I had a synthetic oil change done on one of my Vettes, I paid like $80 and that was around the year 2001.. It's probably well over $100 for a synthetic oil change now..

The last one on the C7 was ~$80. A little less on the Explorer. Mobil 1 synthetic in both. Home service, pickup/delivery service, or at the dealer is the same cost.

On average each of our vehicles gets one oil/filter change per year. There is very little routine maintenance other than that on new ICE cars.

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by Steve_R

The last one on the C7 was ~$80. A little less on the Explorer. Mobil 1 synthetic in both. Home service, pickup/delivery service, or at the dealer is the same cost.

On average each of our vehicles gets one oil/filter change per year. There is very little routine maintenance other than that on new ICE cars.

I guess that you drive very little... I drive about 20k miles per year, so, I'd need at least 2, most likely 3 oil changes per year.

[Steve_R]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

For me, going EV was an easy decision after looking at our monthly gas expense. We spent $750 per month on gasoline for both our cars.

You used 200 gallons of gas in a month???!!! Good God man, do you drive your cars 24 hours/day every day of the week? It would suck to spend that much time driving around Orlando in heavy traffic. My condolences.

[RedLS1GTO]

Originally Posted by Steve_R

You used 200 gallons of gas in a month???!!! Good God man, do you drive your cars 24 hours/day every day of the week? It would suck to spend that much time driving around Orlando in heavy traffic. My condolences.

If you think that's crazy math, just wait until he tells you how a lawn care business can save $80k a year with cyber"trucks".

[GrandSportC3]

Originally Posted by Steve_R

You used 200 gallons of gas in a month???!!! Good God man, do you drive your cars 24 hours/day every day of the week? It would suck to spend that much time driving around Orlando in heavy traffic. My condolences.

I had a F150 Supercrew V8 which got 17 - 18 mpg AT BEST and I drove 3000 miles per month before COVID.
Wife had a Dodge Grand Caravan which she drove mostly around town and she also averaged about 17 - 18 mpg. She drove about 1000- 1500 miles per month. So, we used 222 + gallons per month on average.

[DDSLT5]

Originally Posted by GrandSportC3

I had a F150 Supercrew V8 which got 17 - 18 mpg AT BEST and I drove 3000 miles per month before COVID.
Wife had a Dodge Grand Caravan which she drove mostly around town and she also averaged about 17 - 18 mpg. She drove about 1000- 1500 miles per month. So, we used 222 + gallons per month on average.

My Silverado has the new 3L in line 6, variable vane turbo diesel! I'm averaging 28 mpg - no shit! Best is 35 mpg hwy - and I get this REGULARLY!!!! LOVE IT!!!