S-Klub LA, a private Coach design studio in southern California, builds and designs artistic automobiles. They’re individually unique and one-of-a-kind, and S-Klub decided that it was time to take their retro touch and put it on a Tesla Model 3.
Tesla rebuilds – using the motors and batteries – are extremely popular with retro car modders. It’s an easy way to have a highly performant vehicle – without needing to hunt down or hand-produce old parts for vehicles that aren’t made anymore. Additionally – this leaves them with a lot more space on the inside and less maintenance to perform. Some modders even go as far as including a speaker to emulate engine noises.
But this rebuild is a bit more unique… Let’s get into it.
Mercedes 300SL or Model 3?
The base body is actually a Mercedes 300SL, with some modifications made to fit the battery, motors, and computers of a Model 3. Interestingly, this isn’t actually a real Mercedes 300SL body, but rather a fiberglass replica. The car was previously displayed at Specialty Equipment Market Association (of the automotive aftermarket) – or SEMA SHOW 2023 in Las Vegas.
The Tiffany 300 SL, as it’s named by S-Klub LA, took some extensive work to build, with many of the parts hand-made and hand-designed to build a convincing classic Gullwing body.
The Tiffany moniker comes from the fashion brand Tiffany Co – it’s their brand Tiffany Green and Blue that decorates this car inside out. The car drives and is fully functional, which is definitely a testament to the team’s engineering skills.
The interior, in Tiffany colours, replete with Tesla steering wheel and central screen.
Not a Tesla App
Mercedes With FSD?
The folks at S-Klub LA did go through the work of re-installing the Autopilot Cameras and re-using the main Tesla infotainment and Autopilot computers – something that very few retro EV-modders do. This vehicle is definitely more Model 3 than Mercedes – the steering wheel and steering rack, as well as the entire central infotainment system are still intact.
According to the listing information – because yes, you could buy this thing if you wanted – since all the cameras and sensors are intact, it is possible to enable Autopilot on this vehicle. We’re not sure exactly how well that would work – considering the positions of the cameras are likely no longer the same as the original Model 3, the wheelbase has been changed, and the car is an entirely different shape.
We definitely would not recommend trying this vehicle with Autopilot - especially given how long it takes Tesla to simply get AP working on a new vehicle chassis like the Cybertruck - which won’t get FSD or AP until V12.5.
Another shot of the
Not a Tesla App
Definitely Retro
It’s absolutely an original vehicle – that we can say for sure. The Gullwing 300SL is quite a popular vehicle – a 1955 300SL recently sold in 2022 for $6.8 million at RM Sotheby’s auction – but that was an intact, original vehicle, not a replica hull built over a Model 3.
S-Klub LA doesn’t actually list any prices for their one-of-a-kind vehicles, but if for some reason you love Tifanny colors and the idea of a 1955 Gullwing with semi-functional Tesla Autopilot, you can check out their store page.
Build Process
You can check out a video recap of their build process here.
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Tesla has added a new feature to Track Mode v3 with software update 2024.38.4 and higher. This update lets users configure how aggressively their powertrain is cooled.
One of the biggest challenges of racing or tracking Teslas has been sustained performance as drivetrain components start to heat up. Previously, performance was optimized for maximum power, which would result in very high performance initially, but performance would quickly degrade after multiple laps. With this update Tesla is now giving users more control of their vehicle’s performance and cooling.
Thermal Limiting
Tesla limits vehicle performance as components reach their thermal limit. These could be the brakes, motors, or batteries. While the battery performs best when hot, too hot isn’t good for its life either. In terms of the motors, as they get increasingly hot, they’ll be at risk of damaging themselves, so the vehicle will thermally limit itself.
Track Mode also provides aggressive cooling at an increased level before, during, and after a track session, which helps to ensure that the vehicle stays within its safe thermal limits as you push it as hard as possible.
Powertrain Endurance
Powertrain Endurance is available in the Track Mode V3 menu between the Stability Assist options and the Regenerative Braking slider. It has three options: Standard, Increased, and Maximum.
Standard - This essentially provides no change to the existing functionality, so you’ll get the fastest initial times, but you’ll be thermally limited more quickly.
Increased - This is the next step up, providing a balance between initial performance and sustained power. It’ll give you more steady performance over multiple laps, but you may still get thermally limited.
Maximum - This setting will reduce your vehicle’s performance but ensures that the vehicle’s available power will last for longer distances. This is the option many have wanted to see - a way to get maximum performance without getting thermally limited and having to slow down immensely.
The 3 options in Track Mode V3
@PatrickMJanson on X
Supported Vehicles
For now, this option appears to only be able available on Track Mode v3 vehicles with update 2024.38.4 and later. For now, that means only the 2024 Model 3 Performance - the Highland refresh - has that capability.
Tesla has updated its Vehicle Safety Report once again, in line with the third financial quarter of 2024. Each quarter, alongside its Earnings Call, Tesla provides an update to its Vehicle Safety Report, which includes a massive amount of data on how safe Tesla’s vehicles are.
Q3 2024
In the third quarter, Tesla vehicles had one crash every 7.08 million miles while drivers were using either Autopilot or FSD. Meanwhile, those who didn’t use either regularly had one crash every 1.29 million miles in a Tesla.
The NHTSA shows that the average driver is in a crash once every 670,000 miles. Even if you weren’t using Autopilot or FSD but were in a Tesla, you were twice as unlikely to be in a crash. If you were using Autopilot or FSD, you were over 10.5 less likely to be in an accident compared to the average driver in the United States.
In Q1 2024, Tesla achieved a record-breaking 7.6 million miles driven before an accident while on Autopilot or FSD, and they’re trending back upwards after a Q2 miss at 6.8 million miles. Every batch of major improvements has increased this number drastically. If we look back to Q3 2021, it was only 5.5 million miles, while Q3 2019 was at 3.85 million miles.
It’s not a coincidence that Tesla’s safety numbers continue to improve. Tesla’s overall package of safety features, including technologies like Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Avoidance, and Collision Avoidance Assist, work through FSD’s vision-based system to keep both the vehicle’s occupants as well as other road users safe. Tesla continues to improve these safety features through continuous software updates, and as FSD improves, so do these safety features.
When you combine safety features with the only fully vision-based self-driving package on the market, you’ve got a vehicle that is demonstrably safer than the average road vehicle.