Hello from Austin

Welcome.

I think a lot of it is because it is electric but it's also just a great car.

It is really difficult to separate out what factors make this car incredible outside of it being electric. It is not just the general features of the electric car (some of which you have mentioned), but rather the execution of these attributes and the resultant ownership and driving experience. Having some prior experience with EVs, the Model S really stands out on how well it takes advantage of the electric attributes. The comparison has been made so many times that it is a bit cliche, but it really is like the first iPhone. Sure, there were blackberries, and palm devices etc before them, but the iPhone changed things because of the way it executed the smartphone, and blew open the true potential of the platform beyond just a phone that could receive emails, etc. Sure, not everyone got it at first, and many held on to their blackberries until the bitter end, but in rather short order, the iPhone platform became the new standard. Sure, Samsung, google, amazon, etc have produced different versions of it, but they are still spawned from iPhone at their core. The iPhone, and the model S, represent those branch points of evolution where an entirely new species is born. The model S, with its phone app that accomplishes much more by virtue of the vehicle being electric than most gas-powered vehicles, the range, the acceleration, the constant connectivity, the firmware updates, etc really takes advantage of the EV platform, much better than others on the market. Sure, there is the incredible safety record, driving experience, very sexy styling (which still has people snapping pictures in traffic and yelling across the street to ask me what car I am driving - almost 2 years later), and the incredible amount of interior space, but still these would not be the same if it were an ICE.

In summary, it's not just an EV. Its an entirely different species of vehicle.

Twiglett said:

Been lurking for a while now and have been driving electric for a while (Leaf).
Its been interesting, one thing I am not sure of with all the reviews I read for the Model S. How much of the raving is just because its electric?
All of the silence, acceleration, massively reduced maintenance etc is all obvious - this is your first electric vehicle.
Its the "what else" part that has me fascinated.

We are waiting for more real information on Model X before signing up - really want to be a two electric car family, but need the extra internal height of the X (for a pair of Mastiffs!)

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Welcome Twiglett!

I drove a Leaf for 2 years (My lease ended in August, so I picked up a BMW i3 to hold me over until the Model X is delivered). The enthusiasm about the Model S is because it simply is an amazing vehicle to experience and the experience I've had with Tesla in all aspects has been so superior to the experience I've had with any other car maker. The Leaf was a great car and I really enjoy my i3, but they simply don't come close to the overall driving experience and total experience that I get with my Model S.

As Twiddler stated, it really is a different species of vehicle. A simple way to put it is that my opinion of the Model S is it's almost like a magic carpet that glides across the road and transports you to a whole different level of experience in transportation. I characterize the Leaf and the i3 as great cars for what they are and they are also entirely different experiences compared to driving an ICE vehicle, but there are compromises that irk me about the Leaf and the i3 that are just not there with the Model S. The are not the magic carpets that the Model S is. Driving the Leaf and the i3 are great experiences, but driving the Model S (Especially the P85+ that I have) is an otherworldly almost out of body experience at times.

I don't rave about the Model S because it's electric. I rave about it because my opinion is that it is simply the best car on the planet. It's all the things put together that make it so and the electric drivetrain is an important component to the package, but it's not the only factor.

Twiglett said:

Been lurking for a while now and have been driving electric for a while (Leaf).
Its been interesting, one thing I am not sure of with all the reviews I read for the Model S. How much of the raving is just because its electric?
All of the silence, acceleration, massively reduced maintenance etc is all obvious - this is your first electric vehicle.
Its the "what else" part that has me fascinated.

We are waiting for more real information on Model X before signing up - really want to be a two electric car family, but need the extra internal height of the X (for a pair of Mastiffs!)

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Welcome! If you're interested and haven't done a test drive I could offer one. Though since I am in San Antonio it may be easier to go to their Gallery there in Austin.

You should really test drive the Model S if you have not, for the very least so you can understand what you are in for.

Twiglett said:

Thank you for those interesting responses!
We went to the Austin Drive Electric event (in the Leaf of course) and spoke to a couple of the Tesla owners there.
One of them said it was "Car 2.0" which was a what really got me looking so much closer.
Having feeling like I have almost become an electric car evangelist, its funny hearing statements like that, because I say the same things about driving electric compared to ICE.
I know there is a test drive event coming up soon, will have to try it out in person.

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I would like to ask, why wait? You can call the gallery in Austin or simply have tesla call you from their website. They can setup a date and time and you can specify you want to drive the Performance or the 85 or 60. And its in a mall so its not like your day will be wasted.

I say don't wait, sign up online tonight and get a ride in.

The ride is only about 15-30 minutes if that, but you will get a real feel for the power and they should let you on the highway, etc. You'll be glad you did

Welcome to the forum - your comments about becoming an EV-evangelist resonate so much with me. I took a lease of a Fiat 500e about 10 months ago and sold my Porsche. My friends were teasing me about being the only person on the planet who would trade in a Porsche for a Fiat, but I have to say, I really bought into the whole EV ecosystem. Now I am working on convincing my wife to get rid of her 20 mpg Mercedes R-class and get her into a Model S 85D. Shouldn't be that hard to convince her...

Thanks,
Lars