I'm waiting for Model 3...first time buyer

[Tes99]

I've looked at this thing every way possible and I never land on the Model S. If I get the Tesla brand name and all the goodness that brings, Autopilot 2.0 on a fully loaded state of the art little sexy beast called Model 3, why would I pay $90K for a Model S with a little nicer interior and 0-60 I'll never use? And the crazy thing is, Tesla has a used 2014 P85 for $74,500 on the website tonight. If you dropped the price of that car to $55,000, I would still take a fully loaded Model 3, and would be willing to pay 60K for kicks. Times are changin fast.

 

[Tam]

...Times are changin fast.

Not fast enough!

 

[ev-now]

Part of it is enjoying th car now, rather than the future promise. Right now Tesla is in a bit of an under-promise state with AP2 on MS, let alone actually getting a M3 out the door. Times are changin' but there's not yet a viable competitor to MS on the road, nor reasonable likelihood of significant M3 delivery in 2017. So if you want to enjoy the experience now - there's just the one model.

 

[eisbock]

Only reason I would go with an S is that the aesthetic design is much, much better. Everything is more visually appealing:

• Headlight design: S has beautiful signature wrap-around halo DRLs and the 3 has a lame blob. Would have loved something more distinguishable. The S DRLs turn heads without fail. I feel the 3 will go much more unnoticed, which isn't great for advertisement purposes. Also, the 3 headlights ride up onto the hood too far. Kinda reminds me of the Leaf (yikes). Also has that weird jaggy bit which is jarring and doesn't fit the rest of the design language that emphasizes smooth, arcing curves.

• S is much sleeker. 3 is same height, but shorter, so it looks too stubby. Tesla is putting far too much emphasis on rear passenger comfort which makes the car look bubbly and more like the X than the S. Looks a bit like a cockroach from certain angles. From the front, the car looks too tall. This is most noticeable in the Tesla roof tile render. It seems too narrow and loses that streamlined look the S has with its sexy haunches.

• Front of the car is too small. This is the definition of stubby. It's very low and slants aggressively downward. Has the proportions of the X but on a sedan which is awkward-looking. Just look at the blue one on your reservation page. Hood is too short. I understand the reasoning for this, but it doesn't work that well aesthetically.

• Door handles: on the fence about this one. I don't really mind the hockey sticks, but I love the simplicity of the S. It's sleek and fits the design on the rest of the car. The hockey sticks are kinda busy and fragile-looking and don't fit the rest of the design aesthetic. It's almost like the designers wanted some "cool" design for the handles.

• The back: I'm okay with the giant tacked-on spoiler shape. But I love the "premium" metal strip across the back on the S. That always blows my mind whenever I see it. It's extremely noticeable and stands out from nearly every other car. It's smooth and sleek and elegant. The 3 looks like the S, but with the strip ripped off. The exact shape of that strip is still there! Hell, you can even see the license plate lights and cameras underneath! It may look cleaner in some senses and less busy, but to the point where it's bland and.. empty.

• Taillights: kinda whatever on this, but S is better. 3 looks abruptly cut off like it's missing the connection. Maybe if that metal strip was there where it looks like it should be, it wouldn't look so jarring.

• Brake lights: obviously that giant strip on the S is super cool. The 3 has a shorter strip which is less cool.

• The front: last but not least. Enough's been said about this already, but I personally think even the S refresh looks better. Another thing I don't like is the T emblem on the hood. I want people to know I'm driving around a Tesla, and the stache is a great way to highlight this emblem. It looks tacked onto the Model 3 like "oh, we need our logo on the front somewhere, how about here?" Plus, it's slanted at an angle which reduces its visibility to drivers in front of you. Also, the mouthless face is extremely aggressive-looking. Tesla vehicles are cool, calm, and elegant, but with enough bite that people don't mess with you. The 3 is a cold, angry, short, soulless robot hell-bent on destroying all humans. Certainly doesn't jive with the rest of Tesla's lineup.

I don't think any of these things are ugly, per se, but literally every design feature is inferior to the S. I guess this is to be expected, seeing as Tesla can't make a cheaper car look better than their flagship, but I was hoping for "different", not "inferior". Feels like they took a lot of the S and X design and purposefully jacked up the proportions, losing the elegance and beauty in the process.

I've still got a reservation and will likely be driving this killing machine in a couple years, but my dream vehicle continues to be an S. Just can't justify forking over an extra $30-50k for a car that simply looks better. I do realize that looks aren't everything and I'll get over the things that bother me because the rest of the car will be worth it.