I think you somewhat answered your own question.
by Queensman (2022-01-25 11:46:23)
Edited on 2022-01-25 11:48:39

In reply to: Curious  posted by hayesman_


I believe Tesla is ahead given the massive amount of driver and experience data they've been able to collect. I mean everything about Lucid will be in concept phase until they can actually have a large enough fleet of cars in production.

A like a lot of what Lucid is saying, but until they can produce it at scale and put it into mass production, they will be behind.

With over the air software updates, Tesla can improve driver performance in real time. The car learns my driving style and can adjust accordingly.

The best example is with the battery life estimate. When I first bought the car, the estimated battery life wasn't accurate at all...not even close. A few years later and now its scary accurate!

Last fall I went to the ND-UVA game...driving down from Philly with a stop in DC for a night on the way down. On Sunday, I drove straight back from UVA to Philly. It mapped out my trip back with a short recharge stop built in (the charge time was less than my trip to the bathroom and grabbing a breakfast sandwich to go). The estimated battery life was spot on accurate the entire trip. The estimated remaining battery life when I started the trip was within a mile of two of what it actually was when I got home.


Agreed that their software excels currently
by hayesman_  (2022-01-25 12:22:23)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

However the mileage estimate on my “only made for EV credits” VW e-golf is very accurate with it’s range. It’s very nice that the Tesla’s will plan your route with stops for charging.

I guess my concern lies in their ability to innovate beyond what they already have. Carbon sleeving to shave a couple tenths off a 0-60 time doesn’t mean anything to the general public. It’s also just improving upon a motor that’s a decade old. Sure, GM was putting the iron duke into cars for 25 years but it’s horrible efficiency lead to them getting passed by Asian automakers when consumers wanted better fuel economy. Then they got complacent (Honda mainly) failing to adapt to more stringent emissions rules when everyone got better at forced induction. In my mind Tesla has hung their hat on a modular chassis they have little interest in updating, along with an aging motor. This while still relying on Samsung cells for the batteries who’s modules haven’t been changed for 5+ years. The biggest innovation they could be doing is figuring out how to reduce prices as they scale yet due to increased demand they’re doing the opposite. I just worry that eventually people will discover that there are other options.

And yes, the Tesla supercharging network is probably the best decision Elon musk has made, but with 850ish stations and sales like they’ve had recently, those eventually become crowded and less useful. There’s also a lot of misinformation regarding charge times like Tesla has a secret sauce…an electrify america station can charge a lucid quicker than a Tesla. And due to battery construction and management, after 20-30 minutes on a level 3 charger, everything becomes equal across makes/models/platforms