[robg]

Drove by a Tesla store after taking my son to a doctor's appt today. Decided to go in and check out the latest/greatest Model S. We tried some of the easter eggs (my son liked the Mars theme, while I got a laugh out of the fireplace with Barry White playing). Also tried out Pole Position using the steering wheel.

Anyway, when we got out a guy was standing there and asked me if my kid was in a booster (he will be soon). He told me that he just took one for an overnight test drive, and the booster blocked the seatbelt receptacle so now he's looking at an X (I guess the seatblet buckless are set closer to each other than in other cars). I then decided to check out the LATCH and tether connectors. The lower LATCH connectors are about an inch up from the seat bottom and the tethers are buried in the carpet on the back of the seats (seemsl ike you'd have to use a knife to free them).

Also was curious about the center console. It seemed like a potential improvement but it takes up a lot of space for only really offering spcae for 2 drinks and a phone. Seems like you can squeeze some stuff ahead of the adjustiable cupholders but it won't be easily accessible. The car we sat in had the matte ash trim (light colored) and I didn't care for it. DIdn't fit the character of the car at all. Not sure why they did away with the Obeche trim from the older versions.

I really don't get what they're doing w/ the right steering scroll wheel. They let you choose from a bunch of things that you'd rarely use while driving (fan speed, turning climate control off etc) and yet neglect to even allow you to swich media sources or scroll through songs. Its like the people who design their UI never actually drive. The steering wheel buttons also feel a bit toylike.

Ended up sitting in the seats for a good 20 minutes playing around with the controls and my back got sweaty, so the "vegan" leather is a definite no-go. Would've been better if they offered alcantara as a seat upholstery option like Audi And Porsche do in some models. The seat controls are also hard to reach when the door is closed (not enough room) and the button that moves the seat fore/aft is uncomfortably sharp at the front. The seats themselves seemed comfortable at first but questionable how they'd be on a long drive. I guess these are the newerTesla manufacturered "premium seats", so the "next gen" seats in the various used cars I was looking at would be different.

On a postive note, I liked the alcantara headliner and all the materials had a pleasing appearance. The easter eggs did make me laugh and the touch screen was super responsive. But overall, I left with a longer list of annoyances.

Funny enough on our way home, our car started making screeching noises from the brakes. Drove it to the dealer who told me it sounds like a rock got caught between the rotor and shield (easy fix) but that i'm due for an oil change anyway. So they got me a new X3 loaner and we were in and out in 20 mins. Even though it's a base X3 with a 4 cyl its really nice. They've managed to improve pretty much everything (still prefer the turbo 6 in my car of course). I"m back to being tempted to just get the x3 m40i as our next famly car. I estimate it would only cost $50 more a month overall (assuming a 3 year lease) vs buying a 50k model S and selling it in 4 years. +$100 in fuel -50 in insurance (the lease cost of ~620 pm is a wash with the est depreciation, maintenance, tires and interest/opportunity cost for a 50k used tesla). And, the worst case scenarios for the TEsla result in an even higher cost. Might take a look at an Audi S5 sport back as well.

Anyway, ended up being an unplanned car shopping day. DIdn't realize Tesla offers overnight test drives to anyone who asks. I may try that at some point.

But, as Rumatt points out, it's probably not realistic to think that the tesla could be our only car. As a 3rd car, used for commuting, it might make more sense.