First 48 hours w/AWD (tl;dr: Blown Away!)

[Birdman325]

Makes me happy that I bit the bullet and made the change from black to white interior. (With the 19” wheels). Now just waiting to schedule delivery. Finally received a notice from a delivery specialist that I could take delivery in Toronto between Sept 24 and Oct 1 which is exactly the week I happen to be out of the country! (What are the chances?). Waiting to see if I can schedule something the next week but it takes about 5 days for him to reply to each email, and so far it has been “if you don’t take that window, don’t when the next window will be”.
Not very customer service oriented. Hope it works out. Thx for the great informative post.

 

[Canuck]

Delta is now 9K to go from AWD to P.

1 second faster at 4.5 0-60 is expensive for anyone. Look at M3, ZL1 Corvette, C63 AMG, etc.

If it was expensive for everyone, then they would lower the price. The market determines price and Tesla prices it to sell to those who don't find it expensive, and also to those who do, but bite the bullet anyway to get a P model.

Also, when I look at those vehicles you mention, what I think about is gas every week at least ($1.50/litre up here vs. $0.10 kWh), oil changes regularly, brakes, and list goes on. I've had my S for coming up to 5 years, over 100k km and I just can't got back to last century's technology and ongoing costs.

______

OP -- thanks for the review -- that's a nice looking car. But you don't really tell us the difference between a RWD and AWD 3? We don't have AWD here yet. For me -- based on every other RWD vs. AWD cars I've driven, including the S -- RWD is much more fun to drive but less safe than AWD and lousy in the snow -- which is why I wanted it but not enough to wait and give up a summer with a 3.

I also bought my S new before AWD (and AP hardware) and when AP and AWD came out I had an AWD loaner for a week, took it to my cabin and back, while deciding whether to upgrade for AP. I decided to wait for AP on my 3 (it's impressive with deadly flaws, in my view) so I kept my large frunk, 80 amp, rock solid S.

The AWD S is much better for gripping the ground, especially on corners in the rain, when fishtailing can happen with RWD. But the fun factor? No issue in my mind that RWD 3 is a fun packed "go-cart" like driving experience. RWD 3 (and all RWD vs AWD) win out in the fun to drive factor. But AWD wins hands down for snow, ice -- and for safety. That's just my opinion, of course, and you have to know how to steer into slides, not to brake, etc. to be able to drive RWDs safely (on snow/ice and to a lesser extent, rain), and that's a lost art these days.

And the only feature I'd say everyone should get is EAP.

Looking at your location, I can see why. In stop and go traffic, yes, it's a must. Otherwise, I have no use for it and my wife won't use it, so I paid $6.5k Can to basically show family and friends and I'm sure there's lot of us out there like that. Still I'd pay for it again.

 

[xav-]

ThAts Nice.. but between AWD and white interior that’s over $7,500 over RWD... it’s a huge premium if you ask me...

 

[xav-]

Delta is now 9K to go from AWD to P.

1 second faster at 4.5 0-60 is expensive for anyone. Look at M3, ZL1 Corvette, C63 AMG, etc.

I agree the performance is not that expensive relatively to other cars in the category! AWD not so much.

 

[voip-ninja]

ThAts Nice.. but between AWD and white interior that’s over $7,500 over RWD... it’s a huge premium if you ask me...

If I was in Orange County I probably would have a harder time justifying it myself.

If you drive in snow & ice, especially in hilly or mountainous terrain then AWD wins. I found the RWD car I rented to be plenty peppy (just a touch slower than my 340i BMW), just a touch slower off of the line. If it wasn't for needing AWD here for work/safety reasons I would be perfectly fine with RWD.

Everyone decides for themselves what this stuff is worth. At $5,000 I thought AWD was on the pricey side since it is $2,000-$3,000 from other luxury car makers.... When Tesla dropped the price to $4,000 I was much happier. Now that it is up to $6,000 I think it is over priced, but if I was ordering today I would suck it up and pay for it.

 

[spesler]

The cost difference is still less than jumping from a 330i to a 340i.

Is AWD needed here in Atlanta? Nah. But you only live once!

 

[MXWing]

Everyone decides for themselves what this stuff is worth. At $5,000 I thought AWD was on the pricey side since it is $2,000-$3,000 from other luxury car makers....

Is apples to apples though?

I don’t know if there is an equivalent ice analogy but you get a second motor turning the two extra wheels as opposed to just one motor turning from 2 to 4.

 

[voip-ninja]

The cost difference is still less than jumping from a 330i to a 340i.

Is AWD needed here in Atlanta? Nah. But you only live once!

That's true.... however if you're comparing going from a 330i to a 340xi you get a lot more than just AWD and faster acceleration for the $10K price difference.

• Better wheels
• Body Kit
• Full LED headlights
• Harman Kardon audio system
• Probably another dozen things I'm forgetting about.

 

[voip-ninja]

Is apples to apples though?

I don’t know if there is an equivalent ice analogy but you get a second motor turning the two extra wheels as opposed to just one motor turning from 2 to 4.

It's also one more thing to break. However, I need AWD and I won't complain about the faster acceleration. I am curious about how the handling will compare with the RWD version I drove, which I have to admit drove like a giant go kart.... in the funnest way possible.

 

[spesler]

That's true.... however if you're comparing going from a 330i to a 340xi you get a lot more than just AWD and faster acceleration for the $10K price difference.

• Better wheels
• Body Kit
• Full LED headlights
• Harman Kardon audio system
• Probably another dozen things I'm forgetting about.

That’s a good point - I guess it’s not quite a fair comparison. Still, having gone from a 135i to a 328i, there was little chance of skipping dual motor this time around. Gotta go fast!

 

[MXWing]

Some things to consider is that the Model 3 already comes loaded with all hardware and even better hardware in some respects than the S.

Not much to differentiate the cars other than performance.

Also, making any improvements on even the AWD or P would cannibalize Model S sales. The 3 already beats the S as a value buy as is.

 

[Canuck]

I am curious about how the handling will compare with the RWD version I drove, which I have to admit drove like a giant go kart.... in the funnest way possible.

My thoughts exactly -- and with the AWD in the tile to this thread, I thought I'd read about the differences. Then again, I really need to drive one myself to see the difference. I wonder how much, if any, of that go-cart feel is gone?

 

[Glamisduner]

I'm not sure If I am a millennial or not. Did anyone ever decide on a clean cut definition? My understanding was that the origional concept was that if you graduated highschool in 1999 your not a millennial, but if you graduated after that your a millennial? If so I am not a millennial and I don't generally associate myself with that generation. Or is the cut off by birth date? If 1981 are you a millennial? If so, then this millennial is also getting a model 3 soon

10k gives you 25% faster acceleration to 60 (1 second out of 4) , most of which apparently comes from off the line performance (so maybe 50% faster acceleration to about 30mph)?

Just saying, it wouldn't be the same as going 1 second faster from 6 to 5 seconds or from 5 to 4sec. That 1 second is 25%! Whether it's worth it or not I am unsure. I'm getting the P, but it's 11k more than AWD for me (4k price), at 9k I more I think it is a better value than at 11k more

 

[Atari2600]

My AWD is blue with white interior like yours. I also have the 18" wheels with the aero covers removed. I've had mine a week any my average wh/m is 305. So I've enjoyed it as well. I chose EAP and placed a bet on FSD over the performance because I'm a fan of Jim Keller's work. I expect AP 3 to be extremely powerful.

 

[CapnOMatic]

My exact configuration! Looks great. Mine is supposed to be here next week. Mind blown that millenials, even ones with good jobs are shelling out $60,000+ on new cars.

Wife and I, both Gen X, has a lot of conversations around such a big purchase.

I'm a Gen X'r too and ordered the moment I got the invite so I didn't have the option for awd otherwise I may have gone for that as well. I'm still excited about my model 3 though!

I'm wondering if they will have a short range model 3 performance version. I would imagine that would most likely make a lot of people mad if they could have bought a performance version for 9k less.

 

[VT_EE]

I'm a Gen X'r too and ordered the moment I got the invite so I didn't have the option for awd otherwise I may have gone for that as well. I'm still excited about my model 3 though!

I'm wondering if they will have a short range model 3 performance version. I would imagine that would most likely make a lot of people mad if they could have bought a performance version for 9k less.

Seriously doubtful. Part of the reason the LR is so fast has to do with the current they can extract safely from the battery. They advertise the SR/RWD version as .5s slower than the LR. I suspect it has to do with the capability of the smaller battery.

 

[mpclimber]

When I was doing my P vs AWD calculus, I also factored in that I had a better shot of getting a P before the rebate steps down in January, so I discounted the $10k (at that time) by another $3,750. I know they are turning out AWDs at a decent clip now, so maybe it turned out to be less of a factor.

 

[Gouldness]

My thoughts exactly -- and with the AWD in the tile to this thread, I thought I'd read about the differences. Then again, I really need to drive one myself to see the difference. I wonder how much, if any, of that go-cart feel is gone?

Well, i've driven 1 RWD and my AWD for almost a week now. My short drive in the RWD was maybe 10 minutes, in a friends (day 1) res car and i wanted to treat it like the waited-for piece of tech it was: gently. As for go-kart, non-go-kart stuff, I'd say both are the same feel, just one gives you a kick when you floor it. I really need to re-drive it now that I've had my AWD. I'll see if i can't meet up with him tonight.

 

[Deal]

Well, i've driven 1 RWD and my AWD for almost a week now. My short drive in the RWD was maybe 10 minutes, in a friends (day 1) res car and i wanted to treat it like the waited-for piece of tech it was: gently. As for go-kart, non-go-kart stuff, I'd say both are the same feel, just one gives you a kick when you floor it. I really need to re-drive it now that I've had my AWD. I'll see if i can't meet up with him tonight.

He is probably very anxious to drive your AWD anyways

 

[voip-ninja]

He is probably very anxious to drive your AWD anyways

Smashing it.

Smashy McSmash face.