Insane launches & Tesla App

fadkar said:

I'm expecting our P85D to be delivered by the end of the month and I can't keep my mind off of it! So instead of working and being productive, I came up with 2 questions for you guys:

1) This may sound silly, but is it bad for the motor to do insane mode launches? I know for ICE cars, it isn't good... But I don't know if the same rules apply here since ICE are a lot more complicated with more moving parts...

2) Can multiple drivers each download the Tesla app and connect to the car or is it limited to one phone only?

Thanks!

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The question of being hard on the motor to punch it versus slow and steady has come up a few times, and the general consensus seems to be that it doesn't hurt anything since there's no gears to shift, just a computer controlling how much power is being sent to the motor.

And you can have multiple phones using the Tesla app at the same time for the same car. My wife and I have both been connected simultaneously, even.

fadkar said:

1) This may sound silly, but is it bad for the motor to do insane mode launches? I know for ICE cars, it isn't good... But I don't know if the same rules apply here since ICE are a lot more complicated with more moving parts...

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The motor itself? Not so much. But the fixed reduction gear attached to the motor (and the tires, etc) - yes, this does put additional strain on those materials

dirkhh said:

The motor itself? Not so much. But the fixed reduction gear attached to the motor (and the tires, etc) - yes, this does put additional strain on those materials

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The entire drivetrain has an 8 year, infinite mile, warranty. Who cares?

(and in any case I suspect the reduction gear will easily outlive the car whatever you inflict on it)

mgboyes said:

The entire drivetrain has an 8 year, infinite mile, warranty. Who cares?

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I like to drive my car, not have it at the SC (where it is right now, sadly). Destroying things just because I am entitled to a free replacement rubs me the wrong way.

mgboyes said:

(and in any case I suspect the reduction gear will easily outlive the car whatever you inflict on it)

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I'm sure you know more about the effect of massive torque on reduction gears than I do. Looking at the forces on the flanks of the gears I would be surprised if they wouldn't suffer from metal fatigue at some point, but maybe that will take much longer than I think.

dirkhh said:

I like to drive my car, not have it at the SC (where it is right now, sadly). Destroying things just because I am entitled to a free replacement rubs me the wrong way.

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If the reduction gear is destroyed from insane launches, then it has a design flaw and should be corrected. You would not be stealing from Tesla "just because".

Having said that, I wouldn't worry about it. It shouldn't cause issues, but if it does...well...there's that warranty...

Certainly reduction gear sets have been designed for much more torque/horsepower than what the Model S motors put out. So, the question becomes how much safety factor did Tesla build into the gears used in the Model S. If they put gears in that could potentially withstand many times the torque than what the Model S gives it then there is probably not much chance any number of insane launches is going to do it any harm.

how is it not good for ICE cars? the car was clearly designed for insane mode hence the button and Tesla quoting 0-60 in 3.2 seconds....

fadkar said:

I'm expecting our P85D to be delivered by the end of the month and I can't keep my mind off of it! So instead of working and being productive, I came up with 2 questions for you guys:

1) This may sound silly, but is it bad for the motor to do insane mode launches? I know for ICE cars, it isn't good... But I don't know if the same rules apply here since ICE are a lot more complicated with more moving parts...

2) Can multiple drivers each download the Tesla app and connect to the car or is it limited to one phone only?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

fiksegts said:

how is it not good for ICE cars? the car was clearly designed for insane mode hence the button and Tesla quoting 0-60 in 3.2 seconds....

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I think that the real harm to ICE cars comes from having to rev the engine and drop the clutch to get the best launch times (assuming a manual, as the good Lord intended). That does produce the best launch times, but it will eat up lifespan on components.

Eclectic said:

I think that the real harm to ICE cars comes from having to rev the engine and drop the clutch to get the best launch times (assuming a manual, as the good Lord intended). That does produce the best launch times, but it will eat up lifespan on components.

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I wouldn't worry about it on the Tesla.

And I wouldn't worry about it on a well engineered, warmed up ICE either. Just look at this - 50 launch control launches on a 911 in a row:

EarlyAdopter said:

I wouldn't worry about it on the Tesla.

And I wouldn't worry about it on a well engineered, warmed up ICE either. Just look at this - 50 launch control launches on a 911 in a row:

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Heh. Except the reason the narrator made such a big deal out of it is precisely because the Porsche is extraordinary in this regard. Most cars refuse to do more than a handful of repeated launches.

I haven't tried but I suspect that a P85D can't do that many launches, either. I'm guessing that it would first overheat and limit power then run out of battery.

Frankly, I would be more concerned about the battery or components in the battery. Contactors come to mind.

dirkhh said:

I like to drive my car, not have it at the SC (where it is right now, sadly). Destroying things just because I am entitled to a free replacement rubs me the wrong way.

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My point about the warranty is that it does not contain an exclusion or get-out relating to excessive use of insane mode. If Tesla were concerned about drivetrain wear they would have written something into the warranty.

On lots of ICE cars the launch control feature comes with lots of caveats about excessive use voiding warranty e.g. I believe the Nissan GTR.

But for example a Porsche 911 Turbo S can happily do launch control launches all day long back to back (someone even did a test of this recently and did about 50 in a row). They asked Porsche for a comment and they basically said that such use was clearly extreme, but that it would not impact the car's warranty.

I think the reality is that in most cars Launch Control is bolted on as a sales feature and to enable the manufacturers to make performance claims much better than they otherwise could. But there are a very small number of cars where you really can get the stated performance off the line, any time you want, and the P85D (and the Porsche Turbo S) are two examples of that.

billarnett said:

I haven't tried but I suspect that a P85D can't do that many launches, either. I'm guessing that it would first overheat and limit power then run out of battery.

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I've not tried 50, but I know I've done a dozen within a 20 minute window.

fiksegts said:

how is it not good for ICE cars?

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A couple of cars that I am familiar with come to mind:

Nissan GTR
Mitsubishi Evolution
Subaru STi

The early GTR specifically voided warranties if launch mode was used. The Evolution VIII and IX would eat clutches and front diffs if launched repeatedly (and would not be covered under warranty if damaged). The STi would eat its clutch or center e-differential if launched repeatedly (also won't be covered under the warranty).

I punch it all the time in my S85. 8 year unlimited mile warranty on the motor + drive line.

PUNCH IT!