Off topic galore

[Todd Burch]

He's lying. There is no way he's towing 6 to 8 per week.

The way you know this:

1. How many Teslas do you see a day?
2. How many Teslas do you see stuck on the side of the road in a year?

My answers:
1. About 20.
2. <1.

If he's towing 6-8 per week you'd see them on the side of the road a lot more. In the words of the great Yoda, "Like Usain, BS do call I."

 

[GrandEnigma]

anecdotal here, I see dozens a day, and have seen maybe 1-2 on the side of the road, and even then, cannot say if broken down or just pulled over for other reason.

Have seen a number on flat beds, but that could also be accidents, Carvana/Vroom/Freight/Etc.

 

[Max Plaid]

I've never seen a stranded Tesla, I've been driving Teslas for nearly 10 years and have never been stranded and don't know of any Tesla owners that have... most of the complaints you see posted on X by the shorty bears appear to be fake - you go look at the timeline of the folks saying they were "let down by Elon Musk" and 99% of them have zero Tesla posts, which isn't normal, Tesla owners tend to have pictures of their cars, etc.

 

[GhostSkater]

Worth watching this even though you won't learn much:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706887371713663138

The only thing I learnt is that Highland employs Frequency Selective Damping.

Not sure if they are using Koni:
KONI | ACTIVE Technology


Unrelated:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706886885182967893

Probably nothing, but watch again and hear the motor whine. I've never been in a Tesla, but from all the videos watched over the years, there is only one motor that makes that kind of noise, the Plaid ones

Maybe they just added it's noise because it's the coolest one, or that is a subtle hint to the new Model 3 Performance

Also, they cut the video right when it hits 200 km/h, but if you got frame by frame, power still at it's peak, Highland is limited to 201 km/h, so power should have been way down for it to smoothly stop accelerating at 201 km/h

 

[rallykeeper]

I've never seen a stranded Tesla, I've been driving Teslas for nearly 10 years and have never been stranded and don't know of any Tesla owners that have... most of the complaints you see posted on X by the shorty bears appear to be fake - you go look at the timeline of the folks saying they were "let down by Elon Musk" and 99% of them have zero Tesla posts, which isn't normal, Tesla owners tend to have pictures of their cars, etc.

OT, but couldn't leave this hanging:

Not quite your point, but 10+ year Tesla driver as a counterpoint to your first sentence.

I've personally been stranded 2x in the last 4 months. Once in my 2021 S (door wouldn't close because of faulty latch) and once in my 2020 X (12V battery smoking).

Thankfully, they both occurred at home, but that was really just luck.

Not sure how many times it's happened over the past 10 years, but I can think of at least 6 or 7 tows to the SC just off the top of my head.

(Btw, all you have to do is sit around at a Tesla SC and you can personally witness tow trucks bringing in those fake stranded Tesla's -- if the X s**-posters weren't so lazy, they could just set up a camera!).

Edit: point is that it's all just anecdote. Some people don't have problems; some people do. We don't really know how often Tesla's our towed. Tow truck drivers just see broken cars so they have a slightly better view, but even their sample is skewed by market share, etc.

Edit 2: Tow truck drivers in SoCal tend to specialize in Tesla's because Tesla contracts with a limited number of companies for Roadside Assistance. Been that way for years. Many of them are on a first name basis with the SCs.

 

[Todd Burch]

OT, but couldn't leave this hanging:

Not quite your point, but 10+ year Tesla driver as a counterpoint to your first sentence.

I've personally been stranded 2x in the last 4 months. Once in my 2021 S (door wouldn't close because of faulty latch) and once in my 2020 X (12V battery smoking).

Thankfully, they both occurred at home, but that was really just luck.

Not sure how many times it's happened over the past 10 years, but I can think of at least 6 or 7 tows to the SC just off the top of my head.

(Btw, all you have to do is sit around at a Tesla SC and you can personally witness tow trucks bringing in those fake stranded Tesla's -- if the X s**-posters weren't so lazy, they could just set up a camera!).

You've needed to tow your cars 6 or 7 times to the SC? Damn, do you curse at your cars all the time? They must hate you, or you must have some of the worst luck. I have a 2014 S with 175,000 miles and it has never left me stranded. (I did tow it once for a flat tire, but that's not a failure of the car). I've been driving Teslas since 2012. The only time I ever needed a tow was in my first 2012 S, which was a few months old at the time. February of 2013--I had a stuck relay.

 

[rallykeeper]

You've needed to tow your cars 6 or 7 times to the SC? Damn, do you curse at your cars all the time? They must hate you, or you must have some of the worst luck. I have a 2014 S with 175,000 miles and it has never left me stranded. (I did tow it once for a flat tire, but that's not a failure of the car). I've been driving Teslas since 2012. The only time I ever needed a tow was in my first 2012 S, which was a few months old at the time. February of 2013--I had a stuck relay.

Not much as curse at, but just cursed?

Last 4 months was particularly bad luck (with weekend failures, no less) since these Tesla's had been pretty good so far. This was the first tow for each.

My 3 S's were definitely more reliable than my 3 X's. The 2017 X had 2 tows in just 12 months due to bad 12V batteries.

12V battery issues have been the usual culprit. Probably 4 tows for that alone. (Like you, I'm pretty sure I recall a power relay issue sometime in 2013 on the 2012 S.)

 

[unk45]

Probably nothing, but watch again and hear the motor whine. I've never been in a Tesla, but from all the videos watched over the years, there is only one motor that makes that kind of noise, the Plaid ones

Maybe they just added it's noise because it's the coolest one, or that is a subtle hint to the new Model 3 Performance

Also, they cut the video right when it hits 200 km/h, but if you got frame by frame, power still at it's peak, Highland is limited to 201 km/h, so power should have been way down for it to smoothly stop accelerating at 201 km/h

My Plaid Model S does not make noises, except for the odd noisy audio or the fart noises etc. that are so treasured by adolescents [of whatever chronological age]. My Plaid is much quieter than was my 2014 Model S. OTOH. My Volvo XC40 Recharge has a loud motor whine which is growing with age, and a loud crash hen parking brake disconnects. Without question YMMV and doing launches is a noisy process, in part generated by passenger howls of fright/delight, luckily less often by sirens from gendarmerie. More luckily for me, never happened to me.

 

[Todd Burch]

Not much as curse at, but just cursed?

Last 4 months was particularly bad luck (with weekend failures, no less) since these Tesla's had been pretty good so far. This was the first tow for each.

My 3 S's were definitely more reliable than my 3 X's. The 2017 X had 2 tows in just 12 months due to bad 12V batteries.

12V battery issues have been the usual culprit. Probably 4 tows for that alone. (Like you, I'm pretty sure I recall a power relay issue sometime in 2013 on the 2012 S.)

I know they went through that changeover to Li Ion 12V batteries a few years ago..hopefully those issues are done with now that the transition is complete.

 

[Words of HABIT]

I did tow it once for a flat tire...

Since Teslas do not carry spare/emergency tires, this tire repair kit from Tesla is a must have. Tesla should have this product come standard on all their vehicles. Until then, $90 is worth the peace of mind. I wouldn't travel long distances without it.

 

[Words of HABIT]

I did tow it once for a flat tire, but that's not a failure of the car.

Since Teslas do not come with spare/emergency tires, this Tesla Tire Repair Kit is a must have. Tesla should include this product in every vehicle. Until then, the $90 gives peace of mind. I would not travel long distance without it.

 

[navguy12]

Since Teslas do not come with spare/emergency tires, this Tesla Tire Repair Kit is a must have. Tesla should include this product in every vehicle. Until then, the $90 gives peace of mind. I would not travel long distance without it.

View attachment 977657

FWIW, I took the other path because the sealer pretty well ruins the TPMS sensor.

I have a 12 volt pump, my jacking points pucks, my little scissor jack (from a wrecked Mazda, but anyone with a 850 kg rating will do), my portable breaker bar with socket and one of those $10 Harbour Freight tire plug/patch kits.

Like fire insurance, I hope I never have to use it.

 

[betstarship]

Been busy feeding the local economy with TSLA monies the past 2-3 months

 

[Buckminster]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708029363650744713

 

[Buckminster]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708116045100122167

 

[JimS]

We flew into Vancouver on Tuesday evening. During the 15 minutes we were waiting for our shuttle to our hotel, we counted 11 Teslas driving by, all Y's and 3's, with Y's edging out the 3's. BULLISH!

During our site-seeing adventures, it is clear that Teslas are the most popular car here. A few S's and X's, but just an incredible number of Y's and 3's. There always seems to be one in view at all times, sometimes several in a row. VERY BULLISH!

As we were entering Granville Island, I took a picture of the entrance. Then I told my wife I wanted to wait and get a picture when a Tesla drives out. Normally she gets a little impatient when I "wait for the best picture", but this time it was less than a minute:

The saturation of Teslas on Vancouver Island was not as intense as Vancouver, but did increase when we arrived in Victoria. (My app shows 4 Superchargers on the island, but the one in Victoria is an Urban Charger, so that may need to be upgraded.) I predict an explosion of Highland Model 3s on this island in the near future.

Visiting my brother in the Bay Area of California, I expected an even higher concentration of Teslas than Canada, but although it was quite respectable and impressive, Vancouver is the clear winner.

We took an Uber from the Las Vegas airport to our hotel, and guess what? The Uber was a 2022 White Model Y! I asked the driver if it had 4680 batteries and he said yes. He said he was told it was a limited run of "mid-range" cars with a range of 280 miles, but he believed it was "software restricted" to that amount. I told him if he knew that for a fact, that he could confidently charge to 100% each time without accelerating battery degradation. (It is quite possible neither of us really knew what we were talking about, so if a correction is needed please let me know and I will try to track that driver down. He had a 4.99 rating!)

While in Vegas we checked out the Vegas Loop, and to our amazement every single vehicle being used was a Tesla. I mean, what are the chances of that?

We also took an Uber back to the airport, this time in a black Model 3! That driver was just as nice as the first one, but only had a 4.98 rating. We gave them both 5's, so their "march of 9's" should continue.

TLDR: There are lots of Teslas out there! Very Bullish!

Now just in case a Moderator reads this and thinks it is too "on topic" and should be moved to the main thread, check out Las Vegas' awesome new Sphere:

 

[betstarship]

Wow

Sam Bankman-Fried thought he had 5% chance of becoming president, ex-girlfriend says

Disgraced crypto executive Sam Bankman-Fried thought there was a "5% chance he would become president," his ex-girlfriend testified Tuesday.

abcnews.go.com

 

[betstarship]

Also, such a great game - I'm hooked!

Starfield | Official Website

 

[dhanson865]

Story going around about a Tesla that survived machine gun fire.

"This is the amazing story of how Tesla saved the life of one of the first Israelis to face Hamas. The story appeared on Walla website"

Walk around video at

https://www.reddit.com/r/TeslaModel3/comments/1778i67

----------------------
This is not how C, a resident of Kibbutz Mefalsim, planned to spend last Shabbat. But minutes after the Hamas forces invaded the settlements outside Gaza, C, a member of the settlement's emergency squad, was called to an incident. He rushed to his Tesla Model 3 Performance and started driving to the assembly point. His Apple Watch was stopped by a shrapnel at 6:50.
Photos that appeared for the first time on the Tesla Israel Telegram channel document what happened next. Speaking from Sheba Hospital where he is hospitalized after a series of head and hand surgeries, he spoke about a drive he will never forget.

"The terrorists recognized me from a distance of 10 yards. In addition to their Kalashnikovs, they had a machine gun that fired bullets of a larger caliber. They did not realize that it was an EV, so they shot at the front, hoping to hit the engine that wasn't there, and at the back, trying to set the fuel tank on fire. Of course there was also no fuel tank. They shot my tires. I pressed the accelerator, and they started chasing me."

In this battle it was a Toyota truck against one driver in a private car. But it was also a chase between a diesel truck with about 150 hp, against an electric sedan with more than 530 hp and dual drive. About 15 well-armed terrorists facing a wounded, but determined driver, who found himself fighting for his life hundreds of meters from his home.

"They shot my tires, but the acceleration of the Tesla is amazing even in this situation, and the dual drive managed to keep me on the road. I quickly got away from them, but I realized that I had to get to the hospital as soon as possible and I drove at a speed of 112 mph with flat tires. The tires started to crumble, but the dual drive balanced out the wheels, some of which were already on the rims. According to the app, I continued to drive at around 110 mph."

C had already made the journey from Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon in an ambulance, after the bullet-riddled Tesla managed to bring him to the hospital gates. Although about 100 bullet holes were counted in the car, the front window remained cracked all the way but did not disintegrate. The windows of the doors were smashed by the rescue teams who rushed to get him out and transfer him to treatment.
"Bullets hit my legs and hand, got one in the skull and I was also hit by shrapnel. But my head works, and motivation kept me on the road and even now in the hospital. The car continued to drive, the battery didn't heat up, but it took a lot of damage. There is no part that didn't take a bullet. It still drives if you press the pedal, but it seems to me that I should already be thinking about my next Tesla."
--------------

 

[JimS]

A couple weeks ago I tried to post a video of Sphere in Las Vegas, but it posted as just a picture. The video is more awesome than the picture: