Wait for sport/performance option?

[richkae]

If the sport option was available on day 1 would I buy it? Maybe. I passed on the 0.2 second improvement in the Roadster for $20k.
If it was a 1 second improvement in 0-60 and a corresponding power improvement at higher speeds for a LOT less than $20k, I would consider it.

Do I think they should risk delaying the launch of the car to do it? No way.
Once they have the production line cranking, should they work on the sport version? Yes.
Once they have the production line cranking, should they work on the AWD version? Obviously yes. They need to figure that out for the Model X anyway.

 

[ckessel]

No, unless it was pretty darn cheap by comparison. Maybe 10k. I'm not buying a super car, so killer 0-60 is a nice to have, not a requirement. Even at 5.6s, the Model S is equivalent to or better than most in it's class.

 

[neroden]

Would actually actively avoid a "sport" version. "Sports suspensions" (very hard suspensions) are painful, and this is a daily driver.

 

[Jaff]

Ordinarily I'd agree, but who is to say that if a sport model is manufactured, that it won't have an adjustible supension like the Roadster Sport?...at this point, we just don't know...

Would actually actively avoid a "sport" version. "Sports suspensions" (very hard suspensions) are painful, and this is a daily driver.

 

[Adm]

You know, the Model S sedan has a range of up to 300 miles, pure electric. It's got - and there's a performance version that's as - (unintelligible) beat a BMW M5 around a track. So it's got great, great performance handling. I think the styling is great. We're also aiming for it to be the safest car in the world in terms of being five star in every single category, which - that there isn't - no car is five star in every category.

Elon Musk in an interview with NPR:
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/19/139790024/spacex-craft-to-head-to-space-station

 

[tdelta1000]

I feel the Model S is already sporty enough but a tighter suspension or a quicker 0-60 MPH is always nicer. Those items would make the Model S even more respectable in the eyes of the competition.

 

[Trnsl8r]

Buying the Model S is going to sting in the wallet a bit, but if I have the choice of adding $20K to get a 300-mile battery or of losing a few tenths of a second (or even a second) of 0-60, I will upgrade the battery - no question. For me, it's about usability.
My 2 cents for the thread...

 

[sprediletto]

I agree smorgasbord, once the range is 500 and the price is < $40k, we're going to see a revolution.

For me, 300 is a nice sweet spot. On the rare occasions that we need more than that, perhaps once a year, I know several people who would love to trade cars for that period. :biggrin:

A Perfect Post. I agree 100%

 

[kgb]

Elon Musk in an interview with NPR:
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/19/139790024/spacex-craft-to-head-to-space-station

I listened to the interview, and I believe I know what Elon intended to say with his "unintelligible" stutter.

You know, the Model S sedan has a range of up to 300 miles, pure electric. It's got - and there's a performance version that's as - (unintelligible) beat a BMW M5 around a track.

With the "um's," and stutters removed, I believe he was saying, "There's a performance version that could beat a BMW M5 around a track."

He was wise to qualify his statement. It seems he was headed down the path of saying, "There's a performance version that's as fast/quick as a BMW M5." But that is vague and can be open to all kinds of interpretations. With his "careful" choice of words, one can infer that the Model S performance model may not have as much acceleration as a BMW M5, but it has handling to make up for it.

 

[ckessel]

The regular 5.6/5.7 speed IS a sport car. Hell, it outdoes my RX8 and many "sports" cars. This poll is really asking about a "super sport" mode .

So, no, I'm not waiting for the sport mode. If it had it, and I was quite a bit wealthier, I might care, but I'm already getting a really quick car as it is with the normal model S.

 

[Norbert]

I listened to the interview, and I believe I know what Elon intended to say with his "unintelligible" stutter.

With the "um's," and stutters removed, I believe he was saying, "There's a performance version that could beat a BMW M5 around a track."

I understood: "there's a performance version [that's as] we expect to beat a BMW M5 around a track.

Not sure though.

 

[AnOutsider]

The regular 5.6/5.7 speed IS a sport car. Hell, it outdoes my RX8 and many "sports" cars. This poll is really asking about a "super sport" mode .

So, no, I'm not waiting for the sport mode. If it had it, and I was quite a bit wealthier, I might care, but I'm already getting a really quick car as it is with the normal model S.

I beg to differ (and have in other threads). 5.6 is nice, but not unheard of (again, our S5 is rated at 4.9s). If they could hit 5s I think that would be good for a sedan this size (especially as the A7 does 5.4s)

I understood: "there's a performance version [that's as] we expect to beat a BMW M5 around a track.

Not sure though.

Yeah, it's hard to tell. I just wonder WHEN that version will be available.

 

[ckessel]

I beg to differ (and have in other threads). 5.6 is nice, but not unheard of (again, our S5 is rated at 4.9s). If they could hit 5s I think that would be good for a sedan this size (especially as the A7 does 5.4s)

You can beg to differ all you like, but 5.6 is quite fast by most any objective sedan standard. It's certainly not going to compete against the crazy quick cars like the A7s of the world, but the Model S is easily "quick". If it's not quick enough for you, that's perfectly understandable, but to say it's not quick compared to it's average competition (your "beg to differ") is just blatantly false.

For example, see:
Luxury Sport Sedan Comparison - Acura RL vs Audi A6 vs BMW 535i vs Cadillac CTS vs Infiniti M35 vs Jaguar XF vs Lexus GS 350 vs Mercedes-Benz E350 - Motor Trend

 

[AnOutsider]

You can beg to differ all you like, but 5.6 is quite fast by most any objective sedan standard. It's certainly not going to compete against the crazy quick cars like the A7s of the world, but the Model S is easily "quick". If it's not quick enough for you, that's perfectly understandable, but to say it's not quick compared to it's average competition (your "beg to differ") is just blatantly false.

For example, see:
Luxury Sport Sedan Comparison - Acura RL vs Audi A6 vs BMW 535i vs Cadillac CTS vs Infiniti M35 vs Jaguar XF vs Lexus GS 350 vs Mercedes-Benz E350 - Motor Trend

I'm sorry, you said:

The regular 5.6/5.7 speed IS a sport car. Hell, it outdoes my RX8 and many "sports" cars. This poll is really asking about a "super sport" mode .

In which case it should be faster IMO (see, an opinion, which can't be "blatantly false"). This car is often compared to the A7, which is FASTER and it's not even the "performance" version of the car (which would be the S7 next year some time). The S5 definitely faster than the standard A5, but the performance version of any car is, just as we'd expect the SPORT or PERFORMANCE version of the Model S to be as well!

Lastly, maybe I'm just jaded by the cars I drive, but the A7 is not "crazy quick" IMO (which, again, can't be "blatantly false" as you assert) -- the Audi R8? The Nissan GTR? Sure. Plus, it's not hard to outdo an RX-8. Many manufacturers tote the word "sport" around and don't always mean speed. A car the size of the RX-8 should be a heck of a lot faster, but it is quite nimble.

Many cars on your list have sportier versions btw (S6 5.1, CTS-V 3.9 etc).

But I'm rambling now... Let's just agree that 5.6 is fast but that the performance version of Model S should be faster.

 

[vfx]

The numbers only tell part of the story. The feel of an electric is different. That lag that happens when you hit a gas pedal and the quick slowdown that happens for the shift is endemic in a gasoline automobile.
The nonstop ever growing acceleration of an electric has a quite different visceral feel that goes deep. If goes way beyond the per-second numbers.

We all here know that the test rides/drives change perception. The Model S will be the big brother version of that same visceral shift.

 

[Todd Burch]

I agree vfx...it just FEELS faster, whether it is or not.

Not to debate anything said here...but I always look at those 0-60 times as marketing numbers...achievable, but typically by professional drivers...whereas in single-speed electrics just about ANYONE can come very close to the marketed 0-60 time---even grandma!

 

[Todd Burch]

BTW: Grandma....stay away from my Model S.

 

[AnOutsider]

Audi S6, S7 and S8 revealed ahead of Frankfurt debut

Here comes the "other" S models

With 520 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque on tap, the big sedan is said to be good for a hugely fast 4.2-second sprint to 62 miles per hour and an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph.

That's the huge S8 -- that's insane considering the original R8 did that.

The S6 and S7, meanwhile, get a detuned version of the same turbo eight with 420 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque, good for 4.8 and 4.9-second acceleration runs, respectively..

So I still say if Tesla can meet a 5.0s 0-60 (at the very least, I'd love to see high 4s personally) on the Sport/Performance Model S they'll be in range. It won't be as fast as the S6 and S7, but as others stated, with that linear acceleration, it would still feel just as good.

 

[doug]

Slight off topic, but related to performance. Do electric cars need to "warm up" like ICEs? If I get in the car in the morning and floor it down the first street, am I going to see the type of less than great performance I get out of an ICE in that situation?

This discussion went here.

 

[Norbert]

So I still say if Tesla can meet a 5.0s 0-60 (at the very least, I'd love to see high 4s personally) on the Sport/Performance Model S they'll be in range. It won't be as fast as the S6 and S7, but as others stated, with that linear acceleration, it would still feel just as good.

What's wrong with 4.4s ? That's the target.