Im definitely interested in the model 3, but I’m still hesitant. I’m in winter wonderland, it snows, they salt the road, it gets slushy cycle repeat. It actually says in the owners manual that you should wash off the salt/slush grime every time you drive in those conditions. Also not you use an ice scraper on the windows. I mean come Tesla, figure it out.

 

The 3 with AWD seems very competent in poor grip situations. Obviously snow tires would help too.

 

Ice scraper should never be used on any windshield unless you like hazing and scratches. If you're in Alberta I wouldn't buy a Tesla or any EV not enough charging stations unless all you plan on doing is driving near your house.

 

I'm more worried about rust than charging infrastructure.

 

Model 3 has more aluminum than most cars so probably better rust resistance. If I was forced to drive a new car in an Alberta winter I'd have the under body coated in Fluid Film it reduces rust 90% or more.

Here's a Model 3 after 1 Ontario winter

 

Another issue with aluminum is that if you have any significant body damage and/or need repair, the average body-shop (which deals in sheet-steel panels) may not be equipped or qualified to handle an aluminum repair. That's why insurance companies often have lists of shop (and Recommended shops) that are qualified for aluminum work.

 

“the average body-shop” won’t be repairing teslas at all i don’t believe, as only tesla-approved body shops can (get parts).

 

EZZ and corradoMR2, really glad you’re so happy with your teslas.

 

Correct and that's a good thing as you want to make sure any repairs needed get done correctly.

 

So, now, Elon Musk is running his own line of body-ships as well? I wasn't (totally) aware of that, although I had some suspicions. Probably not surprising, though, when you look at the way Tesla runs all the rest of its company-owned facilities.

And so many Teslas were built with crappy paint jobs that I'd bet those shops are pretty busy repainting them.

 

The body shops are independent but only the higher end shops get Tesla certification. Tesla repairs are pricey.

 

Aluminium body panels are hardly unique to Tesla.

 

Correct......but other automakers with aluminum-bodied vehicles (Jaguar XJ, Ford F-150, Audi A8, etc...) don't necessarily have company-owned body-shops, though, in some cases, they have lists of approved ones.

 

From your test drive thread
Have you seen any Tesla's with bad paint jobs? The only ones I've seen are what you observed a beautiful finish and superior to any new Toyota I've seen.

 

Spend some time on a Tesla forum and you'll see countless numbers of Model S, X & 3 owners who have had tons of issues with their paint, many of which even rejected the car at delivery due to poor paintwork.

https://www.google.com/search?q=tesl...w=1600&bih=789