About once every ten hours of driving on autopilot, it will make some sudden mistake like turning into a line of stopped cars, or aiming right at a construction median. So, never let your guard down.
In the rainy northwest, the side cameras often get blocked by rain, which prevents the autopilot form making lane changes. I solved this by coating the cameras with "Aquapel" for $3 and it decreased the frequency of those warnings. Using "Rain-X" (not as good) or Aquapel seems to create very heated discussion on the internet, but has worked well for me. Just don't put it on the front windshield - the owner's manual specifically says not to do this.
It's about $3 a treatment that is said to last a year or so.
The Tesla is a heavy car, and you get fooled by the amazing acceleration into thinking it can stop quickly. I had an accident the 3rd day I owned the car because someone cut in front of me on a wet morning and I couldn't stop in time. So beware and leave more stopping distance than you're used to.
As you're driving, the autopilot needs frequent reminders that you're still awake and paying attention. The prompt on the screen says to "turn the wheel slightly," but it will also respond to adjusting the volume of the radio, or changing the cruise control by 1 mph, which is sometimes easier to do every 30 seconds than forcing the steering wheel.
If you swipe down on the "Navigate" box on the top left of the screen, it automatically selects "navigate to home," which saves you a few steps. It took me a while to learn this. A few other little tips - to unlock all the doors instead of just the driver door, press the "Park" button twice.
If you select "Range Mode" to maximize distance per charge, the cabin air temperature heating and AC and the defroster don't work at maximum capacity (because that saps a lot of power,) so if you need those in a hurry, take it out of "range mode."
The rate at which a supercharger charges your car is higher at the low end of battery capacity, and much slower at the top 30% of capacity (to help preserve battery life). Also, the battery doesn't last as long when you charge it all the way to the top, so run it most days between, say 10% and 70% charged. Also, in planning long trips, it's better to plan to arrive at supercharging stations with the battery almost empty, to capitalize on those fast charge rates. There's an app called ABRP ("a better route planner") that maps this all out better than the car itself does.
When driving to a Supercharger, the graphic on your Tesla screen that indicates how full the charging station in disappears once you start on the route. You can update this, however, and see how full it is by tapping on the destination on the screen.
The Tesla has very little maintenance, but a few things you have to remember. I found this video about checking the brake fluid useful, as it can save you an entire service trip and costs if you just check the brake fluid yourself. (If you drive carefully with regenerative braking, you hardly ever touch the brakes, so brake fluid may stay healthy longer than manufacturer's recommendations.)
Tesla maintenance was recently revised to be even simpler and cheaper. At 7:16 he describes how to check your own brake fluid to see if it needs replacing.
Brake fluid tester device:
Brake fluid test strips:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0753MZT7P/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Getting an electrician to come install your charger can take several weeks in the busy Seattle market, so as soon as you order your vehicle, get to work on this.
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