Is the model 3 too common now?

[Atari2600]

What percentage of cars out there are an EV these days? With threads like this it must be approaching 100%.

 

[Nguyenning]

In Dallas, I probably see at least one anytime I go on a drive longer than 10 minutes

 

[Fair Verona]

I'm in LA and yes, they're pretty common in some areas. I got mine last year before they became too common so had the novelty of feeling 'special' for a little while. Now, I don't let it worry me. I have a wrap and window tint which makes it feel a little unique and at the end of the day, I love driving it and feel much safer in the horrible LA traffic. I'm sure they'll end up being as common as Prius one day so I've just come to terms with it. I do wish that they had changed the base model to look a little different, eg no glass roof or something, because I do find it a little annoying that apart from a badge, there's no way to tell whether it's an $80k car or a $35k car.

 

[MexiCanuck]

I live on Vancouver Island. (Area about 31,000 sq km; population about 775,000.) I drive about 4,000 km/month. I see maybe two or three Tesla’s a month.

I bought mine today. Tesla is selling 100+ per day at the Vancouver location. That’s more cars than a lot of dealerships sell in a month in this area.

A lot of those cars will be driven in the Greater Vancouver Area, but I expect to start seeing more on Vancouver Island. Hopefully that will improve our Tesla infrastructure. There are currently two SuperCharger locations on Vancouver Island.

 

[Triplett]

Kind of a dumb question but anyway. The model 3 is absolutely everywhere here in Los Angeles. The garage at work is stuffed full of them. I still give a cheery wave, let them into traffic in front of me etc. but I have to admit I feel a little less "special". My cars have always been a bit quirky so never had a problem finding them in a parking lot. The other day I tried to get into my car and after fiddling with the door handle wondering why it didn't open (no doubt activating sentry mode) I realised it wasn't my car..
I wonder also if the simple design, limited colour palette and only a single model available (no new exterior updates to the body, no special editions etc) kind of highlights the cars more than say a Prius. It really is phenomenal how many are on the road right now. There have been threads about the statement of Tesla saying this is the best selling car by revenue. Many people said this was nonsense but it's really no mean feat to get so many high value cars on the road in such short time. It's easier to sell millions of cheaper/mid range cars/trucks than high value cars.
It's an interesting situation because you have luxury car owners (BMW/Porsche/Mercedes) buying the car, but then you have less affluent people trading up from a Prius etc. often pushing their budgets to the limit. I wonder how the two different groups of owners perceive the car. For those coming from less fancy cars I imagine it must seem almost unimaginably luxurious, for those coming from high ends cars, maybe the interior seems cheap, the doors flimsy etc.

Use to be that if you owned a BMW in LA you would never find it again in a mall parking lot.

 

[Triplett]

I solved the problem by ripping off the badging from a Prius and gluing it on my car....

 

[lynnpt2001]

What part of the Tesla plan to build an inexpensive mass market vehicle.....now they are....BE HAPPY

 

[strykeroz]

Wow. While there's potentially confirmation bias at work here too (like the OP when I get a new car I notice them everywhere) I can't wait to start seeing them here from August. If they became common that would be an amazing outcome.

 

[KenC]

LOL, I got silver, specifically so that my Tesla would blend in with all the other cars, since there are no Teslas in central Maine. I've done a good job, neither of my neighbors have even come over to ask about it. It's the same color, and about the same size and shape as my old Chevy Volt. Only kids recognize my car is a Tesla.

 

[P85_DA]

If you want your car to stand out, wrap it, do a chrome delete,

Lol everyone in Cali does this ..so won’t stand out

 

[RayK]

Buy a Roadster if you want a truly rare Tesla. Only 2400 made and they are very distinctive.

I still can't easily tell it apart from a Lotus Elise.

I'm in the heart of Silicon Valley. My work commute is a combination of city streets, expressways and highways. I leave my house mid-morning (9:30ish) and return around 7:30pm. On average, I'd say I see about 15-18 Model 3s during the 45-50 minutes I'm on the road. When I got my car last July, it was fairly rare to see more than a couple of 3s during my daily drive. Now, at each major intersection where I'm stopped at the light, there's a least 2 or 3 of them that are crossing in front of me. They have seem to overtaken Prii in popularity around here.

 

[WattsHappening]

I still can't easily tell it apart from a Lotus Elise.

I'm in the heart of Silicon Valley. My work commute is a combination of city streets, expressways and highways. I leave my house mid-morning (9:30ish) and return around 7:30pm. On average, I'd say I see about 15-18 Model 3s during the 45-50 minutes I'm on the road. When I got my car last July, it was fairly rare to see more than a couple of 3s during my daily drive. Now, at each major intersection where I'm stopped at the light, there's a least 2 or 3 of them that are crossing in front of me. They have seem to overtaken Prii in popularity around here.

Sounds about right. We live on a street with 14 houses. Including ours, there are 7 Model 3s on our street. To answer OP's question, it does feel a bit like they are becoming a bit too common. People used to ask me about the car all the time last year. Now, it really is like a BMW 3 series. They're everywhere and almost all people know about them.

 

[lolder]

You have an iconic car that will be remembered 100 years from now as the Model T of the electric transportation age.

When someone shows interest in the car in public, I immediately offer to show it to them and offer a ride. I'm retired and seldom need to be anywhere. My home AC is old and needs replacement and I had 1/2 dozen ( too many ) estimators. I may have sold 3 Model 3s.

 

[alexGS]

Funny to think that we only have a single Model 3 so far in NZ and it’s a LHD model in the showroom, can’t be driven. I’m one of the first batch to order (maybe a hundred cars arriving in August? No-one seems to know) and expect that I’ll rarely see others on the roads, maybe once a month, or once a week if they sell really well going into next year.

It was an interesting point brought up about some Model 3s being bought by Mercedes/BMW customers and some brought by ‘economy car’ drivers. I suspect the original Mini, once it really got going mid-sixties, must have been a similar effect. At the time it was considered a ‘classless’ car.

I think we buy the car for its capabilities and not for its exclusivity; otherwise, we’d wait for Alfa Romeo or Citroen or Saab (hopefully resurrected from the dead) to offer their EVs.

Tesla offers nowhere near the required number of customisation options; I think the wrapping industry should be thankful for all the new business!

-Alex

 

[Rex Kramer]

How did it handle Sequoia? Did you camp or stay at a lodge? Did you charge in Three Rivers?

Stayed at the Gateway in Three Rivers, so charging was convenient. One of the chargers there is in an awkward spot, and the other is a bit hidden, so it can be a challenge to be able to park near a charger at all. Sequoia was fantastic and lots of fun to drive, however it was snowing and the General's Highway was completely closed past Lodgepole, so now I have to go back in the summer sometime.

Visalia can't get a supercharger soon enough. For now, Gateway is a great place to get a meal with a view (a bit expensive but the window seats make up for it) while you charge up.

 

[Bill Foster]

Yesterday I saw at least a dozen. Today I had seen about 5 or more when I was thinking I hadn't seen a Multi Coat Red. Then right before I got home a "twin" with 19" (not sure if it was AWD) passed me in the other direction. That was one thing about my ELR. It was RARE that I saw another on the road though it did happen. Oddly a couple of days after I got it this happened at a park I was running at. Mine is (or was) the Crystal Red Tentcoat.

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That’s because GM couldn’t give those ELR’s away lol

 

[JulienW]

That’s because GM couldn’t give those ELR’s away lol

Safe to say that "giving" wasn't something they tried very hard. I bought used (only 7500 miles) and VERY depreciated. Also only because I was waiting for Tesla to get the 3 out and (crazily) HOPING for a Model 3 coupe. Always been a coupe or roadster kinda guy and don't really like sedans much but.......

 

[Kilotango74]

Yeah this feeling special crap says a lot about our society. Guess what people ...... your not special and neither is your car. It’s a fricking car. Your car or Facebook account or YouTube videos don’t really matter at all. Face the facts that you are just like every other human being on this planet and get over yourself. Enjoy your car for what it is and how it drives but realize the “status” crap is just that.....crap. If I do something to my car it’s because I like how it looks, not to stand out.

 

[Bill Foster]

Safe to say that "giving" wasn't something they tried very hard. I bought used (only 7500 miles) and VERY depreciated. Also only because I was waiting for Tesla to get the 3 out and (crazily) HOPING for a Model 3 coupe. Always been a coupe or roadster kinda guy and don't really like sedans much but.......

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Whoever greenlighted 80k for a churched up volt was delusional at best

Also imagine the cries from the Tesla owners if Tesla pulled the same stunt that GM did by not producing them for a year then dropping the price by 10k lmao

 

[wws]

Model 3s, and Teslas in general, are getting to be common as dirt in Silicon Valley. About a year ago a report came out on EV buying habits in California. In it they claimed that the town where I live, over 20% of new car purchasers bought a plug in car. It is believable as I literally can not drive out of my neighborhood without seeing several.

Wish Tesla would come out with a "Roadster Jr" - something about the size and price of a Boxster or Cayman. I'd sign up the day reservations open.