I saw my first model 3 in the flesh today, and my heart is still palpitating!
We drove from LA area to Fresno to spend a holiday weekend with relatives. We drove back on 99/5 this afternoon and just returned home. As we were in the vicinity of the Tejon SC, my wife said she needs a comfort stop. YES, YES, YES, my opportunity to ogle Teslas! The southbound offramp passes right by the SC location with 3 Teslas charging, one of which was "different". I "accidentally" missed the requested turn to In-n-Out and said let's go on up to Firehouse Subs (which is right next to the SC). And there it was! The first model 3 I've seen in the flesh. Oh My Dog, what a beautiful car! Lordy, lordy, that car looks sporty! Silver in color with aero wheels. Gorgeous! The wife said, 'i'll see you in a bit' and I said 'take your time, as long as you want!' And then I was all over that car like catnip. VIN 03XX. By the registration on the plates, I could tell the car was about 3 or 4 months old. Fit and finish were perfect. Standing at the front of the car, at adult eye level, the front is shockingly low which makes the front of the car look very wide and racy with fender bulges for the front wheels like a Le Mans car. The back of the car is nicely proportioned and doesn't look at all like an MX. The side profile looks very much like an MS. The exterior is very clean and simple, devoid of all unnecessary adornments which in my opinion is refreshing, clean, smooth, like a shark. I must have circled the car a dozen times to try to take in all the details, but there was just too much to absorb.
Then a thirty-something young man walks up with his female companion. You the owner? Yep! Employee? Yep, I work at xxxxxxxx. He said they had driven from LA to Yosemite for a few days and were returning home. My mind was racing. What questions could I ask that would benefit the Forum without acting like a complete idiot. So I foolishly blurted out, "How many watts per mile are you getting?" He laughed and said, "I am the last person you want to ask that question because I drive 90 mph on the highway
and I am burning right around 300 watts per mile, but if I drive about 75, I burn about 260 watts per mile." I said I drive 65 and I am hoping to get it down to around 225 watts per mile. He laughed and said, "Oh you're a hyper-miler, you should have no trouble achieving that with the aero wheels." I asked him if he had tested without the aero covers and said "no" he likes the look of the aero covers and has never taken them off.........and they looked great on his silver car. He said his friends are reporting a 5% hit to range without the aero covers. If his experience is typical, these are fantastic numbers! He said he is 100% happy with his car and there have been no problems and no visits to Service (he does not work at a service center). He said it is like no other car that most people have ever driven - fun, fast, responsive, and yet relaxing with EAP.
But he wanted to tell me about what was exciting to him. He said he was getting right at 430 miles per hour charge at the Tejon charger. He said he had arrived 15 minutes earlier, had gone over to Firehouse Subs to get some drinks and his car had charged 160 miles in 15 minutes!!!!! He said he NEVER expected those kind of results. He said they expected to be there at least 30 minutes but he had enough charge in 15 minutes to get him home and would charge again overnight at home. I could tell they were anxious to get going but he left me with a parting shot........."Expect to see a lot more of these on the road starting this week" and gave me a big wink! I gazed after then in envy as they sped off, back on their journey. 160 miles in 15 minutes
I then turned my attention to a midnight silver MX and a red and blue MS's. Being the shy enthusiast that I am, I struck up a conversation with the female owner of the red MS. She said her car was only a couple of months old and they were on a trip with their friends in the blue MS. She said they had the latest version of EAP and said it is nothing short of amazing. She said they had just come from LA over the Grapevine to Tejon. She said they had been on AP the whole time in moderately heavy traffic and never touched the brake pedal or go pedal once. She said the car tracked straight in the center of their lane and never wondered except when they activated the turn signal to change lanes and then the car responded on its own when safe. She was wearing a Tesla grin from ear to ear.
About this time, my wife comes wandering back and it is time for us to go. She asked where the model 3 had gone and I said they had to leave. She said she really liked the looks of it but the front end was going to take some getting used to. I point out the midnight silver, blue, and red colors. We have already decided on a Pearl White car. She said, "the grey car looks elegant but not for me, the blue color is very nice but not what I'm looking for, BUT the red car is the most beautiful red I have ever seen!" We get back on the freeway and she goes silent, in deep thought, other than to say, "I really like that red color." three times in 5 minutes. Then she blurts out, "I think I want a red car now!" She said, "that red car will look great with a white interior!" ................and I can't disagree with her.
https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/forums/model-3-driving-dynamics.281/
I have been purposely vague about the VIN and employment of the model 3 I saw. I told him upfront that whatever he shared with me would be blabbed by me all over the Internet, so he should be careful. He assured me there was no problem and he was not under NDA. But still, I don't want to put his employment in jeopardy in any way. No pictures because my wife took our one and only smartphone to the comfort station with her.
{mod note: edited to update Wh/mi figures per later post from OP}
We drove from LA area to Fresno to spend a holiday weekend with relatives. We drove back on 99/5 this afternoon and just returned home. As we were in the vicinity of the Tejon SC, my wife said she needs a comfort stop. YES, YES, YES, my opportunity to ogle Teslas! The southbound offramp passes right by the SC location with 3 Teslas charging, one of which was "different". I "accidentally" missed the requested turn to In-n-Out and said let's go on up to Firehouse Subs (which is right next to the SC). And there it was! The first model 3 I've seen in the flesh. Oh My Dog, what a beautiful car! Lordy, lordy, that car looks sporty! Silver in color with aero wheels. Gorgeous! The wife said, 'i'll see you in a bit' and I said 'take your time, as long as you want!' And then I was all over that car like catnip. VIN 03XX. By the registration on the plates, I could tell the car was about 3 or 4 months old. Fit and finish were perfect. Standing at the front of the car, at adult eye level, the front is shockingly low which makes the front of the car look very wide and racy with fender bulges for the front wheels like a Le Mans car. The back of the car is nicely proportioned and doesn't look at all like an MX. The side profile looks very much like an MS. The exterior is very clean and simple, devoid of all unnecessary adornments which in my opinion is refreshing, clean, smooth, like a shark. I must have circled the car a dozen times to try to take in all the details, but there was just too much to absorb.
Then a thirty-something young man walks up with his female companion. You the owner? Yep! Employee? Yep, I work at xxxxxxxx. He said they had driven from LA to Yosemite for a few days and were returning home. My mind was racing. What questions could I ask that would benefit the Forum without acting like a complete idiot. So I foolishly blurted out, "How many watts per mile are you getting?" He laughed and said, "I am the last person you want to ask that question because I drive 90 mph on the highway
and I am burning right around 300 watts per mile, but if I drive about 75, I burn about 260 watts per mile." I said I drive 65 and I am hoping to get it down to around 225 watts per mile. He laughed and said, "Oh you're a hyper-miler, you should have no trouble achieving that with the aero wheels." I asked him if he had tested without the aero covers and said "no" he likes the look of the aero covers and has never taken them off.........and they looked great on his silver car. He said his friends are reporting a 5% hit to range without the aero covers. If his experience is typical, these are fantastic numbers! He said he is 100% happy with his car and there have been no problems and no visits to Service (he does not work at a service center). He said it is like no other car that most people have ever driven - fun, fast, responsive, and yet relaxing with EAP.But he wanted to tell me about what was exciting to him. He said he was getting right at 430 miles per hour charge at the Tejon charger. He said he had arrived 15 minutes earlier, had gone over to Firehouse Subs to get some drinks and his car had charged 160 miles in 15 minutes!!!!! He said he NEVER expected those kind of results. He said they expected to be there at least 30 minutes but he had enough charge in 15 minutes to get him home and would charge again overnight at home. I could tell they were anxious to get going but he left me with a parting shot........."Expect to see a lot more of these on the road starting this week" and gave me a big wink! I gazed after then in envy as they sped off, back on their journey. 160 miles in 15 minutes
I then turned my attention to a midnight silver MX and a red and blue MS's. Being the shy enthusiast that I am, I struck up a conversation with the female owner of the red MS. She said her car was only a couple of months old and they were on a trip with their friends in the blue MS. She said they had the latest version of EAP and said it is nothing short of amazing. She said they had just come from LA over the Grapevine to Tejon. She said they had been on AP the whole time in moderately heavy traffic and never touched the brake pedal or go pedal once. She said the car tracked straight in the center of their lane and never wondered except when they activated the turn signal to change lanes and then the car responded on its own when safe. She was wearing a Tesla grin from ear to ear.
About this time, my wife comes wandering back and it is time for us to go. She asked where the model 3 had gone and I said they had to leave. She said she really liked the looks of it but the front end was going to take some getting used to. I point out the midnight silver, blue, and red colors. We have already decided on a Pearl White car. She said, "the grey car looks elegant but not for me, the blue color is very nice but not what I'm looking for, BUT the red car is the most beautiful red I have ever seen!" We get back on the freeway and she goes silent, in deep thought, other than to say, "I really like that red color." three times in 5 minutes. Then she blurts out, "I think I want a red car now!"
She said, "that red car will look great with a white interior!" ................and I can't disagree with her.https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/forums/model-3-driving-dynamics.281/
I have been purposely vague about the VIN and employment of the model 3 I saw. I told him upfront that whatever he shared with me would be blabbed by me all over the Internet, so he should be careful. He assured me there was no problem and he was not under NDA. But still, I don't want to put his employment in jeopardy in any way. No pictures because my wife took our one and only smartphone to the comfort station with her.
{mod note: edited to update Wh/mi figures per later post from OP}
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