If You Could Order Again, What Options Would You Get

[djp]

Hi! New to the forums here and placing my order for Model S. Can you please explain why dual chargers are a must? I am near Toronto.

In Canada we're lucky to have Sun Country Highway, which has been installing high amp charge stations across the country. Have a look at their website or PlugShare for locations.

EV Trip Planner - Sun Country Highway
PlugShare - EV Charging Station Map - Find a place to charge your car!

With a single on-board charger you're limited to 40 amps, even at stations that can supply double that. With dual chargers you can use the full 70 or 80 amps, which reduces the charge time in half. It makes a big difference when traveling. Recharging over a leisurely 2-3 hour lunch is tolerable, but being stuck for 4-6 hours waiting to charge is painful on a long distance road trip.

Superchargers and CHAdeMO fast chargers will help on the major highways, and don't require dual chargers, but their coverage will always be thin compared to 70/80 amp Level 2 stations.

 

[benemac]

We talked to an Owner Advisor today. Very nice and helpful. The one thing that threw me though is when we went over options, she said to drop the Dual Chargers. She implied that it's their intent for a 60 to make it to all the popular locations in the US. If that's true and if "DJP" is saying that we can use CHAdeMOs without dual chargers, than this will only enhance the possibilities. And I currently would love that El Centro supercharger open by the end of the year. It would make our trip in a 60 a lot more comfortable. And I thought I saw they would build one between here and Tucson, so there's a possibility too. Anyway, it's funny how the store says to get the dual and the advisor says not to bother. That's what makes this process so interesting. But we are placing our order tomorrow night. Thanks to all for the valuable help.

 

[djp]

CHAdeMO is Level 3 DC which bypasses the on-board chargers (similar to Supercharging), so no you won't need dual chargers to use it.

I'd still recommend getting dual chargers if you're planning to travel. Superchargers won't be on all routes and could mean traveling 100 miles out of your way to get to one.

The 80A L2 stations at $2,000 are cheap enough that you, or a group of Model S owners, can sponsor one in a location you need - tougher to do with Superchargers.

 

[gg_got_a_tesla]

@benemac, if you have access to better CHAdeMO density than high-amperage AC charging stations, you'd still have to spring for the $1,000 CHAdeMO adapter (that's still in testing apparently). So, need to factor that in.

 

[jerry33]

Twin chargers saved four hours on my last trip to Nebraska. They don't really add that much to the price of the car, and when you need them you'll be glad you got them.

 

[Doug_G]

Definitely not regretting the twin chargers. Stupid expensive to get them later.

I just wish I could've got a P85 PLUS. They weren't available back when I got my car.

 

[Blathering1]

I went with pretty much everything except the 3rd row seats (not needed), and the stereo upgrade (better $$ aftermarket like Reus), and extra leather/Yacht floor (not missed).

For us the dual charger has been useful when needed... with my HPWC. Before heading out, I know I can add 58 mph to the battery. So if you keep your battery less than 70-90%, and decide to head out for a weekend trip on a sat AM, you can more quickly add SoC. Charging is still the voodoo with EVs, I would definitely recommend the 85 battery, the dual chargers, and a bunch of adapters until we have a full borne charging infrastructure.

The cold weather package has been less critical for us, I got it for the rear seat heaters, since you can pre-heat the cabin with the phone app. We are in a mild climate (NC), so YMMV.

Pano roof-- on a nice day, it is nice to run pano open vs the windows for the noise, and the backseat gains needed headroom.. Would recommend.

Paint Armor-- suggest aftermarket for this.

Air suspension-- I user it daily for my steep driveway. On occasion I have been happy to have the ability to boost height for a bad road, a bad driveway, etc.

 

[MrPinrel]

I have the black leather seats with the carbon fiber. some people have said that piano black shows finger prints really easily, and I thought the wooden finish with the black leather didn't look right. so far I am really happy with the combo. in Kansas City it gets hot but if you cool the car with the phone ahead of time it is fine.

 

[Mayhemm]

CHAdeMO is Level 3 DC which bypasses the on-board chargers (similar to Supercharging), so no you won't need dual chargers to use it.

I'd still recommend getting dual chargers if you're planning to travel. Superchargers won't be on all routes and could mean traveling 100 miles out of your way to get to one.

The 80A L2 stations at $2,000 are cheap enough that you, or a group of Model S owners, can sponsor one in a location you need - tougher to do with Superchargers.

If you are planning on getting a 60, you won't need dual chargers for CHAdeMO (as has been mentioned) but I believe you will need Supercharging enabled, which is optional on a 60kWh car.

As gg_got_a_tesla says, you'll also need the $1000, non-existent CHAdeMO adapter. And who knows when that will actually be available.

 

[benemac]

Well we placed our order in today. Surprisingly, my husband emailed me this afternoon at work suggesting we go with the 85. When he looked at the issues of getting to San Diego with a 60, he wanted some security that we could make it. We are passing on the dual chargers. Our trips probably won't need dual charging capability. And with the 240V going into the garage, the dual charger isn't going to do us any good. Looking at the Supercharger map, we feel confident that by the end of next year, we will have a great infrastructure to get to the next pitstop. Overnight, the parcel shelf became part of the car for no extra charge. It's a small thing, but I'm sort of glad we waited a day to put the order in. Below are the car specs. We have aftermarket paint armor or similar and tinted windows coming. I can't wait to enjoy our new car!


Thanks for all the help and on to a new search to decide on extended warranty or service. Here I come Arizona Chapter!


S85 | White/Textile Seats | Obeche Gloss | Tech | Parking Sensors | Pano | Center Console (on order) | Parcel Shelf (now included with all orders)
| Ordered 6.3.14 | Confirmed: Soon | VIN: ? | Delivery: Late September

 

[maxwells]

Congratulations!

 

[Rheazombi]

Yay! Congrats. And free parcel shelf too!

Late September tho, that's brutal!

 

[Gizmotoy]

That's cool about the parcel shelf. There have been situations where I wish I had it, but never often enough that it was worth buying.

 

[Mayhemm]

Congratulations on your order! With this car there isn't really a bad configuration.


I have to ask though, I don't suppose the "free" parcel shelf applies retroactively to existing owners? I couldn't justify $250 for the shelf at the time of my order, but I'd take a free one.

Unlike most things, the retrofit should be pretty painless. :wink:

 

[gg_got_a_tesla]

Congratulations on your order! With this car there isn't really a bad configuration.


I have to ask though, I don't suppose the "free" parcel shelf applies retroactively to existing owners? I couldn't justify $250 for the shelf at the time of my order, but I'd take a free one.

Unlike most things, the retrofit should be pretty painless. :wink:

You could try asking but, I doubt you'd get lucky there; it's still listed for sale on the Tesla accessories site:

Shop Tesla Gear Model S Parcel Shelf

 

[benemac]

Congratulations on your order! With this car there isn't really a bad configuration.


I have to ask though, I don't suppose the "free" parcel shelf applies retroactively to existing owners? I couldn't justify $250 for the shelf at the time of my order, but I'd take a free one.

Unlike most things, the retrofit should be pretty painless. :wink:

When we noticed this change from one day to the next, I posed the question about this happening. What if after we placed our order, a part becomes part of a package or is included, would they honor the new price or add something that now comes with a car. She said they wouldn't be able to do that. I truly thought they could since the car hasn't been paid for in total yet, but I guess not.
We even thought about holding off on submitting the order to see if anything else changed, but we didn't want the car delivery become later. We're planning a road trip as soon as we get it.

Thanks all all for your congrats. I look forward to being an active contributor in this forum. My husband too. And he only lurks on Facebook, so it's huge for him to participate. .

 

[rjcbox]

"...we go with the 85. When he looked at the issues of getting to San Diego with a 60, he wanted some security that we could make it. We are passing on the dual chargers..."

That's an excellent choice - better tires and Supercharging included. Congrats!

 

[DITB]

In Canada we're lucky to have Sun Country Highway, which has been installing high amp charge stations across the country. Have a look at their website or PlugShare for locations.

EV Trip Planner - Sun Country Highway
PlugShare - EV Charging Station Map - Find a place to charge your car!

With a single on-board charger you're limited to 40 amps, even at stations that can supply double that. With dual chargers you can use the full 70 or 80 amps, which reduces the charge time in half. It makes a big difference when traveling. Recharging over a leisurely 2-3 hour lunch is tolerable, but being stuck for 4-6 hours waiting to charge is painful on a long distance road trip.

Superchargers and CHAdeMO fast chargers will help on the major highways, and don't require dual chargers, but their coverage will always be thin compared to 70/80 amp Level 2 stations.

What finally made the dual charger choice for me was the retrofit price being 2.5X or so of the factory installed price. That being said, I'm in Hong Kong, where the charging situation is not only different, but to a great extent unresolved. The uncertainty itself is enough for me to fit it, just to have it. I won't get leather, fog lights, performance, 21" nor sound system (see specs below), yet the pano roof was one of the items I added after talking to TM:

- The noise and leaking problem has been solved long time ago
- More headroom in the back (I'm 6'2")
- Wow factor when trying to "sell" the car to a friend, adds the dot over the i after they see the touch screen, blow back in the seats when accelerating - then look straight up into the sky through the open roof
- Roof racks (well, might not ever need them, no skiing in Hong Kong yet)
- Look of the car from the outside
- High attenuation of light and heat
- Ease of cooling the cabin with hardly any power use
- Resale value

 

[benemac]

What finally made the dual charger choice for me was the retrofit price being 2.5X or so of the factory installed price. That being said, I'm in Hong Kong, where the charging situation is not only different, but to a great extent unresolved. The uncertainty itself is enough for me to fit it, just to have it. I won't get leather, fog lights, performance, 21" nor sound system (see specs below), yet the pano roof was one of the items I added after talking to TM:

- The noise and leaking problem has been solved long time ago
- More headroom in the back (I'm 6'2")
- Wow factor when trying to "sell" the car to a friend, adds the dot over the i after they see the touch screen, blow back in the seats when accelerating - then look straight up into the sky through the open roof
- Roof racks (well, might not ever need them, no skiing in Hong Kong yet)
- Look of the car from the outside
- High attenuation of light and heat
- Ease of cooling the cabin with hardly any power use
- Resale value

I completely understand the dual chargers for you. I'm positive that Elon is trying his best to get that supercharger network going. It seemed that after he announced it here, the planned rollout was about 3 or 4 years. We will be at a comfortable level in 2015. For me, by the end of this year. That's why we chose not to do the Dual Chargers. But going with an 85 was for the travel through the mountains and to do side trips that we may not have been able to do with the 60.

Regarding the Pano, my husband was trying to cut costs and said no to it. I think I would have really regretted it if I that didn't get re-added. You're right about all the reasons you mentioned. We have a friend who's about your same height and will benefit from the extra room (even if I'm pushed into the back row ).

The only other options I wanted were the sound system upgrade and the lighting, but I'm sure I won't miss those as much as I would have missed the Pano. It's all about compromise and I didn't even ask for the 85. That was HIS idea.

You'll get yours a month prior. Savor the anticipation!

- - - Updated - - -

"...we go with the 85. When he looked at the issues of getting to San Diego with a 60, he wanted some security that we could make it. We are passing on the dual chargers..."

That's an excellent choice - better tires and Supercharging included. Congrats!

I agree. Supercharging was a no brainer, but I also think that the warranty helped too. Having unlimited for 4 yrs was much better. Right now we travel about 12-15,000 miles a year. I bet we bump that up with this car. 50,000 would have been reached much sooner and we would have wished for the S85.

Thanks!

 

[SPtheALIEN]

I completely understand the dual chargers for you. I'm positive that Elon is trying his best to get that supercharger network going. It seemed that after he announced it here, the planned rollout was about 3 or 4 years. We will be at a comfortable level in 2015. For me, by the end of this year. That's why we chose not to do the Dual Chargers. But going with an 85 was for the travel through the mountains and to do side trips that we may not have been able to do with the 60.

Regarding the Pano, my husband was trying to cut costs and said no to it. I think I would have really regretted it if I that didn't get re-added. You're right about all the reasons you mentioned. We have a friend who's about your same height and will benefit from the extra room (even if I'm pushed into the back row ).

The only other options I wanted were the sound system upgrade and the lighting, but I'm sure I won't miss those as much as I would have missed the Pano. It's all about compromise and I didn't even ask for the 85. That was HIS idea.

You'll get yours a month prior. Savor the anticipation!

- - - Updated - - -



I agree. Supercharging was a no brainer, but I also think that the warranty helped too. Having unlimited for 4 yrs was much better. Right now we travel about 12-15,000 miles a year. I bet we bump that up with this car. 50,000 would have been reached much sooner and we would have wished for the S85.

Thanks!

For me, because getting a Tesla already brings you into rarified air territory, I had to make sure I wouldn't regret not getting something down the road.

I don't regret not getting the Performance package.

Added:
- Pano
- Matte obeche
- Center Console (one day, one day)
- Air suspension
- Tech
- Ambient light
- 21"
- Parcel Shelf

Skipped on the paint protector because we knew it would be insufficient--we wanted the entire car to be protected. So we ended up getting a matte protector.

I also wish we got the all-weather floor mats right off the bat, rather than paying for shipping later. The ones that come with it aren't that good for my use case because it flops over (on the passenger side) and just doesn't do a good job of keeping the dirt just on the mats.

In retrospect, I might have dropped the ambient light had I known how insignificant it would be. My Ford has FAR better ambient lighting.

Also, as much tech as the car has, I wish it had blind spot sensors. Irregardless of what people will say about configuring your side view mirrors to get zero-blind spots, I just can't do it. Also, I shift my posture while driving so I don't always get the optimal side view mirror view. So as an added accessory, perhaps some $5 blind spot mirrors from Amazon.