Here’s the latest reader question, along with my reply! Â
Frederick writes: Recent visit to wife’s braggy bro-in law in Phoenix. He showed me his two new 2 motor Teslas. Cost $180,000 they did. Took ride.”Faster than a Dodge Hellcat,” he bragged, as he hit the gas . . .er electric pedal. I think: Where is the heart-pounding V8 roar? It sounds like a Singer. I ask: How long between charges and he says 175 miles. I ask who pays for electricity. He says Tesla I guess. I point out that – no – I help pay for it. I ask: You wanna race from Phoenix to Nashville – your Tesla vs my 2014 Hyundai Accent? He says ok. I say at speed limit; he says ok.
We take off; he gets to 70 in 4 seconds. I take 12 seconds; he’s ahead by about 750 ft. We’re both going 70 on the highway. At about 170 miles, he begins to sweat; looks for a charging station and just pulls in at 175 miles. Hooks up and charges for 30-40 minutes. My Hyundai flies by at 70 mph still has half a tank of gas. By the time he charged to 75 percent I am 30 miles ahead still going 70. Another 175 miles he needed charge number two – another 30 minutes. I get 10 gallons gas in 5 minutes and head out again. He sits there 25 more minutes while I get 30 more miles ahead. Repeat till Nashville. I bust him and think I keep Hyundai. True story!
My reply: Indeed. And if you’d been running 80 – routine on the highway today – the gap would have been even wider because the Tesla would have had to stop sooner and probably needed to charge at least one more time to complete the trip. Either that or slow down.
Either way, you get there sooner.
EVs waste time, in addition to money.
And – yeah – the Tesla S is extremely quick. But – as you say – it is an almost boring kind of quickness because there’s nothing much to do and little to hear. The elevators that take you up to the 100th floor are also quick.
Who cares?
. . . .
Got a question about cars, Libertarian politics – or anything else? Click on the “ask Eric” link and send ’em in!
If you like what you’ve found here please consider supporting EPautos.Â
We depend on you to keep the wheels turning!Â
Our donate button is here.
 If you prefer not to use PayPal, our mailing address is:
EPautos
721 Hummingbird Lane SE
Copper Hill, VA 24079
PS: Get an EPautos magnet or sticker or coaster in return for a $20 or more one-time donation or a $10 or more monthly recurring donation. (Please be sure to tell us you want a magnet or sticker or coaster – and also, provide an address, so we know where to mail the thing!)
My eBook about car buying (new and used) is also available for your favorite price – free! Click here. If that fails, email me at EPeters952@yahoo.com and I will send you a copy directly!
brother in law has a tesla model 3 with the higher trim. he left from detroit to fl. He left 1 day early and arrived 1 day after
The Demonrats are going to do away with petroleum. It should be a wonderful life. You only need a good saw, an axe, a splitter and a place to hunt and live and take that crash course in building a dugout will you can get a cabin or, if you’re in the right part of the country, make a good old mud house. I don’t know how many coons, rabbits, etc it takes to make winter clothes. I suppose everyone has an idea of what to make to boil water. I suppose if you can get far enough away from the cops or whatever they’ll call them, you might find a place to dig some coal. You can make fuel from coal so look for a good old diesel and hope to find a place that’s cool and dark and has lots of leftover tires. Of course everyone will be looking for the same thing.
You can make ethanol with enough work and that’s one hell of a lot of work. Don’t worry though, no doubt Bo Jiden will make sure everyone has a cold dark winter, even those in the south Pacific. Govt. doesn’t play by the same rules.
I was just thinking the same thing a couple days ago. Guess it’s going to get very expensive first.
Great story Frederic and all the replies, good stuff.
Eric,
I looked at the Teslas, both the Model 3 and the Model S. Prior to retiring, my previous employer partnered with them; they gave us lots of business through the years. Because of the connection, I have an interest in Tesla in particular, and EVs in general. I’ve always been fascinated with EVs too; I may be weird, but I think that they’re cool.
Anyway, prior to buying my gently used, like new 2015 Ford Focus (wanted to get one before Ford stopped making ’em), I looked at the Tesla 3 and the S. I simply could not JUSTIFY the huge expenditure for either Tesla; even the 3 costs 2.5-3 times what I paid for my Focus! For me, it made more sense to get a car that offers 70%-80% of the performance that the Teslas do, while paying about 1/3 the price. For me, it was a no-brainer!
You know, even if the OP had traveled 70 while is BIL did 80, he probably still would’ve BEATEN his BIL! Oh, and since when do Teslas only get 175 miles per charge? Even the base Model 3 offers more than that…
Anyway, as much as I like EVs, they’re not quite ready for prime time. Even the hardcore EV advocates acknowledge this.
I would take a Hellcat over a Tesla any day!
The Hellcat is cheaper AND BETTER too! Plus, it makes lots of noise that pisses off the Environazis… 🙂