I was going to wait until a full month of ownership before doing a full review, but decided to go ahead as I have now spent a lot of time with the new Model 3, and I am over 500 miles in. This will be a totally honest review, I'll talk about the good, and any shortcomings I feel this car has. But before I get into reviewing it, let me mention a few points about the updated Model 3 in general.

First of all, let me get one thing out of the way: this car is an appliance. It's comfortable, but it's not a luxury car. It's fast in a straight line, can probably beat 90 percent of the cars on the road from a dig, but it's not a sports car. It has a very premium build quality, has some of the best software and tech, but at the same time it's goal is simplicity. You wouldn't cross shop it with cars like an M3 or M4, it more competes with cars like the Toyota Camry, Corolla, Honda Accord and Civic. For me personally, it serves as my daily commuter, but it also checks other boxes like being super efficient, but at the same time I get my dose of fun and sportiness. Drive it normally and it's very smooth and quiet, eats up road imperfections. Put your foot down on the throttle, and it comes alive, but not in a way that scares the crap out of you like my Polestar did, or the Model 3 Performance in Ludicrous mode. But since it's an appliance and daily driver, what sets it apart from it's competitors like the Camry and Accord? Well, simply efficiency and performance:

Model 3 LR AWD
120 MPGe
Power: 394 hp
0-60: 4.2 seconds

Toyota Camry XLE
51 MPG combined
Power: 232 hp
0-60: 6.8 seconds

Honda Accord Sport Hybrid
48 MPG combined
Power: 204 hp
0-60: 6.5 seconds

Lets me move on and describe each aspect of the car, starting with the Interior

Space/Cabin:

The new Model 3's interior and seats have been redesigned for comfort, while still maintaining simplicity. The seats are now more comfortable, better bolstering, and are now heated and cooled. The backseats are about the same as the pre-refresh when it comes to space, but now Tesla added a rear screen for rear passengers to control HVAC, play music and watch movies and videos.





The materials also used for seats, door trim and dash have been upgraded and the cabin has been made much quieter with double Payne glass and other sound deadening materials. The steering wheel feels nice in your hands, and controls are easily accessible, and the dashboard area now is made with soft touch materials instead of hard plastic. Tesla also added ambient light strips across the dash and doors that can be adjusted for brightness and color, and lastly changed the interior dome lights to be touch instead of clickable. This was actually one of the most welcome features, it really makes the car feel more premium.

Software/Infotainment:

Tesla builds some of the best vehicle software. The infotainment screen is very responsive and laid out very intuitively. Everything is easy to find, and the controls are laid out to be found and accessed easily. It includes a suite of software and apps and contains many of the controls you use day to day. My wife who is a technophobe has no issues navigating the Tesla infotainment screen.

Suspension/handling

The suspension has been re-tuned for comfort. Handles uneven pavement extremely well, and the car feels well balanced at all speeds. Car handles very predictably, just point and turn and the car goes where you want it. Throw it into a curvy road and the car hold its own. I drive on some of the worst roads in the Bay Area and am totally satisfied with the results of the suspension tuning.

Performance/Braking

The new Model 3 has newly designed electric motors that are quieter, smoother, and more efficient. Step on it and consistently you will get 0-60 in 4.2 seconds. With 394 hp and 377 ft-lbs torque, you get up to speed quickly and the new Model 3 seems to hold the power curve much better than its predecessor. Braking is also very confident, the Model 3 uses One Pedal Driving (OPD) where it uses the electric motors to brake the car and relies on pretty beefy friction brakes should it need extra stopping power or in emergencies. I have no plans on tracking this car, so the braking is totally adequate for my everyday needs.



Exterior/Styling



Tesla’s designs have always been controversial. People either love the looks or hate it. I personally love them, and there have been some changes to the look of the new Model 3. Most of the changes are noticeable on the front and rear of the vehicle. The front headlights are new, as well as the rear taillights. A sleeker styling reduces drag coefficient, which has been reduced from 0.225 to 0.219.



Overall driving experience



As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, the Model 3 is an appliance, a daily commuter. And like other appliances on the road like the Camry or Accord, its very efficient and very good at what it does. Except the Model 3 is actually fun to drive. With its power and instant torque, you can zip through traffic effortlessly, get through tight spots quickly, and merge with ease. And not a lot of gas cars can beat it off the line. You would probably be foolish and ill advised to go against an M3, M4 or Mustang GT and the like, but everything else you’d probably easily beat. Not that you should race, racing is for kids. But nothing wrong with being the occasional redlight bully 👍



So what are the shortfalls of this car? Not a lot, but there are some I’ll mention:



Removal of stalks. This one is a bit of a headscratcher. Both the signal and gear stalks were removed and replaced with buttons on the steering wheel. To me, it’s not really that big of a deal, I’ve totally adjusted to pressing on the signal buttons. But like the confusion with the newer gear shifters mentioned in Car Chat, people who don’t like change will really, really hate this one. Even the windshield wiper button has been added to the steering wheel.



No lighting or reflective materials on the door handles. If you’ve ever seen Model 3 or Model Y door handles, they are flush with the body for aero purposes. That’s all fine and good, but if you have a darker colored Tesla and it’s dark out, you have to feel for the handle. You end up leaving fingerprints all over the door. Other automakers have placed small lights that come on when they detect the key fob, but for some reason, Tesla has completely ignored this, even though I’m sure it’s popped up in feedback. Luckily, the solution is cheap, and easy and can be found on Amazon or online. You can buy reflective handle covers that glow or change colors in the dark, and those usually work. Takes less than 5 minutes to apply, and they can be found for $20 or less.



Those are the two shortfalls that I can think of right now, I’ll post if there is anything else that comes up over the next few months.



In conclusion, the new updated Tesla Model 3 is one of the best values in regards to price and performance. It’s practical, it’s efficient, and its fun. It’s also backed by the largest supercharger network available. If you have the ability to charge at home, have access to Tesla’s supercharger network, and are looking for a reliable commuter, I would give this car a serious look

 

Nice review! Helpful for people who may be in the market for one of these 😉

 

Great write up. I agree with your points.

Where are you seeing 425 hp? Everywhere I've seen it's listed at 394 hp.

 

Great write-up!👍👍

 

great write up!!! thank you.

agree it's a smooth and fast appliance. wonderful as a daily commuter and even on trips if superchargers are convenient.

one thing, i do not understand why they went to the trouble and cost to add the screen between the rear seats. i bet it's almost NEVER used. maybe when it can really self drive the owner can sleep back there but look at that screen to see where they are, lol.

re: stalks vs. buttons - i can't imagine the cost savings were very significant but it is what it is. even though i could 'get used to it', i don't think the turn signal buttons in particular are convenient.

re: no lighting/reflective on door handles... i thought my lc500 doesn't have anything either but i just checked and there are (not very bright) lights in there when the door handles presents itself. however, it doesn't present by walking up, you have to have to press the unlock on the key fob. first world problem.

 

You're correct, it's 394 hp, I mixed it up with the Euro spec Performance, which is 425

 

I think the biggest benefit of the rear screen is that the rear passengers can now control the HVAC unit and fan speed. They can also turn on seat heating and cooling. My daughter is always complaining she's too hot in the back, now she can control her own fan and temp.

My IS350 would detect the fob at night when I approached the car and turn on a small light under the handle that would illuminate it




Polestar did the same thing, and our Ioniq also does this. Why Tesla doesn't is beyond me.

Going back to the removal of stalks, the only time I could see this could be potentially an issue is I'm in a turn and I need to activate my windshield wipers. Turn signals I'm totally used to now, you normally activate them before going into a turn, not while in a turn

 

No one is ever going to convince me that the stalk removal was a good idea or in any way shape or form easier than the current solution that pretty much every other car uses. It is absolutely asinine, and a solution in search of a problem IMO.

 

I'm certainly not going to try to convince you. It wasn't a deal breaker, and I just adjusted to it

 

Didn't expect you to bud, was adding on to Bit's comments on stalks.

 

Smarter people than Bit are scratching their heads on this move from Tesla

 

What, you mean, like, EVERYONE?

 

I agree 100%

 

I could see removal of wipers on stalks since auto wipers really do a good enough job these days. I can even understand gear selection as sliding on the screen wouldn't be so terrible. But the signal is odd. Im glad it was easy for you to adjust. It really is just Elon doubling down on FSD. If he could, he would make the steering wheel removable.

 

I adjusted within a few drives. Completely natural to me now. Don't even think about it. Same for my son. Total non-issue. The stalks in regular cars seem archaic now.

The thing I didn't care for was the horn button until I realized you just have to use my palm and hit the general area of the button. I was trying to hit the exact area of the button, and it wasn't always easy to find in a split second. Tesla did fix that and put the horn back in the center behind the airbag. Telsa may end up going back to stalks in order to capture the Buick market. Lots of blue hairs out there that won't be able to handle that change and stick with their Buicks.