Is It Worth Buying the Tesla Model 3 Review Fully Loaded Now or Wait
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At long terminal, information technology's time for my official Andy's Travel Blog review of my Tesla Model 3. I wanted to wait until I had driven it enough to give a full, relatively objective review based on long-term buying and many miles of driving.
Here'south the short version: information technology's the all-time machine I've ever owned.
Here's the longer version.
The Tesla Model 3 Purchasing Feel in Texas
[quick aside from the author: I used to sell cars for a living, and so I was absolutely fascinated by the Tesla purchasing experience and wanted to make information technology as different from the typical dealership every bit possible]
So how did I society my Tesla? One evening in early November 2019, I needed to run to a CVS Pharmacy to encounter a guy to sell my DJI Phantom 4 Pro drone. I sat in the parking lot waiting for him and decided it was time to order my Tesla. I pulled out my phone, went to Tesla.com, and ordered information technology.
That was it. It was really uneventful.
Now, a reminder, I live in Texas, the land where Everything Is Bigger. Unfortunately, this includes Dealership Franchise Laws. Fifty-fifty though Tesla is edifice an enormous new GigaFactory outside of Austin, Texas, the car dealer lobby is still very powerful in the Lone Star Country. This ways that OEMs (original equipment manufacturers, e.g. Tesla, Chevrolet, etc.) cannot sell vehicles directly to consumers, they must go through a dealership. This causes problems because Tesla do not have whatsoever dealerships, they but sell directly to the customer.
Now, does this mean that you have to go out of state to purchase a Tesla? Nope, it just means the paperwork takes a complex road. When information technology came to paying for the Tesla I communicated via email with a finance person in Las Vegas. This passed muster for the land of Texas, so once my vehicle was set up I was still able to pick information technology up at the Tesla Service Centre in Dallas.
The merely thing I'll say well-nigh the purchasing experience is that y'all demand to be patient. You're not actually ordering a custom-made Tesla specifically for you, you're simply putting your mitt upward for the next matching vehicle that Tesla makes. You'll be all excited when you lot order it but then yous'll just have to wait, and it will get frustrating to not take many updates. Tesla tried to out-engineering the typical car purchasing process, and they did a skillful job of it, simply sometimes this makes customers feel like they don't have anyone to contact with questions about their social club. I ended up speaking with five different people in the month information technology took from order to delivery, which was as impressive every bit it was frustrating. Order estimates are viii-12 weeks at the moment, due to the global bit shortage, then be prepared for the wait.
The Model 3 I Ordered
Tesla practice not have the multitude of options that other vehicle manufacturers offering. It really boils down to trim level, colour, wheels, and whether or not you want Full Self Driving.
The Model three I ended upwards with actually no longer exists. I similar driving fast but did not want the Performance model, since I did non really intendance about the bigger wheels or the stick-on spoiler. The one I got was what some people call a Stealth Model 3 because it looks like a Long Range Model three only has the "get fast" of the Performance model. This was a $2000 add-on, which I felt was well-justified. Nowadays they have a $2000 acceleration boost option for Standard+ and Long Range models that gives you lot a bit more speed, simply information technology's not the same as mine.
(no this isn't my house, a friend of mine is an builder and put me in bear upon with 1 of her favorite customers to allow me practice a shoot)
The Delivery Experience
I went to pick upwards the machine from my local service center, located basically across the street from Dear Field in Dallas. An amiable chap showed me effectually the car and answered the few questions I had. And then it was mine!
There wasn't really a lot of pomp and circumstance, merely I didn't really care. I was excited to bulldoze my new car!
And then a pandemic hit
I picked my vehicle up on December 6, 2019. My role is about 4 miles from my home, so I didn't really expect to put that many miles on information technology.
And then COVID happened.
All suddenly, not merely were fewer planes in the air, merely planes were existence parked all over the southern United States. The flights would've been incredibly expensive to add to an already-expensive projection, then I decided to drive. I went to Tucson, to Kansas City, to Tulsa, to Houston. They Will Fly Once more was the outcome.
I heard that Zion National Park was reopening in May 2020. My Tesla took me there for the story.
I became a space dork because of a visit to NASA and some friends invited me on a boat to watch astronauts launch into space from US soil for the start time in 9 years. The Tesla took me out to Florida.
I had the random idea to run a light-hearted prank and do a European road trip, visiting Dublin, London, Moscow, Rome, and Milan…Ohio. 1 of my favorite videos I've e'er shot, featuring my Tesla prominently.
I wanted to hike my first 14er in Colorado. The Tesla took me there.
A buddy purchased a Tesla and wanted to meet me for some Teslaing. So nosotros met at Zion National Park in Nov.
"Andy, y'all love flying, why did y'all drive across the country and so often?" I can hear you asking.That is how much I enjoy my Tesla.
What has the ownership and maintenance experience been like?
It'due south been great. It's fully electrical, so there are no maintenance requirements like you'd accept in an internal combustion engine. That's correct, there are no oil changes or anything like that. The sum total of maintenance I've performed since I got my Tesla has been tire rotations and replacement. It has been incredibly reliable, even going for 20+ hours at a time during some of the trips to a higher place.
As far equally the twenty-four hour period-to-twenty-four hours experience goes, it really is similar a regular motorcar, with some cool exceptions. Regular cars will gyre/coast when you take your foot off the gas pedal. The Tesla, basically like a golf cart, will begin to apply rolling resistance to recharge the batteries, slowing your automobile down surprisingly quickly, almost like a lite press of the brake pedal. This took some getting used to, but the do good of this capability is that I will very often go days without using the restriction pedal, meaning my brake pads will last much longer than in a normal automobile.
Some other cool thing is the ability to receive software updates over-the-air. In nigh vehicles (although this is changing considering of the precedent Tesla is setting), the version of the software in the car that yous buy is the one that will stay with you forever. Tesla, though, sends out frequent updates, fixing bugs, fine-tuning the range estimates, and even calculation new features. Information technology's comforting knowing that even when my car gets older it will still be relatively like to a brand new one in terms of software.
How'due south the range?
There are two answers to this. From 100% charge down to 0% charge I tin get approximately 300 miles if I don't bulldoze besides fast. Existent-world, though, I alive between 80% and xx%. Charging the battery to completely full isn't cracking for it and draining it shut to empty isn't bang-up for it, so real earth I get nigh 180-200 miles between charges.
Things that hurt the range: speed (it takes battery ability to push through all the wind resistance), uphill roads (these cars are heavy), ac (similar to it impacting gas mileage in a regular motorcar) and, surprisingly, the heating system during cold weather. Heaters in regular cars leach off the full general rut of the engine to heat the interior of your car, but a Tesla generates no estrus (because there's no big hulking engine up front end), then the Tesla has to generate the estrus, which takes up battery life. I ordinarily don't utilize the heater much and just turn the seat heaters on during the winter.
What most charging? Is it a hurting?
Charging takes a lot longer than refueling a typical car. No doubt about information technology. But you become used to information technology. It'south likewise much cheaper, specially at electric current gas prices. I actually do not charge at dwelling house either. I live across the highway from a Supercharger station in Dallas and just hop over whenever I need to charge, costing me $5-7 and taking 30-45 minutes.
When I take these long road trips, I put in my destination and the automobile calculates not only how where I need to end merely also for how long. At that place's no use charging to full when the next charger is only 150 miles away and the estimator takes that into account. I've simply felt worried a few times, and both of them were taking the shortcut through the Navajo Nation going into Page, Arizona.
And then, moral of the story: charging takes a while on road trips, merely it'south not that bad, you lot get used to information technology pretty quickly. Plus you tin watch Netflix or YouTube on the screen while it'due south charging or put the seat back for a quick nap. It ends up working out merely fine.
Ok so what about the Autopilot/Full Self Driving matter?
All Tesla vehicles come with basic Autopilot, which volition continue you in the heart of the lane you lot're traveling with and go along you a safe distance from the car in front of you. It'south actually slick and I got used to it most instantly. No, it does not hateful I can take a nap while the car drives for me. You have to go on your hands on the steering wheel when the motorcar is driving, and, if the automobile does not discover your hands on the steering wheel, it volition ask you to milk shake the steering bicycle slightly and then it knows you're even so paying attention.
That's bones Autopilot. At that place's another choice: the tantalizingly-named Full Self Driving.
FSD, as it's known, is bachelor via a quondam purchase for $10,000 or a subscription ground for $250/month. In addition to basic autopilot, full self driving adds lane changing (either at your command or whenever the motorcar decides it should), summon (move the car forrard or backward when it'south in a tight parking spot), car-park for parallel parking, and Smart Summon, where your car will come get you in certain parking lots. FSD in its current state is really designed for highway driving but it will work in the city besides. On major highways, FSD will get you lot from on-ramp to off-ramp, including highway interchanges.
And so is FSD worth it? I think information technology will be once they release more than features. I purchased information technology back when it was $7000 and I know I overpaid but I've used the features on these long drives and they've been lifesavers. Tesla's pricing model is pretty genius here: you can purchase/subscribe at the current toll and lock information technology in before they raise prices in the future when more functionality is released.
Do I trust information technology? Most of the time. Over fourth dimension I've gotten used to the areas/scenarios that trip it up and am normally set for them before they occur now.
And no, you lot cannot slumber while the motorcar is in autopilot. Yous are responsible for whatsoever decisions the motorcar makes.
So why did you actually buy it?
A buddy I trust, Mike Kelley, kept bugging me to try one out and become out of the "granny" Cadillac ATS I had at the time. I rented a Model 3 on Turo and only made it around the block before I knew I had to have one. I got quite a few reactions when I picked mine up. I was at a Starbucks when someone came up to me and very sincerely thanked me for ownership an electric vehicle. Someone else taunted me and asked if I felt like some sort of hero considering I bought an electric vehicle. Still others will say things like, "Down with oil!" and are disappointed when I looked flummoxed instead of responding in agreement immediately. While I'm now a bit of a infinite nut virtually what SpaceX is doing to farther our exploration of the universe, I wasn't a peculiarly huge fanboy of Elon Musk when I ordered my Tesla.
Truthfully, I didn't buy the Tesla to Make A Statement of whatever sort.
I bought it for a simple reason: information technology'southward incredibly fun to drive.
I dearest knowing that I'm the fastest car on virtually roads. If I ever need to speed up or slow down to maneuver around some other car, I know my Model iii is nimble and agile enough to do just virtually anything. There is no feeling quite like going from 0-60mph in roughly 3.1 seconds.
I honey that I haven't had to practice any maintenance other than tires and checking the brakes every at present and again.
For being as fast as information technology is, I dearest how shine it rides. And my gracious is it safe, it's constantly monitoring the route effectually me and, considering of the heavy battery, it has an extremely low center of gravity, making information technology and then safe in crash tests that information technology basically needs its ain category.
Ok surely it's not perfect, what do you non like well-nigh information technology?
Information technology'southward not perfect. In that location are a few things I don't similar almost my Tesla.
- I miss having an exhaust dissonance. I'd love for them to have an artificial one at some signal, and I imagine they volition at some point.
- The road racket in the Model 3 is pretty bad. It might just exist that it's more than obvious because at that place's non the white noise of an engine to cover information technology up, but I detect information technology much more than than in previous cars.
- When I've needed warranty piece of work I usually need to wait a fleck for an appointment. I haven't needed anything critical, thankfully, but they handle all service through the app, which tin exist actually inconvenient, speaking as someone who used to be a service advisor at a dealership. I practice love, though, that many items tin be taken intendance of by a mobile service rep, I simply park my car along the street and they bear witness up, fix whatever needs fixing, and are on their style.
- The business concern model of the FSD add together-on bugs me. Full-self driving stays with the machine, not with the owner. There are a lot of things that excite me about the Model Y but I would never buy ane now, since I would need to pay another $10,000 to go the aforementioned functionality I've already paid for with my Model 3.
Honestly, though, I really had to nitpick to find things not to like.
Ok permit's await at some stats.
I've driven my Tesla 50,200 miles in 21 months.
Wow.
Granted, I've been on a lot of road trips but still, that's a lot.
If I were to install a charger at my domicile I would pay far less in charging fees, so please don't take my charging stats as gospel or anything. The Tesla utilize model is really designed effectually people charging at home overnight, when rates are lower.
Here are some maths: I've paid an average of $116/month to charge my car over its life so far. That seems like a high number, but allow's compare that to a typical gasoline-fueled motorcar. fifty,000 miles in 21 months is approximately 2380 miles/month. If we assume an average of 20 miles/gallon, that equates to roughly 119 gallons of gas per month, which, if we apply the national average price during 2019-2020 of roughly $two.25/gallon, gets usa to $267/month. So, even though I've called the nearly expensive version of owning a Tesla (not charging at dwelling), I'grand still saving roughly $150/month over the equivalent gas car. Yes, those numbers can change depending on the gas mileage of whatever gas car I would've had, but 20mpg is pretty fair for me, based on how I drive.
I've replaced one set of tires so far for nigh $thou and rotate the tires every 10000 or so miles for gratis at my local tire shop. That's all the maintenance I've washed. Compare that to an oil change every 5000 miles on a regular car and it'due south much better obviously.
Seriously though, I'one thousand not trying to make an economical argument that a Tesla is cheaper than a gas car. Information technology's a luxury vehicle and I've worked very hard to be able to comfortably afford to purchase i. It reduces the corporeality of gasoline I eat, sure, merely making batteries is very pollutive, so who knows what the break-fifty-fifty point is in terms of environmental impact.
I bought the Tesla because information technology'south fun to drive. It has been everything I wanted and more.
I'm fifty,000 miles in and can't expect for the next l,000!
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Source: https://andystravelblog.com/2021/08/27/tesla-model-3-review/
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