Tesla Owner With Most Miles Talks Benefits Of A Tesla Model S
Originally published on EV Obsession.
Those wondering how well the Tesla Model S can hold up to the rigors of intensive use will probably be interested to hear what a physician by the name of Dante Richardson has to say, as the resident of Washington, DC, has driven his Model S over 120,000 miles… in just the last 2 years.
That figure means that Richardson has — as far as is publicly known — driven his Model S more than any other individual owner in the world. I suppose that it might be worth listening to what he has to say — just maybe. 🙂
With that intention in mind, he was recently interviewed by the folks over at Tesla’s blog. Here are some highlights:
After 120,000 miles, Richardson is well accustomed to life in Model S. “I’m always in the car!” He lists acceleration, handling, cold-weather performance, and storage space as his car’s standout benefits. But the killer advantage is a driving life that no longer revolves around gasoline.
Richardson has a Volvo C70 hardtop convertible that is hardly ever driven. “I love my Volvo, but every time I take it out of my garage and I get a whiff of the fumes, it catches me by surprise because I’m not doing it every day…. It’s not a subtle reminder.” When he takes the Volvo to the gas station, he forgets which side his car’s tank is on.
He has no such trouble with the Model S. Its fuel is electricity, which never smells or splashes on his shoes. And it never needs him to find it at a gas station – it comes right to his home. “Over the long term,” says Richardson, “it’s really so pleasant to wake up to a car that is full of fuel.”
Lmao. Yeah, I’ve wondered about that — after getting some distance from the gas and diesel smell of gas stations, what do electric vehicle owners end up thinking of such places?
Commenting on Tesla’s Supercharger network of fast-charging stations, he noted: “It’s mind boggling how much things have changed. Never in my greatest imagination would I have thought that Tesla would have made this much progress with the Superchargers this quickly.”
Considering that the network is still being built out, it’s set to only get better (more comprehensive), it bears reminding — improving that aspect of Tesla ownership even more no doubt, one of its many advantages. Though, I’ll be curious what’ll happen with the stations if the Model 3 does end up seeing “huge” sales — will the experience diminish? Or will station buildout accelerate?
Overall, about what I expected to hear — beyond the high cost of repairs (if you need them), I haven’t really heard much negative about the Model S. The customer base seems to be pretty satisfied for now. In fact, no owners are happier with their cars than Model S owners. Any of our readers care to chime in?
Image Credit: Tesla Motors/Dante Richardson
Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.
Latest CleanTechnica.TV Video
CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.
