Considering buying Tesla 3 Long Range

[Knightshade]

M3 LR AWD is a beast. It’s also the most efficient of the group.

That's incorrect- LR RWD is more efficient on the 3 (this is different from the S/X where AWD adds range, on the 3 it's the reverse)

. Now with 325 miles

Did you mean to type M3 LR RWD in your original post? Because that's the one that has been updated to 325- the AWD model remains at 310.


All that said- unless one takes a lot of road trips, or has a 200+ mile daily drive, I think the AWD benefits outweigh the 5-7% difference in range between AWD and RWD.

I personally don't like Tesla's blind spot monitoring. There is no visual indicator on the mirror, nor an audible warnings, as far as I know. It just shows a red line on the center screen - but I am not going to look there when I change lanes.

Audible warning is being added in a software update currently being rolled out (a few people got it a couple weeks ago but bugs were found, looks like a new version is going out nowish)

 

[jamnmon66]

FWIW, snow/winter tires are far more important than AWD for traction on actual roads. Having both is better, but the widespread belief of AWD first is backwards.

Agreed. I live in Denver & we've had a few decent snow storms this year. My wife and I each have a LR RWD Model 3. I put good snow tires on both of them at the beginning of the season & I can confirm that they are great in the snow. At least as good if not better than our previous AWD Infiniti G37x. I'm sure the AWD 3 is even better but RWD is fine in the snow WITH GOOD SNOW TIRES.

Also, I would emphasize getting some sort of 240v charging setup in your garage. I had a 100amp circuit installed along with two Tesla wall chargers. With that I can easily charge the battery from 0-100% overnight. Though I rarely use more than 30-40% per day & I limit the battery to 80% unless I know I'm going to need the extra range, it's nice to have that capability. As others have said, a 50amp plug will be almost as good so it's personal preference & a cost decision between the two.

This is a great place to spend time to aid in your decision so take your time, read a lot & ask questions. This is the best car I've ever owned by a large margin even with a few small warts. If a mid-sized sporty sedan will fit your needs & you can afford it, you'll probably love it too!

Good luck!

 

[Kira]

You've gotten lots of great info already, so just wanted to add that I live on the Island in Victoria and was blown away by what the LR RWD can do when we had our recent Snowpocalypse. I already had 14K km on the stock tires (18" Aeros) from quite a lot of fun road trips* since June of last year. Yes, should've put winter tires on but we don't typically get much snow, if any, and it usually melts after a day or two. Anyways, in spite of no winter tires or chains, I had no issues whatsoever - the car handled everything from getting out of a snowed-in driveway and unplowed street to a wickedly slushy and icy drive out to the ferry and home twice in one day. I was so grateful to still be able to get around town pretty much as per usual.

*Initially put in the order and was planning to buy the SR AWD Model 3. Had a couple years here on the forums to read and ponder. The one message that was pretty much constant was "range is king" so decided to forget about the AWD and go for the bigger battery instead. Rarely need to charge due to a short commute and have the freedom to go on lots of long road trips without worrying about charging. It has been wonderful - if I had it all to do again, would make the same choice.

 

[Uncle Tony]

I bought the Model3 LR RWD as well. Live in CT but so far have done minimal driving in the snow as we've yet to put snow tire on. All reports I've heard is that the RWD is actually very good in the snow provided it has snow tire on. Prior to this car I drove a Grand Cherokee and the wife drove a Mercedes SUV. We gave the Mercedes to the inlaws and now fight over who gets to drive the Tesla. Can't wait to replace the Grand Cherokee with a Model Y. We installed a Nema 14-50 plug and use the cables that came with the car. That allows to easily charge car overnight in 5 hours. We have had no issues with running low on battery, but think its best to buy largest battery you can, particularly given reduced pricing. Trying to convince my Dad to buy a LR Model 3 as well. He lives in South Carolina but drives up to CT often and with the super charger network, the trip would be so much better than using his current Lexus which is expensive to fill and not nearly as enjoyable to drive. Good luck, but really think you'll be happy with the Model 3. And the rear wheel drive think isn't an issue... this care handles like it is on rails and is very quick.

 

[Zaxxon]

Re: good on snow. Tesla's anti-slip functionality is actually pretty amazing. If you find yourself on a slippery road heading straight forward, with no other cars near you, try just gunning it. The car will instantly detect exactly how much traction is available, and will apply only that much power. It's kind of uncanny, really, and is a great demo of just how awesome the precision power availability of an EV can be. Obviously it's less use when sliding sideways or trying to stop, hence the need for snow tires.

 

[StellarRat]

I've had a Model 3 LR RWD since July 2018. This is by far the best car I've ever owned. It's also the first car that I actually look for excuses to drive. Even my other sporty cars were just transportation to me with a little fun thrown in.

I'd definitely get the full autopilot if you do a lot of highway driving, if your driving is mostly around town you probably won't need it as much. I love the EAP, but don't use it too often because I do a lot of driving around town maybe when it understands traffic lights that will change.

The range is excellent on the LR. I've taken weekend trips to the coast and back without needing to charge until I got home. It's the same as a full tank of gas in a car with a big engine.

This car is a beast on corners even with the 18" tires and the acceleration is unbelievable. The AWD is even more powerful, but honestly, even RWD is way faster than you really need for any kind of normal driving. I've actually scared people with a standing start to 60 mph. I can't imagine the power in the performance model. If you plan to do driving on snow and ice you'll still need chains or studs. The car is great, but it's not magic. I was able to get around OK on about 3" of fresh snow, but once it turned to ice that was a different story. It will get squirrely without some metal on road just like any vehicle, AWD/4x4 doesn't help much with that.

So far the car has been 100% reliable. No problems. There were a few little issues when I first got it, but they were all corrected with firmware updates.

One thing I strongly advise is checking to see if you can put a 14-50 240v plug wherever you plan to charge your car. The portable connector that comes with the car is actually very good and will get you charged up from zero overnight with a 50 amp 240v plug. I don't think you really need a wall charger unless you do a ton of driving everyday or if you want keep your portable connector in the car at all times.

 

[Dana1]

Hi, all! I'm new here.
I'm thinking of buying a Tesla 3, and I guess I would like to know anything that anyone wants to tell me on the subject--knowing that this is a group mostly of fans.
Specially interesting questions: How much range can I realistically expect? I know that depends on all sorts of factors (speed, stops, temperature, hills, wind, etc.), but whatever you can say would be useful.

What do you think of reliability of the car? Maintenance? (I know nothing about what sort of maintenance this kind of car needs.)

Rear wheel vs. AWD models? I haven't driven a rear wheel drive car regularly in decades--we've mostly had FWD Toyotas and AWD Subarus recently.

Options--I'm a somewhat old guy looking for safety features (especially blind spot monitoring and rear monitoring) and liking the safety package on my wife's new Subaru Crosstrek (highest trim level). How well does the Base level work? Does the Autopilot add a lot? What about the "self-driving" level?

Anything else I might want to know? I live on the Olympic Peninsula. I'm not a complete newbie to electricity in cars--I had a Gen 3 Prius that I liked a lot (except that the side and rear visibility was terrible).

I admit to finding the Tesla website pretty sparse on hard information about their cars--I can't find detailed specs, etc. What am I missing?

Answers to any or all of these questions will be greatly welcome.

gallk

I’ve had my LR since early July.

If you watch your energy consumption (car has an average and real time graph you can check) you get 310 miles...about to be 325 with next update. If you tend to drive over 75 a lot you will see less.

I’ve rotated tires and that’s it. If you’re on paved roads I wouldn’t see a lot of need for AWD if you have the right tires. You’re the only one who can answer that question. In Texas we don’t see snow but grassy, dirt, and gravel roads have been fine.

Autopilot, EAP, is fantastic. Especially for going in bumper to bumper traffic towards Seattle, lol. I find the safety features comparable or better than my previous BMW X6. The cruise control alone is equivalent to Adaptive Cruise Control. The Autosteer is fantastic. Not perfect but fantastic. Construction zones, poor lane markings, etc can disengage it but it warns you.

FSD is still beta. We’re all waiting on an update that makes this more useful. We’ll see.

Seats fold down, big trunk, a sub trunk, and the frunk. It’s a usable car and back seat passengers have reported plenty of room. The glass roof is nice, especially where you are.

Time estimates should be given a huge +/- band. Update releases always take longer. My car was delivered three weeks early. Depends on the configuration you choose. VIN numbers aren’t used sequentially so that’s not a guide for time.

I love Port Townsend.

 

[David L]

How much range can I realistically expect?

In good weather and in mixed driving, achieving the 310 miles of range should be no problem. In San Diego and over ~12k miles of driving, I've been achieving 234 Wh/mile vs. the ~235 Wh/mile needed to hit 310 miles. I drive a mix of 60% freeway and 40% local. Once you start heating the cabin, you can expect to see a reduction in range.

What do you think of reliability of the car? Maintenance?

Consumer Reports rates it average. I've only had two types of problems, software and fit/finish issues. The most annoying software issue was phone key reliability, which for me turned out to be an issue with my 3 year old phone. Once I replaced it with a new model, the issues went away. Most of the other minor software issues have been resolved over the past year by software updates. There's always some random, minor software issues, but I find it to be no worse than what I've experienced with infotainment systems on ICE vehicles. I've only been to the service center for fit/finish issues, which I'm guessing won't be as much of an issue for you since you won't be buying a relatively early production 3 like mine. The service center is very good about addressing customer complaints; but they are overloaded, so long waits and poor communication from your service adviser is likely.

Maintenance is simple: tire rotations every ~6000 miles, brake fluid change recommended every ~25k miles, and absolutely required battery coolant change every 50k miles.

Options--I'm a somewhat old guy looking for safety features (especially blind spot monitoring and rear monitoring) and liking the safety package on my wife's new Subaru Crosstrek (highest trim level). How well does the Base level work? Does the Autopilot add a lot? What about the "self-driving" level?

The base level gets you the safety features, like emergency auto brake and such. I find the blind spot warning to be only slightly useful, because the warning is displayed on the center display and not on the mirrors. My other car is an Outback with Eyesight and Tesla Autopilot is generations ahead when it comes to adaptive cruise control smoothness and lane keeping capability. On the freeway, you can pretty much set and forget ACC on the 3, whereas the Subaru system requires constant monitoring for cases that the system can't handle (rapid braking ahead, cars cutting in aggressively, etc.). I also like that there's a lot more granularity in the following distance than the 4-steps on Eyesight, none of which gives me an ideal following distance. On the freeway, AP autosteer can handle all the steering on my commute, although I keep my hands on the wheel at all times (as required by Tesla) just in case. It's nothing like Eyesight, which acts more like lane departure mitigation and causes the car to ping-pong across the lane. If you do a lot of long distance driving on freeways or stop and go driving, then AP is definitely worth it. If you mostly do local city driving, then its value is questionable.

 

[StellarRat]

Specially interesting questions: How much range can I realistically expect? I know that depends on all sorts of factors (speed, stops, temperature, hills, wind, etc.), but whatever you can say would be useful.
gallk

Mostly it's about speed (this the biggest one), use of heat, and how cold it is outside. Driving faster than 65 mph will start to really chew up your range. My friend drives her LR in Austin where they have a road that she can go nearly 100 mph on and when she does that her range is cut in half. If you keep it under 65 mph you'll probably be able to go well over the 325 miles they claim assuming the outside temp is above 50 and you're not using a lot of heat. AC isn't nearly the range killer as heat.

 

[gallk]

Mostly it's about speed (this the biggest one), use of heat, and how cold it is outside. Driving faster than 65 mph will start to really chew up your range. My friend drives her LR in Austin where they have a road that she can go nearly 100 mph on and when she does that her range is cut in half. If you keep it under 65 mph you'll probably be able to go well over the 325 miles they claim assuming the outside temp is above 50 and you're not using a lot of heat. AC isn't nearly the range killer as heat.

Wow, that's interesting. Every car I've had till now (including my Prius hybrid) seemed like AC was a much bigger fuel consumer than the heater.

 

[Zaxxon]

Wow, that's interesting. Every car I've had till now (including my Prius hybrid) seemed like AC was a much bigger fuel consumer than the heater.

That's because in gasoline-powered cars, you have this giant block heater called an engine, so your heat is 'free' while your AC is not. In an EV, you need to make your heat.

 

[Stu Redman]

I am a huge fan of the biggest battery with the 19in. sport wheels. I charge at home and not that often with no commute. The car looks and handles incredible and if you lose a few miles range(very little), who cares?

 

[StealthP3D]

That's because in gasoline-powered cars, you have this giant block heater called an engine, so your heat is 'free' while your AC is not. In an EV, you need to make your heat.

That's true and another reason why the A/C doesn't use much energy is because it's powered by a very efficient variable speed electric motor. It only turns the speed it needs to maintain the cabin temperature. The A/C in an ICE vehicle is powered by a gas engine which is only about 30% efficient at best and the A/C can only turrn at whatever speed it's being driven by the engine RPM's, regardless of how much or how little speed the compressor actually needs to cool the cabin. That's very inefficient as it cycles on and off regularly. It also needs to overcome all the heat being radiated by the hot engine. EV's produce very little heat of their own so a little cool air goes a long way.

I love the A/C in the Model 3 because it works so quickly and I am a naturally warm person so the way it can pre-cool the car when it's been baking in the sun before I get in is a huge bonus.

 

[ArcticStation]

"...I'm a somewhat old guy looking for safety features (especially blind spot monitoring and rear monitoring) and liking the safety package on my wife's new Subaru Crosstrek..."

Lots of good advice already provided, especially IRT blind spot monitoring, cross traffic alert and snow tires, so I won't repeat it. What I will say is that the Model 3 is a great car for seniors. I'm 70 and I drive a LR RWD model with WITHOUT autopilot or self driving. I have not felt the need for either, but I may in the future and the car is designed to turn on those capabilities with an over the air update--all the hardware is installed and it should support most future enhancements. I live in Maine and opted to forgo AWD. I do have snow tires and I'm retired, so if the weather is too bad, I stay home, but that only happened twice this year. Finally, this is a very safe car. We don't heal as quickly as we used to, and this car has the best government safety rating of any car in the 2018 model year. And no matter how old you are, this car will put a smile on your face every time you drive it.

 

[Krugerrand]

That's incorrect- LR RWD is more efficient on the 3 (this is different from the S/X where AWD adds range, on the 3 it's the reverse)




Did you mean to type M3 LR RWD in your original post? Because that's the one that has been updated to 325- the AWD model remains at 310.


All that said- unless one takes a lot of road trips, or has a 200+ mile daily drive, I think the AWD benefits outweigh the 5-7% difference in range between AWD and RWD.




Audible warning is being added in a software update currently being rolled out (a few people got it a couple weeks ago but bugs were found, looks like a new version is going out nowish)

The OP asked about 3, so yes I’m talking about the 3 not the S/X and yes I LR RWD - sorry typo.

 

[gallk]

Thanks all! For some reason (maybe cause I'm a newbie). can't find the LIKE button to click for folks.

Just one more question (for now--I'm sure I will have more soon):
Both my wife and I have knee problems. How is getting in and out of the car?

 

[ArcticStation]

I have bad knees as well and have had no issue with the front seats. For me, getting in and out of the back is possible but can be challenging. Back seats in the S are much more accessible.

 

[TiggerTime]

Thanks! Ah, yes, that raises another question. The Tesla website says the wait for a car is only about two weeks. Can anyone tell me if that's real?

I ordered mine in late January and within 12 hours had a scheduled delivery date of 1 week and picked my car up as expected. The website also said 2-3 weeks at the time I ordered mine.

 

[TiggerTime]

I personally don't like Tesla's blind spot monitoring. There is no visual indicator on the mirror, nor an audible warnings, as far as I know. It just shows a red line on the center screen - but I am not going to look there when I change lanes.

Audible blind spot warning is suppose to be add in the new update they are about to push out.

 

[ggnykk]

Hi, all! I'm new here.
I'm thinking of buying a Tesla 3, and I guess I would like to know anything that anyone wants to tell me on the subject--knowing that this is a group mostly of fans.
Specially interesting questions: How much range can I realistically expect? I know that depends on all sorts of factors (speed, stops, temperature, hills, wind, etc.), but whatever you can say would be useful.

What do you think of reliability of the car? Maintenance? (I know nothing about what sort of maintenance this kind of car needs.)

Rear wheel vs. AWD models? I haven't driven a rear wheel drive car regularly in decades--we've mostly had FWD Toyotas and AWD Subarus recently.

Options--I'm a somewhat old guy looking for safety features (especially blind spot monitoring and rear monitoring) and liking the safety package on my wife's new Subaru Crosstrek (highest trim level). How well does the Base level work? Does the Autopilot add a lot? What about the "self-driving" level?

Anything else I might want to know? I live on the Olympic Peninsula. I'm not a complete newbie to electricity in cars--I had a Gen 3 Prius that I liked a lot (except that the side and rear visibility was terrible).

I admit to finding the Tesla website pretty sparse on hard information about their cars--I can't find detailed specs, etc. What am I missing?

Answers to any or all of these questions will be greatly welcome.

gallk

Go for the longest range possible if money isn't an issue.

I personally think getting the long range RWD and then buying 4 winter tires would serve most people better than spending extra 4k to get the AWD version of the car.