2015 Tesla Model S P85D: Consumer Reports’ Top-Rated Car Ever Tested
On August 27th,
Consumer Reports announced that the new Tesla Model S P85D was the highest-rated car it had ever tested, with a rating of 103 (out of 100), breaking its rating scale
On its website,
Consumer Reports gushed about the new
Model S P85D:
The new model exceeds both the performance of its predecessor and expectations on many metrics. It
accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.5 seconds, as compared to 5.6 seconds for the preceding Model S. It also features an option of “Insane Mode,” which enables it to accelerate from 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds, and has a “
Ludicrous Mode” that enables it to go from 0 to 60 within 2.8 seconds. The new models are manufactured at the Tesla Automotive plant in Fremont, CA.
Yet the P85D is not a car for most of us, since its $127,820 price tag is out of reach for most people.
Consumer Reports’ director of automotive testing told
Forbes that the review was more a vision of the future than a suggestion to go out and buy one today:
Let’s be clear about something…We don’t test $120,000 cars. We’re not doing this because we want people to go out and find the best $120,000 car. This is really a glimpse into the future of what we can see in cars….This is the first time that a car increases performance with all-wheel-drive and energy efficiency. It’s unprecedented…It’s pushing the envelope in so many benchmarks that it really scored off the charts.
Model X Available This Month
The image below depicts the Model X’s unusual gull/falcon wing doors, its equipment and the base model is priced starting at about $70,000.
2016 Tesla Model X
Upcoming Tesla Model 3
On September 2, Musk also announced that Tesla would begin taking preorders for the upcoming Model 3 (promised to be an “all-electric vehicle for the masses”) next March at a price of $35,000, for availability in 2017, i.e., the following year. Musk’s Giga factory reference relates to the new lithium-ion battery factory that the company is building in Reno, NV. The car will rely on the factory’s low-cost batteries.
