Test Drive today - specific things to try or look for?

[JoshG]

I have a Gravity test drive today at 10am pacific. Not much time to gather input/requests, but if there's anything specific I (and other members here with test drives this week) should look for or check, post here.
As an Air Touring driver, will be mainly focused on the driving feel vs. the Air. The Air is already a large vehicle for my tastes, and am going to really try to get a feel if this feels significantly bigger in overall dynamics, in parking maneuvers, visibility to the corners, etc.
Want to also see if the HUD is now enabled since that was clearly not yet finished when the press cars at the recent events.
Alas, no, I won't have a Dragy to take with me to further validate the 0-60!
what else?

 

[98point1]

I have a Gravity test drive today at 10am pacific. Not much time to gather input/requests, but if there's anything specific I (and other members here with test drives this week) should look for or check, post here.
As an Air Touring driver, will be mainly focused on the driving feel vs. the Air. The Air is already a large vehicle for my tastes, and am going to really try to get a feel if this feels significantly bigger in overall dynamics, in parking maneuvers, visibility to the corners, etc.
Want to also see if the HUD is now enabled since that was clearly not yet finished when the press cars at the recent events.
Alas, no, I won't have a Dragy to take with me to further validate the 0-60!
what else?

I'm going next month in Virginia, but I definitely want to know what people are thinking as they test them out. It'll probably be the same vehicles making the rounds across the country, but I want to see how they hold up quality wise. If your test route has some fun roads, let us know how it handles. Not likely to get any of that in Northern VA. Have fun!

 

[JoshG]

Oh, that gives me a good idea. People should get the VIN number so we can see if the reports are coming from the exact same vehicle. will try to remember.

 

[Tâm]

I have a Gravity test drive today at 10am pacific. Not much time to gather input/requests, but if there's anything specific I (and other members here with test drives this week) should look for or check, post here.
As an Air Touring driver, will be mainly focused on the driving feel vs. the Air. The Air is already a large vehicle for my tastes, and am going to really try to get a feel if this feels significantly bigger in overall dynamics, in parking maneuvers, visibility to the corners, etc.
Want to also see if the HUD is now enabled since that was clearly not yet finished when the press cars at the recent events.
Alas, no, I won't have a Dragy to take with me to further validate the 0-60!
what else?

How is the Dream Drive Pro 2 doing? Any missing features?

 

[JoshG]

How is the Dream Drive Pro 2 doing? Any missing features?

Ha, given the state of my Air's DDPro, I'm sure it'll be missing lots of promised features for quite a while. Will try to look at what's there... are there specific things that it's supposed to do at launch i should check? Haven't heard if there's dashcam or sentry mode features or if it's just more of a new sensor suite for the future and still has the basic Highway Assist and autopark stuff.

 

[HaltheAerialist]

I have a Gravity test drive today at 10am pacific. Not much time to gather input/requests, but if there's anything specific I (and other members here with test drives this week) should look for or check, post here.
As an Air Touring driver, will be mainly focused on the driving feel vs. the Air. The Air is already a large vehicle for my tastes, and am going to really try to get a feel if this feels significantly bigger in overall dynamics, in parking maneuvers, visibility to the corners, etc.
Want to also see if the HUD is now enabled since that was clearly not yet finished when the press cars at the recent events.
Alas, no, I won't have a Dragy to take with me to further validate the 0-60!
what else?

I like your list! I also wonder how big it feels to drive and what visibility is like.
A critical issue for me is the seats and driving position, especially as a short person. (Nearly all automotive journalists seem to be tall.) It also seems that the test vehicles are fully loaded with all of the options, including the leather interiors and 22/23" wheels. I'm curious how the base interior and seats compare to the upgraded ones, if such a vehicle is on hand.
How is the audio from Surreal Sound Pro? (if you have time to try it out.)
Thanks so much for reporting to us!

 

[JoshG]

I like your list! I also wonder how big it feels to drive and what visibility is like.
A critical issue for me is the seats and driving position, especially as a short person. (Nearly all automotive journalists seem to be tall.) It also seems that the test vehicles are fully loaded with all of the options, including the leather interiors and 22/23" wheels. I'm curious how the base interior and seats compare to the upgraded ones, if such a vehicle is on hand.
How is the audio from Surreal Sound Pro? (if you have time to try it out.)
Thanks so much for reporting to us!

good additions. I'm 5'9" so will report back on seat comfort and positions for shorter people.

 

[EVCar]

Two minor things:
1- Do you see any reflection of the dashboard on the windshield?
2- Can the charging cable be removed without fully unlocking the car and turning on the headlights?
Thanks.

 

[JoshG]

Two minor things:
1- Do you see any reflection of the dashboard on the windshield?
2- Can the charging cable be removed without fully unlocking the car and turning on the headlights?
Thanks.

Will do. Doubt I'll be able to play with charging cable, but will try. (turning on headlights?? what should that have to do with charging cable lock?)

 

[EVCar]

Will do. Doubt I'll be able to play with charging cable, but will try. (turning on headlights?? what should that have to do with charging cable lock?)

For me, when I remove the charging cable, I have to unlock the car and when I do that, the headlights automatically turn on. The lights could be bothersome to other cars/people in the vicinity.
Maybe there's a workaround that I don't know.

 

[98point1]

I like your list! I also wonder how big it feels to drive and what visibility is like.
A critical issue for me is the seats and driving position, especially as a short person. (Nearly all automotive journalists seem to be tall.) It also seems that the test vehicles are fully loaded with all of the options, including the leather interiors and 22/23" wheels. I'm curious how the base interior and seats compare to the upgraded ones, if such a vehicle is on hand.
How is the audio from Surreal Sound Pro? (if you have time to try it out.)
Thanks so much for reporting to us!

Have you seen this review? The reviewer is short and she said she had issues getting comfortable, but believes given time to adjust everything, she thinks she'd be able to find the settings for her.

 

[jered]

Bring a sheet of drywall with you and see if it fits.

I like your list. I'm curious about HUD, fit-and-finish, seat comfort, and noise (internal and external).

 

[HaltheAerialist]

Have you seen this review? The reviewer is short and she said she had issues getting comfortable, but believes given time to adjust everything, she thinks she'd be able to find the settings for her.

Yes, I did see that review. I'm 5'3" and concerned. She wasn't too specific about what didn't really fit. And I'm rather baffled that she couldn't take a couple of minutes to experiment with the seat settings. Some problems can be fixed with the seat adjustments, but some seats are simply too big for short people, and many don't have a big enough adjustment range for my inflexible body. My proportions are so odd that I really need to try it for myself (30" inseam, short torso, absurdly long arms).

 

[hydbob]

Yes, I did see that review. I'm 5'3" and concerned. She wasn't too specific about what didn't really fit. And I'm rather baffled that she couldn't take a couple of minutes to experiment with the seat settings. Some problems can be fixed with the seat adjustments, but some seats are simply too big for short people, and many don't have a big enough adjustment range for my inflexible body. My proportions are so odd that I really need to try it for myself (30" inseam, short torso, absurdly long arms).

Next Thursday, I will be taking my mother who is 4'10" to drive the Gravity =). She does fine in my car, so I hope Gravity will also be okay, but who knows!

 

[gladtbx]

Surreal Sound Pro or Surreal Sound on the Gravity, how does the sound work comparing to your current Air?
Wireless charger easy to access? Does phone get hot when charging?

 

[flarbear]

Nothing for you to specifically try or pay attention to, but I look forward to your accounting of the process since the San Jose dealer is unfortunately in an extremely busy mall which makes it hard to imagine how they'll set up the test drive so that you aren't stuck in the parking garage or waiting at the dozens of red lights that surround it. It takes 10 of the 20 minutes sometimes just to get onto city streets at that mall. If they stage the test drives outside of the mall, then their "please arrive 15 minutes early" suggestion is more than just wanting people to be on time, there will likely be some walking involved.

 

[borski]

Yes, I did see that review. I'm 5'3" and concerned. She wasn't too specific about what didn't really fit. And I'm rather baffled that she couldn't take a couple of minutes to experiment with the seat settings. Some problems can be fixed with the seat adjustments, but some seats are simply too big for short people, and many don't have a big enough adjustment range for my inflexible body. My proportions are so odd that I really need to try it for myself (30" inseam, short torso, absurdly long arms).

@joec your wife is vertically challenged… how did she find the seat and positioning comfort in the Gravity?

 

[joec]

Yes, I did see that review. I'm 5'3" and concerned. She wasn't too specific about what didn't really fit. And I'm rather baffled that she couldn't take a couple of minutes to experiment with the seat settings. Some problems can be fixed with the seat adjustments, but some seats are simply too big for short people, and many don't have a big enough adjustment range for my inflexible body. My proportions are so odd that I really need to try it for myself (30" inseam, short torso, absurdly long arms).

My wife is 4'11. We didn't have a chance to fully adjust and have her drive around, but within seconds of sitting in Gravity she found the seat and wheel position better than that in our Air. I think it has to do with the wheel shape helping with visibility, and the seat being higher off the ground by default.

Also, since we have a Touring Air, the headrest is not adjustable. Once we pushed the headrest forward on Gravity, that helped a great deal, too. My guess is this reviewer, as she said, just needed more time to play around and make more adjustments.

Having said all that, obviously you should test drive yourself and see if it fits for you. Our lease is up in December, and though I've always planned on just buying my Touring, I'm thinking if my wife can do a test drive between now and then, and she finds Gravity more comfortable, I may just make the switch.

 

[jered]

I have a Gravity test drive today at 10am pacific.

OK, you've been back for at least 20 minutes now, why are there not videos and 20 page reports yet? Don't you know people on this forum on constantly hitting refresh for updates?

 

[JoshG]

Ha. Still at the showroom checking out the new full production version they have now on the floor at valley fair. Just arrived.

Full report when I get home. Very impressive. Even did a full launch mode start to 60. And 360s in a parking lot to really check turning radius which is impressive. More soon