I’ve driven the Tesla Model 3 for more than a couple of years & it’s been a breeze. If you’d ask for a one line recommendation, I’d say go for it.
What I personally liked:
- Safety ( alerts me for possible collisions & brakes/steers accordingly )
- Fast ( amazing pickup without the noise. Yes; people who like muscle cars might miss the vroom )
- Good assisted driving ( quite helpful on long trips – I drove from NJ to TX ). Full Self Driving (FSD) Beta is available but I haven’t enabled it yet.
- Modern ( Simplistic design )
- All Electric ( Yes. I saved the most important one for last. Education & Environment are two topics which are close to me. So yes for waste reduction & being fossil fuel free. Also no oil changes for a distracted one like me!)
What I didn’t like:
- Customer Service. (Unfortunately had a nail in the tire – had to visit twice since they couldn’t detect it. I drove a couple thousand miles with a nail within! )
- Superchargers. Yes it’s a convenience but since I live in a condo; have to rely on them. There are too many Ts on the road & networks need to be expanded.
- Summon Feature. I personally feel it’s a gimmick & doesn’t always work. We did try it in the office parking lot & it’s scary.
- Battery dissipation in winter; again can’t complain since I don’t have a garage as of date.
- Frozen handles & doors in winter.
Bonus Funny Cons: If I now drive another non-Tesla, I tend to forget the keys in the car with the engine on & without locking it! Tesla take care of all this (thanks to phone key).
It’s been a couple of years since I’ve been driving the Model 3. The M3 has everything a car needs with added simplicity. There has been debates over the carbon footprint but that’s a topic for another day.
The Decision
After a car crash in 2018, I’ve been looking for options for an upgrade. By that time, I already test drove a colleague’s M3. My initial impression was it was quite basic & I was pondering whether it was worth it. There was nothing premium about it.
After the crash, my perspective probably changed. I’ve been looking for a car with assisted driving ( I do sometimes think work or otherwise when I drive ). A couple of my friends recommended Tesla & it’s FSD (Full Self Driving) capability. I’ve been following Musk’s tech advances & the ‘marketing’ on Twitter.
Finally decided to go for it.
Buying a Model 3.
This probably is the simplest part of the story. No negotiations & no dealers. A simple (& hefty) purchase online. I chose a Red Long Range (LR) with FSD. I kept the default wheels & interiors. I think it was around $58K including paperwork & taxes.
The First Ride
I had the M3 delivered a week before my parents’ visit to my place. The first ride was smooth with the system initially calibrating itself. I’m not so thorough (outside work) & so still had to go over manuals. I learned later that I should’ve.
The car has a minimalistic design & nice. It’s a comfortable seating & good trunk space. The seats can be folded too to make up for extra space. An additional bonus is the frunk (front trunk) as the car has no engine. It’s all electric & made up of batteries.
The Long Trips
I had a couple of long trips till date ( unfortunately due to COVID; yes worked extra time). The first one was an amazing experience with parents. It’s been just a week & I was still exploring it.
We went to Niagara; had multiple stops including stays in Corning & Pittsburgh. What’s good about the trip was me reliving memories & taking them back in time. The car was on autopilot; yes I’ve to regularly move the steering slightly (to tell I’m awake lol). I learned a lot about them – their childhood, love, crushes, first job, struggles raising us (me & my sister). I was so happy seeing them blush.
It was smarter than me
In the midst of all this, I ignored the car’s autopilot prompts. Suddenly the screen turned red & it handed back the steering to me. Then came the deadly message – You’ve ignored my prompts & autopilot has been disabled for the rest of the trip. I tried to cancel the trip & start again but no use. It was smarter than me. And then we had to keep hands on the steering & constant eyes on the road. End of a beautiful ride but we enjoyed while it lasted.
My second long trip was from New Jersey to Texas. This was during peak COVID time but I had to travel due to some family reasons. While I didn’t want to fly, I chose to drive while taking precautions. Luckily, I had a few close friends in Ashburn VA & Memphis TN. I self isolated before the drive & took precautions along the way. I realized how good the autopilot was; no more legs on the pedal (even amongst trucks on the highway). The frequent stops to charge the car also added flexibility. The Tesla supercharger network is vast! While I stayed at my friends place, I used the personal charger which can be plugged into home (very slow though). The return trip was a bit daunting due to heavy rain. The Autopilot is disabled in bad weather & some cameras stop working on sluggish highways due to rain.
Maintenance
Till now, other than tire change (due to a nail in the Achilles heel), there has been no major maintenance work. Even if there was one, we will be instantly notified.
Overall, I like it.