syswei

The prices they quote, like base $35k, are before incentives. With decent options, a $50k car would cost 42.5k initially, but eventually 50k. A 35k stripper would theoretically be 27.5k net, but since they aren't going to sell strippers for now, by the time someone can actually buy one, the federal benefit might be on the way out. The way it would work is that IF Tesla hits the 200k US cumulative unit mark in March 2018, the credit would be reduced to 50% in 2H18, 25% in 1H19, and zero beyond mid-2019.

BTW if and when MB gets around to introducing an S560e in the US, I expect the credit to be around $5800, versus the $3k tax credit for the S550e, due to a higher capacity battery.

Some states have there own incentives, for instance in CT up to $3k, but not for Tesla since it lacks "licensed Connecticut franchised new automobile dealerships"...that is the traditional dealership lobby at work (Tesla locations are all company-owned, not franchised, and in some states Tesla can't open sales locations).

syswei

Eventually the S and X will get the higher-density battery cells from the NV Gigafactory, which initially are going into the Model 3. I've no idea when, but it will mean lower weight and higher range choices.

LovinMercedes

Well, I did it, gave my deposit today.

Tesla S P100D

Red Exterior
White Interior
Sunroof
21" Grey Turbine Wheels
Dark Ash Wood
Enhanced Autopilot

Delivery timetable end of September.

I think this is going to turn out to be a wise decision and a lot of fun for two years, given my goal of just wanting a change after 30+ years of my S and SL's, not to mention the countless other classes for my wife and kids.

syswei

CONGRATS and enjoy it!

MTrauman

Lovin,

That is awesome!

I am looking forward to your impressions once you get the new ride.

You are sure making the ground shake on this site.

Now we just can't tell WEBSRFR you ordered a Tesla since he will predict that Tesla will now for sure take over the world when Lovin orders a Tesla.

LovinMercedes

It is funny you said that because I actually thought about not doing this because of him and that association. UGH.

Tesla guys were great to work with, all young, very energetic and passionate about the brand.

Thanks for your good wishes. I think this will be a good choice. It will be different for sure.

Streamliner

I love the red Tesla uses. Can't wait to hear your long term reviews and comparison to the S550.
Be safe in your new rocket ship and please don't forget about us!

LovinMercedes

Thanks.

I went this morning as they drove up a red and white one this morning for me to see. They also had a Obsidian Black with white interior. I changed my order to the Obsidian Black with white interior.

I love the red color, but I just thought the inside, with the white and black combination, and then the red outside, had too many colors playing against each other. The Obsidian Black with the white interior was just so sleek and sharp.

That is where I ended up. Below is a picture of the Obsidian Black just like my car, with the same wheel design, except mine will be 21's, not the 19's in this picture.

Wolfman

Congratulations on your new car choice!

I am considering getting a Tesla P100D as well as a car for the company even though I am not crazy about their designs. I just wouldn't mind having an EV but there are very limited choices at the moment.

The new and unexpected obstacle for me has become the interior. Now that they dropped they leather interior in favor of something like foamy MB-Tex, I just can't see this being worth $164k.

What are your thoughts on the interior change?

LovinMercedes

In my humble opinion, if you're looking to compare the interior of the Tesla to our MB's, there are 100 reasons not to make the purchase.

My immediate reaction when I heard about the deletion of the leather, was exactly the same as yours. After getting over that initial reaction, and looking at the product, it actually looks pretty good. From a visual point of view the only way to tell the difference is to feel it.

For what they have done, they are actually created a very good product, and it's very well put together on the car.

I chose to overlook this, in addition to the many other issues when comparing it to the quality of my Mercedes interior.

Overall even with the new seat material, I thought they did a pretty decent job on the inside. It looks very nice and feels comfortable, but no, it's not leather, and it's not comparable to my MB.

Wolfman

No doubt, comparing the Tesla to an S-Class is not possible without feeling downgraded. I like tech in cars and really like the benefits and potential of EV's (without trying to go into any philosophical discussions).

These cars drive great, have fantastic acceleration and feel very solid and planted.
And I really want to like them but then there are things that bother me and I am wondering if they would quickly sour me on the car.

Couple examples:
We have a Tesla for the weekend with 700 some miles on it. The Driver-side mirror already unfolds only half-ways, requiring me to open the window and push it into position.
Passenger door has constant wind noise when the window is fully closed. I found that lowering the window a quarter inch makes the noise go away.

Nothing major but somewhat concerning on a new-ish car. But then again, it's a demo.

Love the storage space but when the driver seat is set for me, I can literally not sit down in the rear. It's tighter than a C-Class. Not a big issue but surprising.

Now for the tech a couple of surprises for me.
The auto-steering does a better much job holding the car in the center of the lane than the S-Class. Cruising and passing are top-notch.
Until my wife complained of the left-right jerky motion. Unlike the S-Class, the Tesla makes constant left-right adjustments to keep the car in center. As a driver it feels fine, but she feels that the cars constant left-right motions goes into her back. That was a surprise. It only happened during the auto-pilot. Turned off she was fine.
This is likely due to he fact that the suspension is rather stiff and the steering wheel movement can be felt easily.

The other surprise the "almost" complete lack of a blind spot warning.

So, overall, I am less certain how to proceed.

syswei

More test-driving? I've heard of people taking a demo for as long as 5 days (weekdays).

The blind-spot was a disappointment for me as well, but I found that always keeping the rear-view camera in the upper part of the display somewhat ameliorates that concern...the viewpoint is exceptionally wide.

The windnoise could be an upper seal, in principle fixable by the service center.

While overall fit and finish and luxury are wanting and the car is under-engineered in many respects, I personally really like having it as one of the cars in the family. It is primarily my wife's, and she says it is the "best purchase decision" she's ever made. That's partly because she commutes to NYC in it 4 days a week, and the autopilot makes the trip "restful" for her (whereas Distronic Plus on our 2015 S550 makes her "scared" on the same somewhat winding small highway)

Streamliner

Well, black with white, OK. Not very exciting to me, but it's your car. Saw a red one with a solid steel roof yesterday, stunning. Of course, they have now moved to all glass roofs. In 2017, how ordinary! Oh well.

Try as I may, I guess I am locked in with MB. Even though I BMW (BITxH, moan, whine) about several things they do, there is just too much that I love about their cars and no other brand can give me as good or better ride, comfort, safety and security, compared to MB.

So, I'll just have to make do with a less than perfect S Class and an SL in a color that is not my favorite. I think they call these "first world problems."

Enjoy your new ride. I know up in the Bay Area, you'll instantly go from being looked down upon as an evil doer in your S550, to being worshiped as a savior of the planet, in your PC Tesla. I'm surprised they even allow a vehicle that internally combusts anything in The City. Anyway, I look forward to hearing all about your Tesla and I especially look forward to your next MB special order. Best of luck to you.

Socalsteve

Please explain this statement. Curious to know what the differences are...Thank you!

syswei

It is restful for her because Tesla's autopilot works pretty well, whether in traffic or not.

Whereas The S550 on the same route is partly on a 2-lane in each direction highway that can be a bit winding (speed limit is 50 in large parts, with some curves yellow-sign-cautioned lower). The 2015 S550 was more likely to go seriously astray.

Separately from her relaxing vs scary comment, another difference I've noticed is that Distronic Plus, at least ours, isn't very efficient in traffic...it will use more gas and more brake than most humans would. Tesla is better at traffic (and since light braking is regenerative there is a lot of energy recapture anyway and no brake wear in that situation).

Of course the 2018 W222 should show some improvements in semi-autonomous driving. OTOH Tesla is making improvements too (and can update over the air). There is no doubt in my mind that over a 3+ year ownership cycle, a 2018 W222 is going to have less-capable autonomous driving capability than a Tesla purchased at the same time. And to us that's a big plus, offsetting some of Tesla's negatvies.

Socalsteve

Thank you for the explanation!

I never take my hands off the wheel ( have nowhere else to put them ) so the going astray comment would not upset any passsenger of mine. The Distronic Plus does not feel as human like as I would like, so yes, you are correct regarding that. But, it still works. Drove from LA to San Fransisco to LA using only Distronic and I'm still here to talk about it.

I still think the infrastructure of EV is not even close to being realistic in the real world of driving. And, it's gonna get much worse when the Model 3 comes out...but that is for a different thread-chat-conversation.

Thanks again!

Wolfman

After reading countless comments that the Tesla's auto-pilot let's you drive hands-free forever, I was surprised that it actually wasn't. I got the same request in the display to hold the steering wheel like on the MB, albeit it was a slightly longer duration but then 3 times more annoying.
Plus driving today it set the max speed for auto-steer below the speed limit, which was worthless in traffic.That did go away later in the drive though as i tried again.

syswei

Not sure what that was about. My experience is that on local roads the Tesla autopilot will unfortunately cap you at 5 mph over the speed limit. But otoh AP isn't that great currently for local roads so I usually only use it very briefly...for instance if i want to fiddle with the stereo. On highways it doesn't seem capped, but the car will slow for some curves.

Overall me and my wife both prefer Tesla Autopilot (we have the older "AP1" hardware, pre-fall 2016) over MB Distronic Plus (in our 2015). There is no doubt that Telsa will beat MB to fuller (level 4/5) autonomy (at least in those states/countries that allow its use), and that you'll get an over the air upgrade to that capability with a 2017 Tesla...unlike I imagine a 2018 W222.

Streamliner

I'm sure we all look at other makes and models, giving thought to making a change, I know I do. But then, I start thinking about the things I would miss if I gave up my S550 or one of our other MB models. One of the things that always hits home, is the idea of safety in a bad crash and the 100+ years of experience MB has. Of course, much of this is now known technology that many other brands embrace, but I know that if I was given the choice of being in a serious crash in my S550 or a Model S, I wouldn't even have think about my answer.

There is something to be said for lineage and experience. MB has it, Tesla does not. As a matter of pure fact, Tesla has almost none, compared to other major car companies. I'm not saying that this automatically makes the Tesla unsafe, I'm just saying that when it comes to the safety of myself and my family, I feel MUCH safer knowing that many decades of experience in building rock solid, ultra safe vehicles is baked into a Mercedes-Benz, and that cannot be said for Tesla, or any other start up car company.

syswei

I pretty much agree, though my reasons differ slightly. On the one hand, Tesla has generally done exceptionally well on independent crash testing. But I also think they lack the full resources of an MB, and are also willing to be bleeding edge, with the risks that might entail. For example even the current AP2 hardware only includes 1 radar (plus a host of cameras, I think 8, and ultrasonic sensors)...I've read that some other companies think more radars are necessary for full autonomy. So if Tesla's Class 4 autonomous for highways is ready in say 2018, I'd feel less safe with it than being a year-one customer of the same capability from MB. But what if MB's isn't available until say 2022? If I want that capability sooner, Tesla is the answer, if I can live with its various shortcomings.

In our family we make room for both brands.

syswei

That's why, for most people, imo an EV makes more sense if a household also owns an ICE car.

Socalsteve

Yes, I believe that would work out much better.

But, when hip 30 somethings who rent in buildings and work in buildings that don't have charging capabilities start buying Model 3's...I envision a world of very long lines at public charging stations and Model 3's left along the side of the road dead.

Maybe a perfect side business would be to get a small truck, put a generator and a big fuel tank on it and drive from dead Tesla to dead Tesla charging them along the side of the road.

syswei

To the extent that happens...people without access to home or work charging...hopefully they'll know they're taking a bit of a chance on public charging availability and won't be too surprised if they have to endure considerable inconveniences until charging infrastructure hopefully catches up.

Our Tesla salesperson last year mentioned an apartment-dwelling friend of hers who visited the JFK airport Tesla supercharges weekly to get her fill.

Socalsteve

Does Tesla offer any kind of roadside assistance for people who are stranded because their batteries died?

Towing companies are gonna cash in on this!!!

I cannot imagine driving myself to an airport to charge my car!!! Especially such a busy airport as JFK. I live close to LAX and you could not pay me enough money to drive there.

syswei

I don't know. Such a situation pretty much calls for a tow to a charger.

BTW the Model S, like the W222, doesn't have a spare. But it doesn't come with runflats either. Some of the roadside assist vehicles apparently carry wheels mounted with tires, but if you don't get one then you may need a tow if you have a flat.