Tesla Model 3 Review – The True Viable EV?

We test the latest Tesla Model 3 in this review and find that it may well be the EV to convert you to electric power

• Overview
• Performance
• Economy
• Comfort
• Practicality
• Reliability
• Verdict
• Specifications

Overview

Tesla is a funny company. Something someone says on a social media site can have drastic (or positive) implications on the share price of the company. Of course, that certain someone is Elon Musk, who is synonymous with Tesla, but he didn’t actually start the company – he just financed it and became the face.

However, that works exceptionally well for Tesla because he can drum up press using a single tweet. Moreso, after having their fair share of struggles, they are now sitting at the top of a highly lucrative market – the electric vehicle market. Also, for a company which only sells 4 cars (and has only ever made 5), they’re doing exceptionally bloody well.

So here we are, faced with the Model 3, now the second-best selling car Tesla have ever made (behind the Model Y), but why is that? Well, we went to find out.

Performance

Unfortunately we didn’t have a Model 3 Performance on hand, just the 241bhp RWD which was more than adequate. With a single rear mounted motor, this 1.8 tonne saloon can still hit 60 in a smidge under 6 seconds.

It doesn’t feel lightning quick though, there is no ludicrous or even sport mode for the acceleration. It is surprisingly progressive, the initial launch is lacking, but then the torque and power really comes in and you’re pushed into the seat. Perhaps the feeling is odd because there is no gear changes that happen, it is a single speed only. In a conventional quick car, you get pushed back into the seat forcefully with each gear change – whereas you simply don’t in this, you’re just held into it.

The greatest surprise is the handling, something no one seems to talk about. We are all aware of the acceleration stats with Tesla’s, but the road holding is brilliant. The Model 3 corners incredibly flat, with virtually no body roll. You can select varying degrees of weight to the steering wheel, with sport proving to be the best for delivering feedback. The back end never wants to step out and the whole car stays in check. The chassis is extremely rigid and the weight of that entire powertrain is under the floor, keeping the centre of gravity extremely low. Keeping up with a hot hatch down a twisty B-road shouldn’t seem too much of a pipedream.

The way it delivers the power is simply effortless, from the traffic lights, overtaking to around town. It feels like there is a never ending amount of grunt this car to give at normal speeds. However, once you get up to frowned upon motorway speeds, it isn’t quite as impressive, due to the single speed gearbox. It isn’t able to fully maximise the torque on offer – however it is still quite good. But using it at normal road speeds it is brilliant, and somewhat addictive.

Economy

Tesla claim 308 miles to a charge, and whilst we unfortunately didn’t have the car for the whole day – we barely put a scrape on the battery level, even with some exuberant driving every now and then. The car does feature a ‘one pedal’ mode which allows you to recoup as much energy as possible when slowing down. Real world, you can expect around 270 miles according to multiple sources. This will be less in the winter as this is where electric cars struggle.

However, even with energy prices rising, it still costs less to ‘fill up’ the Model 3 compared to a conventional petrol/diesel powered car. It should cost around £15 for a full charge on a domestic supply. Unfortunately, the Supercharger network isn’t free (completely anyway, more on that below) on Model 3 and Model Y’s like it is on the Model S and Model X so these will cost you when out and about. Current Supercharging charges are off-peak at 54p per kilowatt hour for most of the day, and up to 67p between 4pm-8pm every day of the week.

This means it will cost around £30 for a full charge, still less than an equivalent petrol or diesel car that will cover the same mileage. But unfortunately not by much – and with energy prices set to rise, this could pose an issue. However, charging at home and off-peak still nets a considerable saving over an ICE car, and you have a full tank everyday.

I should note, as of writing, if you order a brand new Model 3, Tesla will provide 3,000 miles of free Supercharging across their network. Perhaps another useful feature of this car is that it will plan a route using the Supercharger network and let you know how long to charge at each location for the most efficient journey.

Comfort

The first thing that strikes you is the lack of… anything. The minimalist approach in this car is truly remarkable. It doesn’t feel like the cabin is empty, all of the elements have been positioned incredibly well. Of course, the obvious elephant in the room is that large, 15″ landscape screen which controls everything.

Tesla have done an absolutely stellar job of designing this interior, it is light, refreshing and a very relaxing place to sit. The seats are supremely comfortable and are a huge step up from the first generation Model S seats that were a little on the firm side. What is also a massive increase is the build quality. In previous Tesla’s, you could pull bits of the trim off and the central console would rattle. Not at all in this. The large panoramic screen also helps to brighten up the inside, too.

In the way of amenities, all seats are heated (both front and rear), a heated steering wheel and there are two wireless charging pads for your phones, something which is massively overlooked on modern cars. The addition of an extra charging pad really helps, especially if you’re carrying passengers a lot. If you do get bored when sat at a public charging point, you can play one of the many games on the screen.

Our favourite was this racing game which used the actual brakes and steering of the car to control the virtual one. It’s a good way to pass the 20 or so minutes it takes to charge the car up. Which leads me on to the seating position, it is really pleasant, you have a wealth of adjustment on the seats and steering wheel. The steering controls are done through the screen and the buttons on the actual steering wheel which seems odd at first, but you only have to do it once theoretically.

A congratulations to Tesla on the improvements, well done.

Practicality

It’s good news for a saloon, the boot is very sizeable at 542 litres with the seats up. Need some more? Then simply drop the rear seats and you have a pretty useable area with a wide opening load space. Of course, being electric means you also have the ‘froot’ – not quite as catchy as ‘frunk’ like the Americans would say. However, this is relatively dinky and it is only used for the charging cables. Still, a nice place to put them out of the way.

The boot is electrically operated and can be done through the central screen, app or on the actual boot itself – as with the ‘froot’, but that doesn’t open fully or close electronically, only manually. The generous sized glove box is also controlled through that screen, which seems odd – but how many times do you open it?

The centre console is nice and deep, each door pocket features sizeable door pockets that will hold a large drinks container. Passengers in the rear will relish the amount of space they have, coupled with the flat floor, it makes transporting 5 adults a breeze. Although,if you’re on the far side of 6ft, you may find that your head touches the rear glass when sat in the back seats.

Although it is very practical for a saloon, if you do want some more space, there is always the SUV-styled Model Y which features a much larger boot. It is such a shame that Tesla don’t make an estate version as it would be an instant hit. The Model Y does have a generous boot, but the rake of the boot lid limits the practical aspect of getting a large dog in there.

Reliability

You would expect an electric car to be far more reliable than a conventional electric or diesel powered one, simply because there are far less moving parts and in theory, less to go wrong. Tesla’s Model 3 finished ninth out of the top 75 cars in the 2022 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey. However, rather worryingly, 43.6% of Tesla Model 3 owners reported a problem with their car in the first year of ownership, according to that same survey.

Now, we can put a lot of that down to the fact that Tesla is relatively new to this game and this is their first, true, mass-market car. It should be noted that Tesla themselves are very keen to rectify issues quickly under the generous 4 year or 50,000 mile basic warranty. With the battery and powertrain warranty being 8 years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes sooner.

Because they are so keen to sort out any issues that should occur, you should have little worry in the car going horrifically wrong. The other thing to point out is that any software issues can be rectified without having to go anywhere through the use of over the air updates. The high ranking of customer satisfaction should comfort you if wanting to purchase one of these, as you can rest assured most (if not all) issues will be sorted promptly.

Verdict?

To put it simply, the Tesla Model 3 is exceptional. If there was one car to tempt you to the EV generation, this is the one – no matter which of the 3 guises you have it in. If you want something that’s insanely rapid and technologically advanced, the Model 3 Performance is the one to go for. But if you’re not overly bothered by performance but want some degree of it, the Model 3 RWD is more than enough, as is the middle child AWD Long Range.

Sure, it doesn’t have the extended range capabilities as that aptly named Model 3 Long Range, but it is substantially cheaper by 8 grand. This car marks a huge step up from the previous Tesla’s, not just in terms of design, but crucially, build quality. This is something that has plagued Tesla and garnered a reputation of their cars being throw together. Not at all with the latest generation of Model 3.

If you are after an electric car, seriously consider the Model 3 and book a test drive to get behind the wheel of one. They are still the leaders in this segment and have been at it the longest. What really sets this car apart from the competition is the obvious performance, but also the versatility of the technology present. If there is an issue, the car can be updated without having to take it to a service station.

Specifications

Price when new [tested]	From £42,990 [£50,890]
Power	241bhp
Torque	420Nm
0-60	5.8s
Top speed	140mph
Weight	1847kg
Fuel capacity	N/A
Road tax	£0