Awwwwww. 
I think I would’ve been as stunned by it all as he was. I’ve never seen a Tesla in action before.
If there’s a dealer near you, go take one for a test drive. Even if you have no intention of buying, it’s worth checking one out.
That totally fucking rocked!
I really like the grandfather. He gets around so well for 97. Very sharp and understood the new tech after it was explained.
I’m curious to see how easily these cars can be maintained. It’ll take at least ten years of maintenance history to learn how well they hold up.
I wonder if the electric motor is fully serviceable? Replace the brushes, bearings, or even rewind the armature? Then there’s the external components, relays, start capacitor etc. It’ll require a whole new type of mechanic.
Well, here’s one data point: This man was so fed up trying to get his Tesla fixed that he ended up doing it himself. From the article: “When I opened it up, I find out that it’s the easiest car I’ve ever worked on. Easiest device I’ve ever worked on. They built a Lego car. It’s like putting together Legos, taking apart Legos. If you can put together Legos you can put together a Tesla Model S.”
This is fantastic! Thanks for sharing it. I just love the part where the grandson says you can recharge at the super charger in an hour, and the grandpa replies, “Takes that long, eh?”
Teslas use 3-phase induction motors. No brushes. I doubt that any modern electric car uses motors with brushes.
From your link:
Something does not compute. Either it’s Lego, or it’s $14,000 .
And it’s pretty rare these days for any 5-year-old car to have failing door handles, and a window that falls out. Plus the threat of a $14000 repair bill.
I’ll be getting a Tesla only after the bugs get fixed and parts are available. Maybe in 20-30 years ?
And by then, I’ll be 97 like the grandpa in the video.
But I’ll be cool.
That video got 1.4k down votes. Who the hell are these monsters?! Lol
Anyway, sweet vid. Love the Grandpa.
It’s easy to do yourself but the repair shops charge a fortune anyway because most Tesla owners don’t know any better.
Whew, so happy to see the cop wasn’t a dick about it.
If he’s 97, he could have met Tesla.
I have zero direct personal experience with Teslas, but I’ve heard (and correct me if I’m wrong, anyone) that they have snazzy door handles that fit flush to the car, and they only pop out to where they can be grabbed when the car senses someone approach with the key. The handles go flush when the car is in motion. It may have been something to do with that mechanism.
Likely. A family member used to own a Tesla Model S, and this describes door handle behavior correctly - including the handles occasionally not popping out when the key fob approaches. You can also touch the handles to cause them to retract (to lock the doors), and touch them again to cause them to pop out. Good video demo here. It is, as you say, snazzy, but a failure may mean that the door can’t be opened.
Typical over engineering mistake.
Substituting a proven and reliable door latch for one controlled by a computer is a questionable feature.
Retracting door handles look very cool when it works. It’s a PITA when you’re locked out and stranded in the parking lot at Walmart. It really frustrates customers if parts aren’t easily available.
People probably had similar concerns about power windows when they were introduced.
No one “needs” power windows, and what if something goes wrong?
We’ll see how these door latches work over time.
When power windows break down, it’s an inconvenience; and it may be quite troublesome, especially if they fail in the down position when bad weather is approaching. BUT such a failure generally does not prevent you from actually using the car.
Reliability of something is only one consideration. Another, and sometimes much more important, is-- “What happens when this system fails?”
A 1% chance of a life-saving machine breaking down is far more concerning than a 50% chance of a toaster failing.