Am I the only not-yet-a-Tesla-owner who is befuddled by all of this boo-hooing about having to drive your dream car extra miles, for free? At what point in ownership does driving a Tesla become such a miserable chore? :wink:
Boo-hooing, eh? Let's see if we can remove some of that befuddlement:
Being stuck at a level 2 charger in Podunk while paying for overpriced, substandard lodging and food because Tesla can't meet its own targets is not driving the car.
Adding wear and tear and wasting time and incurring additional risk by having to drive through Tornado Alley or worse, the Bible Belt (I kid, I kid) because, for example, little to no progress has been made toward southwestern I-10 SCs is not driving the car in a feasible manner.
By the time you are an owner (good choice, btw), you will find that *driving* the car is the best part about owning a Tesla.
Dealing with the chronic disconnects between what's communicated/not communicated and reality is *not* the best part about owning a Tesla - whether for SCs/lack of consistent SC progress, service inconsistencies, communication disconnects, ESA per-issue fees, B pillar/headliner failures, or any number of other generally unnecessary but frustrating details that in the end cost owners time and money.
This SC stuff is just one straw
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Driving the car is what makes any of the above even vaguely tolerable. But free? Noooooo. Light several $100 bills on fire per week* to play in this arena. *Then* it's free
* Caveat being the stellar opportunities that will be available "soon" via CPO cars. For example, in 2-3 years, some of the higher mileage Ludicrous-equipped cars will be available for $35K +/-. That's 0-60mph in 2.8s for the price of a (insert nasty ICE vehicle here)!!! And by then (bonus), most of this kvetching about SCs should have shifted from buildout malaise to usage malaise. That will be so much better
The future is bright, by any measure. But right now, contrary to what one has been led to believe via the SC progress maps, it may take an extra few days yet to make that round trip. No big deal for retirees or single people, maybe.
Driving the car is great. Explaining the delays referenced above to the wife, who will note several times that she only has so many vacation days and that the SC maps seemed much more complete when deciding to buy the car, or explaining not for the first time that we're not there yet to a small child... yeah, not so much.