Well, after much reflection, I've decided to follow in the footsteps of Father-to-1 and make the switch from my LS600hL to a new 2020 Tesla Model S Long Range model. I know I've been a total LS600hL "fan-boy" on this forum for the past 5 years or so, and I still am sold on the fact that the LS600hLs represent the absolute pinnacle of Lexus engineering (on the Luxury side), but I am now ready to embrace the future, and I think for me the Tesla Model S will be a good fit.

I test drove a 2020 Tesla Model S a week or so ago, and was blown away by the car. I think the earlier Model S's were revolutionary, but they did have their growing pains. The 2020 model seems to have sorted out the majority of the earlier issues, and the addition of the new Raven smart air ride suspension allows the car to ride much smoother than the earlier versions, while still retaining an amazing ability to transform into a very capable sport coupe. And with the range now up to over 375 miles (and free nation-wide Supercharging), the car can legitimately be taken cross-country if needed.

My wife has been driving electric cars for the past 6 years, and will absolutely never go back to an ICE car. We drove to Kansas City so that she could test drive a new Model 3 (which my wife did end up ordering), and while we were there I decided to "joy ride" in a Model S to see what all the hype was about. WOW! I've never quite experienced the sensation of such a big car accelerating so quickly and without drama (or sound). The model I drove is rated at 0-60 in 3.7 seconds, and it's all that and more. Entering an on-ramp to the interstate and letting it rip felt like being shot out of a cannon! And the Auto-Pilot was really the best selling feature for me. My LS600hL has all the "bells and whistles" available in 2010, including the primitive LKA system. The Tesla Autopilot, with 3 forward-facing cameras and a total of 8 cameras surrounding the car, was able to keep the car centered in the lane precisely around every corner I came to with no steering input from me (but with my hands poised to take over if necessary). No more ping-ponging back and forth from one side to the other with the chime constantly going off.

Anyway, I realize this is a Lexus forum, not a Tesla forum, so I won't keep raving about all the things I loved about the Model S.

As for my beloved 2010 LS600hL, I believe I've found a good home for her with another one of our Club Lexus forum members. I'm happy that the car will be going to a fellow Lexus enthusiast! Someone who appreciates just how rare and spectacular the LS600hL is!

I'm sure I'll stay attached to this amazing forum, as I've "met" so many terrific Lexus fans here, and I always enjoy hearing what's going on. I'm keeping my 2006 SC430, so I'll remain a Lexus owner (hopefully forever).

Here's a photo I took of my LS600hL this morning (to send to the prospective buyer)... I will always admire that Peridot Mica color sparkling in the sun!

 

I'm happy for you but I am kinda confused as to why it's such a big deal, it's a little faster than most cars and has a nice auto drive gimmick but how do the fit and materials compare?

I last drove a S about a year ago and I was not that impressed if you factor the power out and it's inconvenient for me as a car due to having to charge it. That just kills it for me, I don't mind paying more for fuel for near instant on demand max range.

 

I've had a chance to work on all versions of Tesla even the new Model S.(adding k40 radar /laser) Imho they're still a gimmick car.. With poor build quality, reliability. The 2 major issues are the battery (range, recharge rate, lifespan) & a lesser know issue of the memory crash situation. Everytime you drive a Tesla its memory is overwritten an changed to accommodate for wear & tear. Too keep it as efficient as possible.. BUT the memory can only be rewritten so many times before catastrophic failure. In other words the entire CPU will freeze, fail, shut down...(think old smartphone or computer crash) the car becomes undrinkable an most be flatbed to a dealer.. So as a weekend car "naybe" but I like roadtrips.. so probably not... as a daily commuter DEFINITELY NOT...

Good Luck with your new car.. please let us know how things turn out..

 

Another Lexus owner bites the dust. I am not a fan of Tesla, but am slowly coming around. My concerns would be fit and finish and potential issues that require a Tesla dealer to fix. I wonder how much market share Tesla has taken away from Lexus, specifically the LS model. Please keep this thread updated with your experiences with your new car, both positive and negative. This will help prospective buyers. I’d imagine there are a decent amount of Lexus owners that might consider a Tesla in the future. Good luck and congratulations!!!!!

 

Congrats to you. Hope you are pleased with your decision a few years down the road. For me, the fact that the charge could run out and I'm no where near a charging station is too much a risk. My neighbor's son(who lives in another state) has a 2018, and the one time he drove it here, he had to stop several times for charges. Now, when he comes for long visits, he tows it here in his F150. I just wouldn't want to ever have to do that. Again this is me talking and I wish you the best enjoyment from your new car.

 

Why not just drive the truck the whole time instead of all the extra effort?

 

I did try the system and it simply is not able to do what I can if I'm driving manually at full attention and aggression. Plus if you tape over the cameras with even semi clear tape to simulate bad weather it's useless. It's not a performance car at all expect for straight line and for the price it's up against setups that are faster if an end user does light alterations like I would in my case if I'm going to spend that much. Plus as you said they have full control of YOUR car and won't even let you work on/repair it, I have a massive issue with that on a fundamental level.

Have you ever track driven a car like a C7 hard or even a V6 1LE? The Tesla is really not a good handling vehicle automatic TQ systems aside, the acceleration 0-70 is on par with some of the moderately tuned ICE stuff but 70-180 it's way behind something like a pro-charged C5 even.

I think its cool and the tech integration is well done but at the end of the day the car it's not that impressive of a vehicle at least for me and the fact I can't charge it in 3 minutes is the deal breaker. If I feel like driving hard and launching from every light and hitting 100+ constantly on back roads I can blaze through gas at 9mpg then refuel in 4 minutes, drive a Tesla at full tilt and the range goes down dramatically and you can't recharge it to continue your day. I also am waiting for the fit and quality to be higher to consider perhaps attempting a new car instead of doing the usual and driving old used and using the car payment money for stocks.

 

Interesting discussion points! I really don't think there's a great argument to be made that a Tesla Model S is a smart financial move for me, as my LS600hL is pretty amazing and is paid for.

However, in my opinion, the Tesla is just an entirely different kind of vehicle than pretty much any ICE car on the road today. The model I'm buying will do 0-60 in 3.7 seconds. And it does it with absolutely no drama. No "launch control," no screaming engine, no smoke billowing from tires. Just instant, seamless, silent torque and face-melting acceleration. I'm actually pretty unlikely to tap deep into this well of power, as I drive fairly conservatively, but there's no denying the grin-producing, stealthy power this car has.

As far as handling, I found the Model S to be on an entirely different level from my LS600hL. To be fair, my LS was never really built for cornering or a quick change of direction, which I'm mostly fine with. The Model S (and the Model 3) are likely far behind true sports cars in handling, but I was pretty impressed by how "flat" they cornered, and the center of gravity of the car is much lower than any ICE car, which makes them inherently more stable in corners.

The Autopilot (radar cruise and auto-steer) is on an entirely different level than that on my LS600hL. I find the LKA on my LS to be nearly worthless, and generally annoying. The 8 cameras on the Tesla constantly watching 360 degrees around the car for problems provides a layer of safety that just can't be found on other cars today. It's certainly not perfect, and is not (currently) a replacement for human driving skills, but after driving the Model S for several miles on the interstate, I truly "got it" about where we are heading with self-driving cars. And speaking only for myself (an admittedly easily distracted driver), the autopilot will quickly become essential to my own safety and something I won't be able to easily ever give up. The frequent over-the-air updates to the Tesla that continually improve the autopilot system (and other drive systems in the car) are also game-changers in my mind.

Obviously, going cross-country in a Tesla involves more planning than in a Lexus, although with the latest Model S having 390 miles of range, this difference is fading away. And with free (and very fast) Super-Charging stations strategically placed and outstanding trip-planning software embedded in the Teslas, some would probably argue that there are actually advantages to going cross-country in a Tesla. For me, the only real road trip I take is either to the lake (Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri) or the ski slopes (Keystone in Colorado), and I always take my Ram 1500 pickup on these trips since I'm hauling so much gear.

I see now why people compare the Tesla to the iPhone... I held on to my flip phone with pop-out mechanical keyboard for a LONG time, resisting the iPhone mania, but once I had an iPhone there's no way I could go back to a flip phone...

I'll be happy to provide photos and an update once I get my Model S and have some time behind the wheel.

It's probably time for Father-to-1 to chime in with an update on how his Tesla Model S is working out. He's very active on the Tesla Forum these days (as 'AYCE'), but I think he still prowls around the Lexus forum sometimes.

 

All very good points, it does upon further reflection make sense why the silent acceleration is so impressive. I'm more of the type who thinks the LS is far too quiet at WOT and needs to have some more induction roar at least or something. Part throttle or cruise sure silence is great, if I'm going at it I want the scream of a V8 to at least be heard a little. The feeling and vibration and life you can feel throughout a high power ICE car makes you feel as part of the machine and gives it a feeling of being alive and having a nature unique to it down to how individually distinct it's idle pulse feels. You get none of this with an electric, they all feel exactly identical in all ways and acceleration is just a varying amount of force depending on the vehicle. No TQ hump, no turbo hit, no climbing onto the cam at 6500rpm, no erratic but repeating lope of a massive duration non-VVT cam at idle. Totally removes my connection to the machine to the point I don't care any more than I would for a phone.

 

Congrats on the move to Tesla. The model S is an impressive car and totally different than the LS. Once you get it, can you let us know the difference you'll pay (if any) in insurance?

 

My Model S has had 55 problems and 6 months at Service center.

 

Yeah, $100K for an in-town vehicle. After sitting down with Tesla sales people in Kansas City twice in the past year and a few times in the several years before that, I'm convinced that one still has to adopt an "EV lifestyle" to make a Tesla practical for cross-country use here in the Midwest. The Tesla people are still unable to make even their longest range vehicle work for us on our typical trips unless we are willing to drive up to 100 miles out of our way on a regular basis to get a charge. And then there is the matter of waiting while charging - 75 minutes to get a full charge at a Tesla Supercharger (40 minutes for 80% charge) and far longer than that at a typical public charging station. There are no public charging stations of any type in my northern Missouri hometown to which we travel at least twice per month - 200 miles each way. There are no charging stations at any of the fairly pricey (usually IHG) hotels in which we frequently stay ... can't dangle extension cords out of hotel windows! My wife and I are retired but we are still often on a tight schedule when we travel.

That 390 mile maximum range you mentioned is during warm weather. Range is reduced in Winter and sharply reduced in really cold weather - up to 40% less range. Practical maximum range in warm weather is closer to 300 miles.

I suggest you drive a Model S on a dark rural road to verify that you can tolerate its headlights which got the lowest rating category from the IIHS: https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle...020#headlights

The Model S headlights are a complete showstopper for me - night vision at my age sucks.

I may sound negative about Tesla but I'm trying to get my wife to consider the upcoming Tesla Model Y to replace her 2012 Prius v. Like the Prius, the Tesla Model Y would be used only in-town although maybe it would someday become practical for road trips if the charging infrastructure improves. Since it is based on the Model 3, I am assuming that the Model Y will get the same excellent headlights which got the highest rating from the IIHS.

I've noticed a big explosion in Tesla sightings here in the Kansas City metro area during the past year - it's nothing like Seattle but I've sometimes seen multiple Teslas at a time on city streets. What I continue to notice, however, is how very few Teslas I see on our frequent, often weekly 200 to 450 mile road trips. A running joke has been that most Teslas on rural highways are riding on flatbed trucks after running out of juice. There may be some truth to that based on my observations.

 

Jim, Yes, these eVs are way more popular in the large cities on the coasts, and the wide-open spaces of the midwest (which I LOVE) don't really lend themselves well to pure electric cars. My new Tesla Model S will end up costing a total of $78k (not $100k), and it will have a rated range of 373 miles (vs the current 390 on the Full Range + version). My wife has driven is on her third electric car (2 Nissan Leafs and a Chevy Bolt), and will be getting the Tesla Model 3 (dual motor AWD, 325 miles of range) next week. So we are much more used to driving Electric, and we have two separate 220v charging stations already installed in our garage.

For your specific scenario, traveling to a part of the country that isn't currently well served with Tesla Superchargers, I can understand how the value proposition just isn't there for you. I'm a Real Estate agent here in Nebraska, and am constantly driving all over our city showing homes to clients, so having 373 miles of range will be overkill day-to-day. I will plug my car in every night, so each new day I'll have the full range at my disposal. If I do decide to visit my in-laws in Cedar Rapids Iowa (265 miles away), I will be able to do so on a single charge with no problem. If I decide to take a road trip to Denver, I can stop once mid-way along I-80 for a quick top-off at a Supercharger (totally free for the life of my Tesla)...

As I was trying to decide between the Standard Range (SR) model (rated at 285 miles of range) and the Long Range (LR) model (373 miles of range), I found it very useful to use this amazing web site to see how far I could go on an eV under various circumstances: https://abetterrouteplanner.com

It's really interesting to play around with this web site to really learn about eV limitations! It allows you to select a model of electric car (e.g., a 2019 Tesla Model S Long Range), input your starting and ending destinations, and even input the ambient temperature and prevailing wind conditions. It will then provide a detailed plan for your eV trip, advising you which Superchargers you should stop at and for how long in order to complete your trip. I'd recommend you give it a try. Plug in your home address and your northern Missouri home town and let the system give you your options for how to get there efficiently. Try a few different eVs and a few different temps/wind speeds to see the impact... Very interesting stuff!

 

This is what you get with a Tesla

 

We'll miss you! Don't be a stranger.

I get it, they're very cool. I've driven them and I appreciate the concept and the technology, but they just aren't luxurious enough inside for me at the price point. 390 miles of range seems like a lot, and would certainly work for me as a commuter, daily driver. I do however travel in my car, and I travel where there aren't superchargers (to southern WV several times a year). The trip is about 350 miles, so I would likely have to charge somewhere on the trip, and then what do I do when I get there? Our family home down there doesn't have a garage or anything like that, I would have to run an extension cord...just doesn't work. Then theres the issue of waiting at superchargers when traveling where they do exist, and they're getting crowded and oftentimes you have to wait for a spot and then wait 30-45 mins for a charge which really draws out travel times.

If all I used it for was a daily in town car that would be one thing, but like Jim said $100k is a lot of money to spend for that...