The DRIVEN: Tesla Does 400,000km on One Set of Brake Pads

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Source: The DRIVEN post

SYDNEY — A recent post in The DRIVEN, an Australian website dedicated to electric vehicles, reported on an Australian Tesla Model S having gone more than 400,000 kilometers (approximately 250,000 miles) on a single set of brake pads.

According to the publication, despite the ridiculous nature of the claim, Nigel Raynard, who owns a 2018 Tesla Model S 75D, and runs an airport pick up business in the Byron Bay/Ballina region with partner Louise,  cited this, and the fact of not having to replace the battery, as keeping his operating costs extremely low.

He chose the Tesla after watching a video series entitled Dirty Money: Hard NOx about the scandal surrounding diesel engines, thus deciding to run his airport service with an electric vehicle.

Related post:
Tesla Autopilot Saves Pedestrians by Braking on Its Own

Having owned the Model S since August 2018, Raynard is just shy of three years of ownership. But sitting in the vehicle it looks brand new, despite the fact it has been driven almost 400km daily.

“This is on the original battery. I’ve gone from 379 km fully charged to 343km so I believe it’s about a 9 or 10% loss of battery,” he told The DRIVEN.

His records, which have been viewed by The Driven, show that Raynard has spent under $5,000 in servicing and repairs in that time.

“I’m still on the original brake pads to give you an idea of how the vehicles going. It has driven on highways a lot, but given the terrible roads around here I should have had a lot more issues,” The DRIVEN reported him saying.

The following is excerpted from the post:

“A lot of the braking is done via the regenerative braking,” he says – which means the brake pads hardly get used at all.

“In this car the fact is I’ve still got quite a lot of materials left on them. Every time I drive someone who’s a mechanic, someone around cars, they’re like that’s impossible you can’t do 400,000 km on one set of brake pads.”

“The thing is you’re hardly ever braking,” he says adding that “I feel like the Autopilot (Tesla’s standard advanced driver-assist feature) system teaches you to be a more level driver. I see a lot of silly driving, but you realize you have no effect on other people and you’re better off to just let every situation diffuse.

“When you’re on Autopilot and someone does a crazy overtake in a four-wheel drive on the wrong side of the road and flicks gravel up at you, Autopilot doesn’t react. So, you just learn to be a calmer driver which is great for your customers too, because they pick up on that.”

This especially makes sense when driving customers to and from the hospital. After being dropped off for a procedure they often decide they’d prefer to be driven home in a Tesla too, says Raynard.

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“It feels safe, it’s like flying, it’s just smooth sailing,” he says. “They get home and say ‘I’m so glad that you’re available to pick me up.’.”

The entire post can be viewed by clicking HERE.

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The Brake Report

The BRAKE Report is an online media platform dedicated to the automotive and commercial vehicle brake segments. Our mission is to provide the global brake community with the latest news & headlines from around the industry.