Historically, chauffeured cars meant premium brands like Mercedes and Jaguar, but increasingly chauffeurs are starting to look at the benefits of running a Tesla. What is it about these innovative electric vehicles that make them attractive in this sector?
Electric power
Teslas are, of course, entirely powered by electricity, with no internal combustion engine. This has a big advantage for a Tesla chauffeur in London because it means exemption from the congestion charge and the new low emissions zone charge. Plus, of course, running costs are lower.
But electric power has other benefits for chauffeured cars too. It’s very quiet, so passengers are able to relax and do work without disturbance. Yet this refinement doesn’t come at the expense of practicality as the Tesla is roomy, comfortable and well appointed. It also has more than enough performance to hold its own in traffic.
Of course, electric cars need to be charged, but for the Tesla chauffeur in London, there are plenty of charging points available. The inevitable waiting around of a chauffeur’s life means that there is invariably time to get the car charged up and ready for when the customer wants to go. There are benefits for the driver too because the Tesla app allows you to monitor the car’s state of charge so you can go off and get a coffee or a snack and be notified when the car is charged up.
The app allows you to control other functions too. For example, you can turn on the air conditioning remotely so that the interior of the car is always at a comfortable temperature when you return to it. Also, because there’s no petrol or diesel engine the air con is running independently, so there’s no risk of the car overheating.
Driver and passenger comfort
If the driver has to wait with the car they can use the 17-inch touch screen to provide entertainment by streaming music from Spotify or to surf the internet. A premium sound system is available as an option. On the move, the Autopilot feature helps to relieve the stress of the job by allowing the car to take much of the burden during motorway driving. The car, therefore, takes care of the chauffeur’s needs as well as those of the passengers. And of course, software updates means it always has the latest features.
Not having an engine means there’s luggage space at the front as well as the back, so there’s plenty of room for bags. The lack of a transmission tunnel means a flat floor inside the vehicle too. The interior fit and finish mean that Tesla is a nice place to be. For those that want an even more comfortable experience, air suspension is available as an option on the Model S.