Long-range or Performance

[Chris CG]

I went with LR a year and a half ago (due to a £10k difference in price and test driving the SR+ which felt plenty fast enough compared to my Audi S5 but wanted 4 wheel drive) and have just ordered a P to replace it. MaInly because my LR has hardly lost any value, the difference in RRP is now only £5k in the UK, and I need to scratch the itch for the P. Also I got black for the LR, which I now regret because despite meticulously careful cleaning it’s scratched and swirled badly. I’ve gone with red for the P. Got white interior on LR and same on P because IMHO it’s makes the cabin feel more ‘special’ than the black.

Once I’d had the LR for a few months I got acceleration boost as I’d hoped that’d stop the craving for the P - it didn’t! With respects to your worries about the acceleration, I really wouldn’t. The pedal is very linear in its power delivery and controlling it is so easy - to me it actually makes driving safer as you have more options to ‘escape’ anything and you have complete confidence in what it’s going to do (no waiting for a turbo to spool up etc).

 

[phaheem]

I have the LR AWD. I would (and did) go with the boost. I would not waste money on spoiler/brake paint - that’s another $2k right there. I prefer 18” wheels for the weather and road conditions I travel. If I had gone with P, I would have then also had to buy new wheels (and possibly smaller brakes to accommodate).

Agree with this. With the LR AWD, you get 95% of the P’s acceleration but for less money, more range, and a more compliant ride and less expensive tires (if you opt for the 18” aero wheel, which you can’t get on the P). The $2,000 boost gets you even closer to the P’s speed.

 

[ODWms]

The increased acceleration of the P3D (and for the X and S performance variants) is not just about faster off the line acceleration. Rather, there is a HUGE advantage in having the faster acceleration when passing cars on the freeway. I don’t use the quicker acceleration of my ludicrous on residential streets. But, when I need to pass up a car, or maneuver around a questionable vehicle on the road/freeway, it is a night and day difference. Can’t do those things as effectively with the non-performance variants.

If money is not an issue, you will never regret having the performance. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of someone downgrading from a P to non-P, but I have heard of many people who would have stretched a little to buy a P after.

That last paragraph says it all!

I don’t track, and don‘t plan to. But, all around, the P3D+ is hands down the best car I’ve ever owned. And I’ve owned some good cars over the years. I can still get close to rated range after 61,000 miles and 3 1/2 yrs if I drive conservatively enough, and still have all that power on tap when I want it.

I’d love more range, sure. But I suspect still I’d feel that way even if I had the RWD.

 

[mswlogo]

The increased acceleration of the P3D (and for the X and S performance variants) is not just about faster off the line acceleration. Rather, there is a HUGE advantage in having the faster acceleration when passing cars on the freeway. I don’t use the quicker acceleration of my ludicrous on residential streets. But, when I need to pass up a car, or maneuver around a questionable vehicle on the road/freeway, it is a night and day difference. Can’t do those things as effectively with the non-performance variants.

If money is not an issue, you will never regret having the performance. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of someone downgrading from a P to non-P, but I have heard of many people who would have stretched a little to buy a P after.

I down graded. I had a P3D (stealth). I only got it at the time because it was only $10K and included free supercharging and you were not stuck with 20” pothole magnets. Rarely used it’s full acceleration except to give friends a thrill ride. If it was a true P3D with brakes and 20” wheels I never would have bought it. Seen way to many stories of bent rims and folks dumping their 20” wheels for something else. Also since brakes get used so little bigger brakes get less wear and tend to pit and rust up more. So you need to use them more and chew up watts doing so. Also found the kick diminished quite a bit depending on SOC and wasn’t very strong at highway speeds for passing.

I went to Model X (non P). Which is about as fast as a M3 LR AWD. M3 LR AWD is even faster with the boost.

I now have a Non-P Refresh S. $40K to go 1 sec faster is a waste of $$$. I’ve never even put the car in drag strip mode or ludicrous. I could care less about beating the crap out of a $100K car, burning up tires or racing at a red light or track. I can just watch other people trash their cars.

 

[BitcoinMaxi]

Having owned both, save some $$$ and go with the LR RWD. Performance is nice but I rarely use it. LR RWD is extremely efficient.

I currently have the 2023 M3 LR on order. If I wanted to get the performance, it’d only cost an extra $3,500!

For that price difference, would you still stick to the LR or is upgrading to the performance a no brainer?

 

[Petsur]

Replacement tire costs is why I opted for the Long Range.

 

[VT_EE]

The wheels and tires prevent me from upgrading. If the M3P came with all season 19” tires, I’d be all over it.

 

[ODWms]

It’s up to your personal needs/tastes. I ordered and received the Performance 4 years ago, and to this day I couldn’t imagine having gone with anything else.

 

[Apprunner]

The wheels and tires prevent me from upgrading. If the M3P came with all season 19” tires, I’d be all over it.

Its really not hard to put the tires and wheel on sale day 1 and replace it with aftermarket 19s. I replaced mine with 18s and it was pretty simple

 

[NyanM3P]

M3P ownership is standard performance car ownership. Replacement things will be more expensive in the long run. It is easy to take an LR and give it bigger tires and still be faster than 90% of other cars on the road. The P gets you to that 98%.

Tires are a sticking point. The P Zeros are great from a performance standpoint and look insane on it, but unfortunately the Midwest winter is coming up. I will have to find some cheap wheels and winter tires soon. And the brakes are big boys. I wish the Aeros fit as I would prefer 18s. If I could just get some beat up Aeros with cheap winter tires, that would have been fantastic.

Still would go with a performance every time though. I drove a 2.4L sonata for 5 years. I didn’t get a 2.0T to save 2K back then. While I loved that car, I always wanted the extra omph. So I didn’t make the same choice this time.

If Tesla could take a request though, a North America M3 AWD standard range with around 0-60 5.5s would be dope.

 

[pacopico]

I have a 2020 P with 20" wheels, 58K miles and no pothole damage or wheel/tire replacement needed here (in Seattle area like the OP). In looking at TCO there was a negligible difference in overall cost (lower efficiency and more expensive tires) over 150K miles so I went with the P. As an aside I work in industrial areas that have crappy road surfaces due to commercial truck traffic, all you have to do is keep an eye out for the big potholes like one would reasonably expect in a performance-oriented car.

Original Michelin PS4S lasted 47K miles without rotation, so the idea that tires are consumed regularly did not apply in my case. I replaced them with +10mm wider Goodyear All-Seasons. They are noisy and not nearly as good as the Michelins, but never-the-less not a problem in normal driving.

Get the one you want, in my experience the 20's haven't been a problem in the Seattle area,

 

[Epradox]

I currently have the 2023 M3 LR on order. If I wanted to get the performance, it’d only cost an extra $3,500!

For that price difference, would you still stick to the LR or is upgrading to the performance a no brainer?

For $3500 to upgrade to a performance I think that’s a no brainer. You get the faster acceleration, better brakes and track mode which gives you more control and fine tuning of your drivetrain and regen braking. Track mode is the biggest selling point imo but if you don’t ever plan on cruising down some windy back roads and mainly want something to get from a to b everyday then stick with the LR. But for me personally I think the performance is one of teslas biggest selling points against competitors.

 

[APT21]

I recently went through this conundrum. I ended up ordering am M3 LR to then cancel after I got some time driving the M3P. The big thing for me was I knew I would end up trading the LR in a few months if I purchased it over the P.

 

[Apprunner]

I recently went through this conundrum. I ended up ordering am M3 LR to then cancel after I got some time driving the M3P. The big thing for me was I knew I would end up trading the LR in a few months if I purchased it over the P.