New York Times reporter, John Broder recently wrote a damning review of Tesla Motor’s Model S sedan. In response, Tesla president Elon Musk issued a  data-driven take down of Broder’s review, and for all intents and purposes, the reporter looked to be a liar. But he has hit back, reports Wired Magazine.

The first point Broder contested was the fact that the sedan ran out of power. The analysis done by Tesla may have shown that there was still battery power, but made no comment to the fact that the car announced it was shutting down. Broder wrote, “The car’s display screen said the car was shutting down, and it did.” Whether or not the sedan had residual battery is irrelevant. Broder – 1, Tesla – 0.

Even though that round may have gone to Broder, his original story is contradicted by Tesla’s data. Border had this to say,

I began following Tesla’s range-maximization guidelines, which meant dispensing with such battery-draining amenities as warming the cabin and keeping up with traffic. I turned the climate control to low — the temperature was still in the 30s — and planted myself in the far right lane with the cruise control set at 54 miles per hour (the speed limit is 65). Buicks and 18-wheelers flew past, their drivers staring at the nail-polish-red wondercar with California dealer plates.

Tesla’s log shows Border never drove as slow as 54 miles p/h. Border attempted to recant the events from memory.

I do recall setting the cruise control to about 54 m.p.h., as I wrote. The log shows the car traveling about 60 m.p.h. for a nearly 100-mile stretch on the New Jersey Turnpike. I cannot account for the discrepancy, nor for a later stretch in Connecticut where I recall driving about 45 m.p.h., but it may be the result of the car being delivered with 19-inch wheels and all-season tires, not the specified 21-inch wheels and summer tires. That just might have impacted the recorded speed, range, rate of battery depletion or any number of other parameters. Certainly, and as Tesla’s logs clearly show, much of my driving was at or well below the 65 m.p.h. speed limit, with only a single momentary spike above 80. Most drivers are aware that cars can speed up, even sometimes when cruise control is engaged, on downhill stretches.

However modern cruise control maintains the speed to which it is set, regardless of downhill slopes. Broder further claimed to have plugged in the sedan for 58 minutes, while Tesla contests that, stating he plugged in for 47 minutes.

The feud is no longer about the Tesla Model S’s suitability for long road trips. It is now about journalists taking notes and recalling from memory, and hard data provided by Tesla.

[Source: Wired, Tesla Blog]