When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
People who buy a Model S rather than a S Class have VERY different priorities. The sales for S Class will go up a TON when the facelift comes and then go down for the next year. It's been the same for every generation.
Seriously? If not for the Tesla Model S we would have bought an S Class and our car shopping priorities would have been exactly the same.
We were looking for the best 4 door large premium sedan we could buy. Our priorities were: safety, performance, comfort and technological sophistication. The Model S met all of our priorities with the exception of performance and in that department it not only blew away Mercedes' entire AMG lineup but a bunch of Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and other "super cars" in its wake.
The fact that the Model S is an EV was really inconsequential but it ended up being icing on the cake for us. We now never have to waste time going to a stinky gas station and always leave the house with about 250 miles of range that is sufficient for about 95% of our driving.
On top of all this our car just keeps getting better with software updates. We are not going back to a legacy car with combustion engine after our Tesla.
As for your expectation that with the S Class "facelift" Mercedes will once again claim the sales leadership position in the segment they have lost to the Tesla Model S, I think that is a long shot.
Realize that in 2014 The S Class not just received a facelift but an entirely new generation of car with the W222. But yet in 2015, just one year later the Tesla Model S outsold the S Class in the United States and Western Europe with a body design that was last updated in 2012!
Also Tesla will continue to innovate. The P100D is around the horizon.
Fewer premium car buyers will be lining up to buy a car that needs to set fire to little drops of gasoline to move forward.
I was shocked to see the facelift of the Model S. Now this car looks as hideous (to me) as the Model 3. 1 step forward, 3 steps back.
And this is coming from a person itching to get an EV...
As for the redesign, give it some time and perhaps the new Model S front will grow on you. I certainly did not like the pointed grill when Mercedes came out with the W211 refresh and the W221 but that design completely grew on me and i ended up buying one.
Also realize the front design of the Model S has a lot to do with the drag coefficient. Just with the front redesign tweaks they have increased the range of the vehicle at high speed.
I personally think the Model 3 design looks absolutely beautiful and by looking at the deposits for orders I am not alone. They are now at around 400,000 reservations for the Model 3.
To put the Tesla Model 3 reservations in perspective realize in the United States, BMW sold only about 140,000 3-series cars in the US and Mercedes sold only about 86,000 C-Class cars in the United States.
The demand for premium EVs cars are so great that it is likely within the first or second year of the Tesla Model 3 going into production, Tesla will sell more Model 3 units in the Unites States than the BMW 3-series and the Mercedes C-Class COMBINED. And realize this is where the premium German car manufacturers make a bunch of their money and volume sales.
As we can see with hundreds of thousands of order deposits for a car Tesla is still about 18 months from releasing the demand for premium EVs is immense and increasingly customers will balk at buying a premium car that still is powered by a combustion engine.
The Model 3 is the inflection point for EVs that I mentioned earlier. It will start at the high end first as we can already see with the Model S outselling the S Class and it will go down from there with the Model 3 becoming the market leader in the middle of the premium car segment.
As more customers experience EVs few will want to go back to a combustion car and combustion car manufacturers will end up loosing the market share starting with their most profitable and high volumes cars.
Audi and Porsche seems to have woken up and are building compelling EVs but they are still 2 years away.
Do you even realize how creepy you EV obsession sounds? Constantly with your SHYSTER sales pitch. Your words picked verbatim from EVObsession.com, Tesla forum activism, skewed metrics, repeating the same pitch over and over and over. It must be sad to live a life door to door spreading the "word".
Originally Posted by WEBSRFR
As for the redesign, give it some time and perhaps the new Model S front will grow on you. I certainly did not like the pointed grill when Mercedes came out with the W211 refresh and the W221 but that design completely grew on me and i ended up buying one.
Also realize the front design of the Model S has a lot to do with the drag coefficient. Just with the front redesign tweaks they have increased the range of the vehicle at high speed.
I personally think the Model 3 design looks absolutely beautiful and by looking at the deposits for orders I am not alone. They are now at around 400,000 reservations for the Model 3.
To put the Tesla Model 3 reservations in perspective realize in the United States, BMW sold only about 140,000 3-series cars in the US and Mercedes sold only about 86,000 C-Class cars in the United States.
The demand for premium EVs cars are so great that it is likely within the first or second year of the Tesla Model 3 going into production, Tesla will sell more Model 3 units in the Unites States than the BMW 3-series and the Mercedes C-Class COMBINED. And realize this is where the premium German car manufacturers make a bunch of their money and volume sales.
As we can see with hundreds of thousands of order deposits for a car Tesla is still about 18 months from releasing the demand for premium EVs is immense and increasingly customers will balk at buying a premium car that still is powered by a combustion engine.
The Model 3 is the inflection point for EVs that I mentioned earlier. It will start at the high end first as we can already see with the Model S outselling the S Class and it will go down from there with the Model 3 becoming the market leader in the middle of the premium car segment.
As more customers experience EVs few will want to go back to a combustion car and combustion car manufacturers will end up loosing the market share starting with their most profitable and high volumes cars.
Audi and Porsche seems to have woken up and are building compelling EVs but they are still 2 years away.
So the fact the Model S is an EV was really not important but just icing on the cake? REALLY?
So if you took the Tesla Electric Drive Train and put it into the MB S Class you would choose the Tesla Model S instead? WOW! You are NUTS
The P100D is around the corner? Really? Five Tesla VPs have left in the past three months including the Global Head of Production. The Roadster was delayed about 9 months, the Model S was delayed more than 6 months, the Model X was delayed more than 18 months and the Model 3 will have significant delays and those deposits you keep talking about will drop off to some degree but will help finance the company in the interim.
Originally Posted by WEBSRFR
"The fact that the Model S is an EV was really inconsequential but it ended up being icing on the cake for us."
"Also Tesla will continue to innovate. The P100D is around the horizon."
Do you even realize how creepy you EV obsession sounds? Constantly with your SHYSTER sales pitch. Your words picked verbatim from EVObsession.com, Tesla forum activism, skewed metrics, repeating the same pitch over and over and over. It must be sad to live a life door to door spreading the "word".
I wasn't always this way I used to love V8 engines but a test drive in a Tesla changed all that. Our previous cars barely delivered 10-14 mpg so we didn't buy the Tesla due to some EV obsession but because it was the best car we could find to buy.
After owning our Tesla for a little over a year it is like when I first switched from a flip phone to a smartphone. I can't imagine going back.
Oh and it is not sad at all. I feel like I am driving the future and in 10-15 years the majority of models sold by Mercedes will drive like a Tesla.
The Mercedes CEO himself has conceded that the future of the car is all electric but they are just dragging their feet and loosing market share in the process.
I see, so first you converted, and then all the delusions of 'spreading' the 'word' started?
Originally Posted by WEBSRFR
I wasn't always this way I used to love V8 engines but a test drive in a Tesla changed all that.
Ah, it opened your eyes, and now voices direct you to the EV mission. Here I thought that you were a Shyster, my bad ...
Originally Posted by WEBSRFR
After owning our Tesla for a little over a year it is like when I first switched from a flip phone to a smartphone. I can't imagine going back
Yes, and you feel like flying into the air, spreading your wings and unto the heavens thee shall fly Goodness sake, here I thought you were a paid evangelist, but this EV Obsession.com shi%t is doing more harm to you than you would ever realize if rehabilitated over next 10-15 years.
Originally Posted by WEBSRFR
I feel like I am driving the future and in 10-15 years the majority of models sold by Mercedes will drive like a Tesla.
So the fact the Model S is an EV was really not important but just icing on the cake? REALLY?
Not initially but it didn't take long to realize how much better a high performance EV drivetrain is compared to a combustion car. We certainly did not set out to buy an EV for the sake of buying an EV. We simply bought the best car we could find.
Originally Posted by MTrauman
So if you took the Tesla Electric Drive Train and put it into the MB S Class you would choose the Tesla Model S instead? WOW! You are NUTS
I never said that. My ideal car would be a Model S platform and drivetrain with an S Class interior though I'd definitely want the ridiculous brain dead Command interface replaced with the Tesla UI and touchscreen that updates itself and delivers new features every couple of months.
I've always said the Model S Achilles heel is the interior but they are working on that.
Originally Posted by MTrauman
The P100D is around the corner? Really? Five Tesla VPs have left in the past three months including the Global Head of Production. The Roadster was delayed about 9 months, the Model S was delayed more than 6 months, the Model X was delayed more than 18 months and the Model 3 will have significant delays and those deposits you keep talking about will drop off to some degree but will help finance the company in the interim.
Yup, the P100D is certainly around the corner. As are additional features and enhancements for the Model S.
Elon admits very readily that the Model X is likely one of the hardest production cars to build. Bob Lutz, famously proclaimed the Model X is so complex that it is unbuildable but Tesla is proving them wrong. When they designed the Model X they wanted to build the most sophisticated SUV they could think of for urban use with every engineering toy they can think of.
Tesla readily admits they learned a lesson with the Model X and that the Model 3 will be build specifically in a manner that is easy to build and ramp up production. I am sure they will apply the lessons learned and I'm sure the finest American engineers are working on the Model 3 project.
Yes, several execs have left Tesla recently but don't think working for Tesla is easy. They accomplish in a year what it takes other automakers 4-5 years to accomplish.
Realize barely a year and half ago Tesla did not even have blind spot warnings implemented and now they are at the pinnacle of autonomous driving available in a production car. This was accomplished due to the hard work of many people who were pushed to their limits.
Yes some execs have left Tesla but a bunch of them are actually going to work for extremely well funded companies that are also building eclectic cars. As people leave more people come to work for Tesla and the more than half of the core executive team at Tesla that reports directly to Elon has been with Tesla for more than 5 years.
I just learned more of Tesla's ramp up plans for the Model 3 and I'm not sure the German automakers are ready for what it will do to the sales of their mid level models. In the meantime Model S sales are expected to go up another 40-50% this year and it will be interesting to see what S Class sales are going to be in the US and Western Europe for 2016.
I still dont fully understand why people dont understand that they are both great cars, and one could be happy with either.
I am cross shopping the S class and the tesla. They are different cars. However, the idea that they are not cross-shopped is just plain wrong.
The idea that the Tesla vs S class is an easy debate is also wrong. Might be easy for some, and not for others.
In the end, I respect both of these cars. The tesla will force MB to improve. THe MB will force tesla to improve. COnsumers win when there is competition. Not much else to say.
I still dont fully understand why people dont understand that they are both great cars, and one could be happy with either.
I am cross shopping the S class and the tesla. They are different cars. However, the idea that they are not cross-shopped is just plain wrong.
The idea that the Tesla vs S class is an easy debate is also wrong. Might be easy for some, and not for others.
In the end, I respect both of these cars. The tesla will force MB to improve. THe MB will force tesla to improve. COnsumers win when there is competition. Not much else to say.
Well said and I agree completely.
Ultimately Tesla will compel the automotive industry to innovate and offer more compelling products and vehicles with electric drivetrains for consumers who want them.
I am sorry but are you 2 years old or is your IQ 2?
Of course you never said my quote below. I wrote that but it was derived by your comment that stated "The fact that the Model S is an EV is inconsequential but it ended up being icing on the cake for us". Do I need to help you understand what you wrote in the context that you wrote it?
You were comparing the Model S to the S Class. Do I really need to teach you how to write, read and critically think about what you have just written?
What is your goal here? Why do you keep selling the Tesla EV? You are like Charles Manson but instead this is the Tesla cult.
Originally Posted by MTrauman So if you took the Tesla Electric Drive Train and put it into the MB S Class you would choose the Tesla Model S instead? WOW! You are NUTS
I still dont fully understand why people dont understand that they are both great cars, and one could be happy with either.
I am cross shopping the S class and the tesla. They are different cars. However, the idea that they are not cross-shopped is just plain wrong.
The idea that the Tesla vs S class is an easy debate is also wrong. Might be easy for some, and not for others.
In the end, I respect both of these cars. The tesla will force MB to improve. THe MB will force tesla to improve. COnsumers win when there is competition. Not much else to say.
With all do respect sambb, this is really about one person WEBSRFR not Tesla.
When we have a Tesla cult member coming on this website talking non sense people that understand what WEBSRFR writes get insulted by the BS he/she writes.
If this thread stuck to the initial question posed, there would be no issue. But instead we have WEBSRFR that is trying to aggressively change the opinion of S Class owners acting like S Class owners cannot think on their own.
The moderator really should close this thread so WEBSRFR cannot write stuff he/she cannot clearly understand the meaning of the written words.
Oh I understand the meaning of written words quite well.
Read what I wrote again before you resort to throwing a tantrum with insults and calling people names. What I said is that the Model S was the best car I could find available to buy. I was obviously talking about the qualities of the vehicles as it pertains to performance and technology. We did not set out to buy an EV but at the end the best car we could find available to buy was an EV and in the process we figured out no combustion car can match the performance or technology offered in a Tesla.
All I've done is correct misrepresentations.
It's odd how much you are advocating the censorship of information on an open forum after some of the misinformation people dragged out has been debunked or clarified.
If you want to live in an echo chamber where everyone agrees with you, an Internet forum is likely not the best venue for someone like you.
Oh I understand the meaning of written words quite well.
Read what I wrote again before you resort to throwing a tantrum with insults and calling people names. What I said is that the Model S was the best car I could find available to buy. I was obviously talking about the qualities of the vehicles as it pertains to performance and technology. We did not set out to buy an EV but at the end the best car we could find available to buy was an EV and in the process we figured out no combustion car can match the performance or technology offered in a Tesla.
All I've done is correct misrepresentations.
It's odd how much you are advocating the censorship of information on an open forum after some of the misinformation people dragged out has been debunked or clarified.
If you want to live in an echo chamber where everyone agrees with you, an Internet forum is likely not the best venue for someone like you.
This is what you said:
"The fact that the Model S is an EV was really inconsequential but it ended up being icing on the cake for us."
Oh I understand the meaning of written words quite well.
Read what I wrote again before you resort to throwing a tantrum with insults and calling people names. What I said is that the Model S was the best car I could find available to buy. I was obviously talking about the qualities of the vehicles as it pertains to performance and technology. We did not set out to buy an EV but at the end the best car we could find available to buy was an EV and in the process we figured out no combustion car can match the performance or technology offered in a Tesla.
All I've done is correct misrepresentations.
It's odd how much you are advocating the censorship of information on an open forum after some of the misinformation people dragged out has been debunked or clarified.
If you want to live in an echo chamber where everyone agrees with you, an Internet forum is likely not the best venue for someone like you.
Censorship? Really? Read your posts. Do your posts pertain to the initial question below?:
Question...If have you driven the Tesla model S vs S550, why did you choose the S550?
Your Tesla rants have absolutely nothing to do with the question posted for this thread. You are using this forum to advertise the Tesla Kool Aid and I take offense to that--PERIOD.
If you want to advertise on this site, why don't you pay to advertise for Tesla?
Censorship? Really? Read your posts. Do your posts pertain to the initial question below?:
Question...If have you driven the Tesla model S vs S550, why did you choose the S550?
Your Tesla rants have absolutely nothing to do with the question posted for this thread. You are using this forum to advertise the Tesla Kool Aid and I take offense to that--PERIOD.
If you want to advertise on this site, why don't you pay to advertise for Tesla?
Censorship? Really? Read your posts. Do your posts pertain to the initial question below?:
Question...If have you driven the Tesla model S vs S550, why did you choose the S550?
Yes they do. This thread has always been a discussion about the pros and cons of one choice over the other along with the refutation of a bunch of baseless assertions and FUD concerning EVs.
Calling for a moderator to shut down a discussion when you can't win an argument is quite petty. Not all discussions are there to please you and agree with your world view. Feel free to not take part in this thread if you have no interest in taking part in this discussion.
Yes they do. This thread has always been a discussion about the pros and cons of one choice over the other along with the refutation of a bunch of baseless assertions and FUD concerning EVs.
Calling for a moderator to shut down a discussion when you can't win an argument is quite petty. Not all discussions are there to please you and agree with your world view. Feel free to not take part in this thread if you have no interest in taking part in this discussion.
WEBSRFR,
What the hell are you talking about?
I am calling for a moderator simply because you are so unfocused and drink too much of the Tesla Kool Aid. Is this a Tesla website or an MB enthusiast website? There is no argument to be won or lost. It is your stupidity I am concerned about.
Your discussions are not about the question "if you have driven the Tesla Model S vs S550, why did you choose the S550".
Your discussion revolves around why YOU purchased a Tesla Model S.
Would you at the very least start a new discussion entitled something like "Why I choose the Tesla Model S". This would be much more appropriate but I guess your IQ is to low to figure out how to handle this situation that you have to make this into a win/lose argument.
I swear you are 2 years old or have an IQ of 2. And stop drinking the Tesla Kool Aid since it is having a major negative impact on your brain.
Porsche Taycan, Range Rover AB, Range Rover SVR, S Class, Mclaren 570s, Urus Hybrid (soon), M3, RS6
It's no longshot thinking that S Class sales will go up at the facelift. It always goes up on each facelift. The results speak for themselves. On the first year of a facelift the S Class sells its highest amount, which goes down for the next 3 years and then dramatically increases at the facelift. It's facts, not a longshot. In the first year, the S Class sold 100,000 cars. The Tesla hasn't, and won't have that capacity for a while.
I'm not going to put down any particular car while extolling the virtues of the one I actually drive (unlike some guys here).
I received a Tesla S P90D, delivered to my home last December to test from Friday to Monday (extended test drive).
Shocked initially by acceleration at lower speeds (actually kept up to about 80mph with my daily d. E63S Renntech), it really started to pick my interest.
On Monday the temps dropped to single digits and the car sat outside my office for about 5 hours.
Remotely started it up and by the time I got to it , the heater already did the job and I started to like it even more.
First glitch was the ginormous ipad that was acting up all the way to my home (15 miles) and became usable only after I pulled in garage.
The shocking acceleration that blew me away in the morning was no longer there and the available range mysteriously shrank by almost 50%.
Thought it was something defective with the car but unfortunately, the Tesla man who picked it up on Monday explained that in subzero temps that behavior is to be expected, a "nature of the beast" as he said.
Hence I lost interest in it as a DD, at least not in this ungodly climate I live in, would make more sense in warm weather, not working for me here.
It's no longshot thinking that S Class sales will go up at the facelift. It always goes up on each facelift. The results speak for themselves. On the first year of a facelift the S Class sells its highest amount, which goes down for the next 3 years and then dramatically increases at the facelift. It's facts, not a longshot. In the first year, the S Class sold 100,000 cars. The Tesla hasn't, and won't have that capacity for a while.
Granted but that is due to the fact that Mercedes has an established dealership network across the world. With Tesla since they own the dealerships as well as the charging infrastructure it is taking them longer to ramp up.
The important distinction is that wherever Tesla has a presence they end up outselling the S Class in the same price segment for a 4 door car. It happened first in the United States and the Model S is now outselling the S Class in Western Europe.
You do bring up an excellent point in that Tesla currently lacks capacity. They have 400,000 deposits for the Model 3 but they don't have the capacity to build even 1/4 of that yet.
By contrast Mercedes is a company that builds 2 million cars a year so for now they don't have much to worry about but if and when Tesla ramps up to half a million cars and beyond, Mercedes will really feel it unless they come up with compelling electric cars of their own.
Mercedes is beginning to invest in EV technology but as long as they continue to waste time and resources with BS hybrids it will stymie their efforts to build a modern car competitive with what Tesla offers.
I'm not going to put down any particular car while extolling the virtues of the one I actually drive (unlike some guys here).
I received a Tesla S P90D, delivered to my home last December to test from Friday to Monday (extended test drive).
Shocked initially by acceleration at lower speeds (actually kept up to about 80mph with my daily d. E63S Renntech), it really started to pick my interest.
On Monday the temps dropped to single digits and the car sat outside my office for about 5 hours.
Remotely started it up and by the time I got to it , the heater already did the job and I started to like it even more.
First glitch was the ginormous ipad that was acting up all the way to my home (15 miles) and became usable only after I pulled in garage.
The shocking acceleration that blew me away in the morning was no longer there and the available range mysteriously shrank by almost 50%.
Thought it was something defective with the car but unfortunately, the Tesla man who picked it up on Monday explained that in subzero temps that behavior is to be expected, a "nature of the beast" as he said.
Hence I lost interest in it as a DD, at least not in this ungodly climate I live in, would make more sense in warm weather, not working for me here.
Are you sure you did not test drive a Leaf by accident? Seriously I have not had these issues and I frequent the Tesla forums and apart from a few isolated issues that all cars have I have not heard of any Tesla mysteriously dropping in range by 50%. Perhaps you received a defective car? The new 90D delivers over 300 miles of range and this is likely sufficient for the daily driving needs of most people.
Just a small comment about the Tesla Model S and cold climates. I am not sure if you knew this but the Tesla Model S on some months is the best selling car in Norway. And I don't means EVs, I mean the best selling car of any type. The Model S would not be so popular in Norway if there were significant issues with the cold weather.
In fact something I love about owning a Model S in cold weather is how I can have the car heated while it is still in my garage. I could not do this with a combustion car because the toxic fumes will enter the house when the engine is started.
Also unlike a combustion car, you can do a launch out of your garage if you wanted to as you don't need to wait for any engine components to warm up in cold weather.
Are you sure you did not test drive a Leaf by accident? Seriously I have not had these issues and I frequent the Tesla forums and apart from a few isolated issues that all cars have I have not heard of any Tesla mysteriously dropping in range by 50%. Perhaps you received a defective car? The new 90D delivers over 300 miles of range and this is likely sufficient for the daily driving needs of most people.
Just a small comment about the Tesla Model S and cold climates. I am not sure if you knew this but the Tesla Model S on some months is the best selling car in Norway. And I don't means EVs, I mean the best selling car of any type. The Model S would not be so popular in Norway if there were significant issues with the cold weather.
In fact something I love about owning a Model S in cold weather is how I can have the car heated while it is still in my garage. I could not do this with a combustion car because the toxic fumes will enter the house when the engine is started.
Also unlike a combustion car, you can do a launch out of your garage if you wanted to as you don't need to wait for any engine components to warm up in cold weather.
Have you checked prices in Norway?
With government incentives Tesla competes with 4 cyl. C-Class instead of S-Class like in US.
Btw, were I in Norway, I would buy Tesla too, rattles, diminished range and general boredom of driving the thing notwithstanding.
You seem to know so much about living in Norway and buying a car suitable for the excessively cold winter climate they have there better than the people who live there. You must be so smart to have such insight into a car you don't own in a place where you don't live
The rattles you hear must be inside your head because there are no rattles inside our Model S. The only rattle we had came from the pano roof and incidentally it was the same kind of rattle we had in our Mercedes likely because Tesla used the same supplier as Mercedes. Just as the rattle with our Mercedes pano roof was fixed, Tesla fixed it and now the car is super quiet. A bunch of interior components of the car come directly from Mercedes suppliers.
But yeah I am sure it is easier for you to make ignorant statements despite the fact that Model Owners are happier with their car than any other car offered for sale with customer satisfaction rates in the mid 90 percentile.
You seem to know so much about living in Norway and buying a car suitable for the excessively cold winter climate they have there better than the people who live there. You must be so smart to have such insight into a car you don't own in a place where you don't live
The rattles you hear must be inside your head because there are no rattles inside our Model S. The only rattle we had came from the pano roof and incidentally it was the same kind of rattle we had in our Mercedes likely because Tesla used the same supplier as Mercedes. Just as the rattle with our Mercedes pano roof was fixed, Tesla fixed it and now the car is super quiet. A bunch of interior components of the car come directly from Mercedes suppliers.
But yeah I am sure it is easier for you to make ignorant statements despite the fact that Model Owners are happier with their car than any other car offered for sale with customer satisfaction rates in the mid 90 percentile.
I see you are losing your calm and resort to insults now.
Classy.....
....also typical for fanatics.
05-04-2016, 03:11 PM
I used to love V8 engines but a test drive in a Tesla changed all that. Our previous cars barely delivered 10-14 mpg so we didn't buy the Tesla due to some EV obsession but because it was the best car we could find to buy.
Goodness sake, here I thought you were a paid evangelist, but this EV Obsession.com shi%t is doing more harm to you than you would ever realize if rehabilitated over next 10-15 years. 
