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Originally Posted by KingOfJericho
Wait a minute... The Tesla S is intended for the shorter regular commute consumers but you poo poo it for not having longer range capabilities but you afford the Volt the luxury of being used for only it's intended use? It doesn't sound like you're giving the Tesla a air shot at all.
Also, I would love to know what alternative routes you know of between DC and NYC where traffic is not an issue...
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The difference is the Volt's intended use is to replace a gas-only car with a extended-range electric car; both vehicles are range-unlimited. The Tesla is meant to replace a gas-only car with an electric-only car and is range-limited.
I'll 'splain my comment about my commute to you. I drive 160 to 170 miles a day, round trip to work (there's a 10 mile difference depending which route I take). The Volt has a electric-only range of about 40 miles, which is half of my one-way commute. So my trip would be 40 miles electric and 40 miles gas (just over a gallon) per one way trip. Assuming I could charge the car at work I can then drive home at 40 miles electric and 40 miles gas. However, right now I can't charge at work because there is no 240V charging station in our building; I could use a 120V plug in the garage for the 8 hours or so it takes to recharge the Volt, but there is no way to meter it directly and pay back the building owner. I've asked our company's HR department to see if I could arrange some sort of payment system with the building owner, but haven't pursued it since then (about 10 months ago). Not charging at work makes the Volt even less cost-efficient for my commute.
The Volt's most cost-efficient use pattern (i.e. intended use) is to use it mostly in electric-only mode and occasionally use it in gas mode (this helps offset the initial high cost of the car as compared to other compact sedans of the same interior size - i.e. a Honda Civic, or a Chevy Cruze). When you start using the Volt in the drive pattern I described above, the cost efficiency goes down (but the use capability doesn't); and on a comparative cost-basis, other cars (such as the Civic or Cruze) are more cost effective to use in my 160 mile daily trip. Cost comparative basis meaning a monthly cost to operate the car which includes car payment, fuel, and maintenance. The Civic and Cruze (just used here as examples for discussion) purchase prices are a lot lower than the Volt, which is why on a more-gas-intensive-use of the Volt, the Civic and Cruze are less expensive to use. The savings by use of electricity as the fuel in the Volt (because it is less expensive than gasoline per mile), offsets the price differential of the Volt. This changing for the better though as GM has reduced the Volt's price by $5K recently.
Now to wrap this back to the Tesla S... The Tesla S is convenience range-limited, whereas the Volt is not; that's the difference. Meaning as compared to a gasoline car, which can be refueled almost anywhere in the United States in 3 minutes, the Tesla S can't match the convenience of refueling an ICE-powered car when it runs out of fuel; the Volt can be used unlimited in gas-mode. The minimum time to refuel the S is 30 minutes for 200 miles (estimated). Tesla now says it can refuel the S in 90 seconds for a cost $45 for 300 miles (estimated) additional range, but you can refuel an E90 in under 3 minutes for 474 miles of range (estimated) for $60.
The issue with your point is you say the Tesla is the best thing since sliced bread because you've narrowed down the Tesla to use as a limited range vehicle. My point, and other's points here, is that the Tesla is meant to
replace a range-unlimited ICE car (that's what Elon Musk thinks too - go read the website, and as evidenced by Tesla building an infrastructure for Tesla-only fuel stations), which when taken in whole as a convenient conveyance device, the Tesla is not the better car.
DC - NYC via 83 out of B'more to York, PA, 222 to Allentown, 78 into NYC. I could find an even better off-interstate route, but the point is if you want to possibly use the Tesla in an extended range capacity you are limited to major interstate routes, which grossly limits your freedom of choice. I won't even go into the political ramifications of that...