{"id":21932,"date":"2018-03-01T18:32:54","date_gmt":"2018-03-01T22:32:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=21932"},"modified":"2018-03-01T18:32:54","modified_gmt":"2018-03-01T22:32:54","slug":"review-tesla-model-3-lives-up-to-hype","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2018\/03\/review-tesla-model-3-lives-up-to-hype","title":{"rendered":"Review: Tesla Model 3 lives up to hype"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/-mm-\/305e3861ebf5bfc525de436125ada966b928db4c\/c=549-499-2893-2261&amp;r=x404&amp;c=534x401\/local\/-\/media\/2018\/02\/26\/DetroitNews\/B99633102Z.1_20180226222418_000_GRU1SV167.1-0.jpg\" alt=\"model3_vinsetta-side\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\"><em>Correction: This review has been updated to reflect that the Tesla Model 3 keyless entry system responds to a digital key transmitted by Bluetooth from the car owner\u2019s phone or by tapping a thin card on the car\u2019s b-pillar. The system was incorrectly described. Also, the \u201cAutosteer\u201d feature cautions drivers to check mirrors for oncoming traffic before activating a lane change. The level of autonomy was incorrectly characterized. Finally, the characterization of the body panel fit as inconsistent has been restored from an earlier version.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">Peering over the instrument-free dashboard, I threw the compact Tesla Model 3 into an M-10 cloverleaf. Its balanced rear-wheel drive chassis rotated easily, then \u2014\u00a0<em>zot!<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 I bolted silently onto the freeway with instant electric-motor torque.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The \u201cmini-Model S\u201d is here, and it\u2019s everything its iconic big brother is. And less.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Less, as in half the price. I spent a day around Metro Detroit driving one of the first customer-owned Model 3s delivered to Michigan. At a loaded, $59,000 ($35,000 base), the newest Tesla family sedan is considerably easier on the wallet than the $130,000 ($74,500 base) Model S sedans\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/opinion\/columnists\/henry-payne\/2015\/11\/04\/payne-ludicrous-tesla-model-pd\/75185886\/\">I have driven in recent years<\/a>. Yet, in many ways, Model 3 is a more satisfying product.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-position-162\" class=\"partner-placement partner-spike partner-placement-visible\" data-monetization-id=\"native-article_link\" data-monetization-sizes=\"fluid,3,3\">\n<div id=\"ad-slot-7103-mi-detroit-C1561-native-article_link-news-opinion-164\" class=\"ad-slot\" data-google-query-id=\"CLK-voSXzNkCFUqMaQodpycDKQ\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_7103\/mi-detroit-C1561\/native-article_link\/news\/opinion_0__container__\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"google_ads_iframe_7103\/mi-detroit-C1561\/native-article_link\/news\/opinion_0\" title=\"3rd party ad content\" src=\"http:\/\/tpc.googlesyndication.com\/safeframe\/1-0-16\/html\/container.html\" name=\"\" width=\"0\" height=\"162\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" sandbox=\"allow-forms allow-pointer-lock allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation\" data-is-safeframe=\"true\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Unless you\u2019ve been living on Mars, you know the Model 3\u2019s production launch has been a pickle \u2014 \u201cproduction Hell\u201d CEO Elon Musk calls it \u2014 as the young Silicon Valley automaker has struggled to get the assembly line moving for its mass-market EV with a range of 200-plus miles.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Musk\u2019s bravado hasn\u2019t helped. He boasted that Tesla would be turning out 5,000 vehicles a week by December 2017 (actual production: about 1,500 for the month). He took shots at legacy automakers, calling the pace of today\u2019s manufacturing\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/elon-musk-says-grandma-walker-210000322.html\">slower than<\/a>\u201cgrandma with a walker.\u201d\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/joannmuller\/2018\/02\/16\/tesla-thinks-it-will-school-toyota-on-lean-manufacturing-fixing-model-3-launch-would-be-a-start\/#53bf0d174c74\">Added Musk<\/a>: \u201cWhy shouldn\u2019t it at least be jogging speed?\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"partner-outstream\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Critics have delighted as the most audacious auto entrepreneur since Henry Ford has struggled to get production up to a jog. But product will ultimately define Tesla \u2014 product that spurred an unprecedented 450,000-plus pre-orders from customers like me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Take the much-ballyhooed issue of Tesla build-quality. Walking around this blue Model 3 tester, body panel fit is inconsistent. Gaps in the lid of the \u201cfrunk\u201d \u2014 the front trunk \u2014 vary from nose to fender. An A-pillar seam is slightly misaligned. That doesn\u2019t happen on, say, the similarly priced Audi RS3 I recently sampled.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I doubt owners will sweat such minutiae because the Model 3 is unlike anything they have driven. It\u2019s the iPhone of autos.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Take that frunk: Luggage storage like that doesn\u2019t exist on other cars except for the Porsche 911. But the 911 has a frunk in front because its engine is in back. With its battery-pack stowed under the floorboards, the Model 3 also has ample trunk-storage in the rear, augmented by bench seats that fold flat so you can pass through big toys like flat-screen TVs or skis.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The front cabin is as striking as the first iPhone you saw in 2007. The austere dash is uninterrupted by an instrument panel or butterfly-vent controls. Most controls are contained in a 15-inch, horizontal tablet that\u2019s positioned high in the center console. Indeed, there\u2019s not a single button in the cabin except for door openers and a federally mandated \u201cemergency flasher\u201d button in the ceiling. Glove box button? In the screen. Temperature controls? Screen. Radio? Screen.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Like a smartphone, the touchscreen uses a Google Maps interface for Tesla&#8217;s voice-activated\u00a0navigation system. More responsive than the last Model S I tested, Google Maps loads quickly and responds to direct voice-commands \u2014 there are no multi-step navigation commands like most cars. \u201cNavigate to Vinsetta Garage,\u201d I barked after a sudden urge for mac and cheese. Done.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Only the mirrors and steering-wheel position are not controlled through the screen; they\u2019re adjusted by two thumb-operated orbs on the steering wheel. If the iPhone redefined phone glass, then Tesla expands auto glass with an uncluttered front screen, full sunroof and easy rear-visibility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I\u2019m an advocate for cockpit-centered displays \u2014 Audi\u2019s Virtual Cockpit is the best \u2014 but with key data like speed and range located in the tablet\u2019s northwest quarter, the Tesla layout works OK. It would work better if complemented by a reflective heads-up display.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The simplicity of design and lack of console shifter (the right steering-wheel stalk controls the electric drive) means the center console is one big piece of furniture with multiple cubbies for storage. Battery location in the basement also opens more rear seat acreage for 6-foot-5 giraffes like me. I sat comfortably in the back seat with headroom to spare under the tinted glass roof.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The exterior is a sleek sportback-eggshell that \u2014 while not as elegant as the longer Model S \u2014 is distinctly Tesla.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Instead of keyless entry via a\u00a0fob like the Model S (and other autos), the Model 3 responds to a digital key transmitted by Bluetooth from the owner&#8217;s phone. A thin card also grants entry if tapped on the b-pillar. Sensing the phone, the car unlocked as I approached, and then turned on when I slipped inside. Luke Skywalker would be impressed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">You\u2019ll want to slip inside a lot because this Starfighter is a blast to drive.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">My favorite compact sports sedan\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/opinion\/columnists\/henry-payne\/2018\/02\/15\/sport-ute-vs-sport-sedan-alfa-stelvio-cadillac-ats\/110427612\/\">is the athletic Cadillac ATS<\/a>. This 3,814-pound, 310-mile-range, 75-kWh Model 3 tester was every bit its match. Multiple Woodward stoplight launches (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/opinion\/columnists\/henry-payne\/2015\/09\/24\/payne-tesla-pd\/72770366\/\">no Ludicrous mode here<\/a>) yielded zero-60 times in the 5.2-second range (Motor Trend has recorded 4.8 seconds). The top-line 335-horse V-6 ATS? 5.6 seconds. The fat steering wheel feels rooted to the ground, the 113-inch wheelbase (the ATS has a 109-inch wheelbase, BMW 3-series measures 111) is balanced, the chassis flat as a board.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Flinging the Model 3 through 180-degree cloverleafs, I barely got a squawk from the Continental tires.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">My tester came equipped with the latest version of Tesla\u2019s self-driving Autopilot, which worked competently on I-696, though its turn-signal-activated, &#8220;Autosteer&#8221; lane-switch feature still not-so-autonomously cautions drivers\u00a0to safely check the mirror for oncoming traffic first\u00a0(impressively, sci-fi Telsa is constantly improving such features with over-the-air software updates). Most impressive is auto parallel-park: No hands \u2014 or feet \u2014 are needed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">As has been typical\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.detroitnews.com\/story\/opinion\/columnists\/henry-payne\/2017\/09\/20\/comparison-cadillac-plug-vs-tesla-model\/105828814\/\">in my lead-footed Tesla Model S test drives<\/a>, I took 44 miles off the battery for every 30 miles on the odometer. Under more civilized driving across Michigan and Ohio, my tester\u2019s owner says he\u2019s been able to average 305 miles on a full charge \u2014 not far off Tesla\u2019s claimed 310 miles for the big-battery EV.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Only long-range Model 3s are currently being delivered \u2014 the standard-battery, 240-mile range $35,000 base-entry comes later this year. The wait isn\u2019t getting any shorter \u2014 my projected August delivery is jogging four months behind schedule. But the mini-Model S lives up to the hype.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Correction: This review has been updated to reflect that the Tesla Model 3 keyless entry system responds to a digital key transmitted by Bluetooth from the car owner\u2019s phone or by tapping a thin card on the car\u2019s b-pillar. The system was incorrectly described. Also, the \u201cAutosteer\u201d feature cautions drivers to check mirrors for oncoming [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21932"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21932"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21932\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21933,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21932\/revisions\/21933"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}