My second “real,” long drive on Autopilot (from Wroclaw to Berlin) demonstrated to me two places in which Autopilot is brilliantly lovable. These, imho, are the situations in which Autopilot is like collecting mushrooms in Mario Bros.
I first experienced Tesla Autopilot last year, as I wrote in my Tesla Model X review. It was certainly cool and interesting, and a bit nerve-racking. But that was a short test drive on a California highway — not real use.
Well, a few guys and I recently got our first Tesla Model S for an intercity Tesla shuttle service we’re launching here in Europe (… called Tesla Shuttle), and the Tesla includes Autopilot.
Kyle Field did a great job reviewing the Bolt, what I thought I’d do here is share some views on why we leased it and also give our hands-on impressions over the last 1,200 miles.
Along the way on the rebirth of the modern electric vehicle (EV), we’ve witnessed some “far out” and pretty wild projects. We also saw some of the world’s smartest folks pull together top engineers and brilliant ideas. Some of these companies and projects have threatened conventional carmakers inebriated with bottom line profits to the detriment of innovation. Sadly, some of the companies have fallen by the wayside, while other idle, waiting for the right moment to hopefully capitalize on the business sense of their leadership.
This summer “Kick Gas” — an electric vehicle promotion — aims to speed up the progress into electric, zero-emissions transport. Nissan is giving away free fuel to show more people what life without a gas tank can be like. This “Kick Gas” initiative is coming to several fueling locations in 5 US Northeast cities.
In a “Tesla Model 3 Countdown” series we’re running this month (and probably next), this is the last in-depth piece I planned to write of how the Tesla Model 3 compares to similar priced and sized gasmobiles. With all of these, I came into the project with an open mind about various objective specs that are important to many car buyers.
The reality of electric vehicles is that there are many more people who would love to drive an electric vehicle (EV) but aren’t doing so today for a number of reasons. Cost and range are the top 2 reasons, with charging being an issue for some buyers as well. The Chevy Bolt was the first mass-produced, widely available, affordable, long-range EV in the US that also happened to offer fast charging. Right on its heels is the Model 3.
BMW is perhaps the automaker most under threat from Tesla Motors. Its brand is about innovation, sporty design, and stellar performance — all in a sophisticated, premium package. Hmm, that sounds like Tesla too, doesn’t it?
Following up on the Tesla Model 3 vs Audi A3, Audi A4, Audi A5, Audi S3 fun, let’s dive into another lineup of premium-class sedans and hybrids that the Tesla Model 3 will compete against.
Doing things a bit differently this time, let’s jump into Lexus sales first. Sales of these 4 Lexus models added up to 119,369 in the US in 2016, about 55,000 more than the Audi A3, A4, and A5 combined (74,579). Combining all of these models, we’re up to nearly 200,000 premium sedan sales the Tesla Model 3 could steal some serious revenue from.
After visiting relatives and having coffee close by, I found two guys staring at the BMW i3. “It’s electric, isn’t it?” … “Yes, but this one has a gas range extender” … “Really? How does that work?”
