Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
2013 Tesla Model S Long-Term Road Test
Edmunds.com
Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,315
2013 Tesla Model S Long-Term Road Test
Edmunds long-term update of the 2013 Tesla Model S includes discussion of the Model S's adjustable regenerative braking.
0
Comments
Possibly the bigger issue here is that driving with aggressive regenerative braking causes us to change the way we drive. Or maybe it should cause us to change the way we drive. I see another blog post coming. Thanks for the feedback.
Josh
Try not to lift your foot completely when you need to slow down. So far i have no issues with this mechanism.
If you want to test without having to have someone out of the car, just turn on the picture of the car by pressing the T at the top of the screen. You will note that this picture of the car (actually any picture on the screen) actually shows what the car is doing - what lights are on, what doors are open, and, importantly, when the brakes are on.
Now, you can have someone sit in the passenger seat and see when the lights go on or not. Note - they don't go on unless you are decelerating pretty rapidly - at least on my car. I'd want the lights on.
99.9% sure my 2011 works that way though...
Your concerns about the brake lights is honestly more of an issue with how all cars handle their brake lights rather than the Tesla specifically. Coming from the video game world, I've wondered why brake lights aren't analog so as to match the analog input of the brake pedal itself. My idea is to have the main tail lights start very dim and get brighter the harder the brake is pressed. At the same time, the center "light bar" in the rear would only be lit up (at full brightness though) on the outer edges with light braking, and then the farther you push the brake pedal the farther inwards from the sides the "light bar" would move inwards, but would be fully light up with the brake pedal at "only" around maybe 75% or so. For example, it could look like this with light braking @, and would be fully lit up with heavier braking. Considering most "light bars" are made up of individual lights anyway, I can't see this being that difficult/expensive to implement...
take the tesla and an 'equivalent' rival, drive them side by side on a closed course at ,say, 60mph, then at an agreed upon time roll of the throttle. if the standard car needs brake application, hence triggering it's brake lights, to decelerate at the same rate as the tesla then i think there is nothing wrong with the tesla's brake light activation.
Seems like some people just have to find something to complain about but it's a safe bet Tesla was forced to do this due to Federal Safety Standards.
Case in point, #1, you didn't need to have your wife drive up and down the street. You can tap the Tesla logo (or the Controls button) and see a live representation of your car, including when the brake like are on.
#2, when you drive the Model S, you very rarely use the brakes, and when you do, it's at very low speeds just to come to a complete stop. In every driving, you modulate your right foot. Let up gently, the car slows smoothly, lightly regenerating, no brake lights. Let up aggressively, full regen and brake lights.
My friend also has trouble learning to drive it correctly, because he's in the habit of completely and abruptly lifting the accelerator pedal. But I expect more from people that review cars professionally.
Thank you though, I'm enjoying reading your comments and agree with most of them!