2015 Tesla Model S 70D first drive

It is a bizarre feeling watching the wheel twirling itself as you barrel along the motorway at 70mph, made even stranger by the confidence the system inspires that, rather oxymoronically, makes you relax and feel like this is quite the norm.

The Tesla sticks rigidly to the centre of its lane – more so than the meandering systems we’ve experienced from Mercedes and BMW – and locks onto the car in front like a Tomahawk, tenaciously maintaining the desired distance whether that car picks up speed or stabs on its brakes.

Unlike those other systems it doesn’t need you to keep your hands on the wheel, and if you indicate it will happily change lanes for you, too.

But as Tesla is at pains to point out, it doesn’t mean you can ignore what’s going on outside while you concentrate on Matt Prior’s latest YouTube video on the excellent 17in central touchscreen. Watch the video, of course, but wait until you’re back home.

The system may be good, but like any piece of tech in the early stages of development, it has issues. If it decides to jink left like an erratic puppy that's seen a tabby cat, telling an officer of the law in the aftermath of any incident that you don’t know what happened because the car was driving itself won’t aid your defence - and quite rightly so.

So what about the rest of the car? Well, it just gets better and better. The ride is much improved over the early cars we tried. It’s firm in a sporty way, but feels beautifully engineered to keep a decent level of compliance with no crashy moments to ruffle your feathers.

For a big saloon that’s capable of transporting five people in comfort – or seven if you get a third row of seats fitted – it handles and steers beautifully. Yes, you can feel there’s considerable mass around you as you carve between apexes, but the body stays superbly controlled with next to no roll. The steering is quick and accurate with lovely weighting, even if it doesn’t exude oodles of feel.

The airy cabin is also a great place in which to spend some time, and not just because of the endless fun you can have playing with that big iPad-style screen. The current generation car's front seats fit like a tailored glove and mark a huge improvement over the narrow and unsupportive perches fitted to the early cars. And you can't argue with the space on offer either, whether in the front, back, or in either the two generously proportioned boots.