Model 3 at MTV Supercharger - My Impressions!!

[Tslanwbie]

Saw a Model 3 while waiting to charge my new Model S at the Moutain View Supercharger.

First impressions:

1. Looks like a Baby Model S - very pretty car. I am not sure I dig the front view too much though.
2. Very well built. Panel Gaps etc. are all first class
3. I looked very closely inside - Rear seat is cramped. The test drivers were tall guys, but make no mistake this is a much smaller car than the Model S.
4. No self-presenting handles, but the mechanism they have in lieu is pretty nice as well
5. The dash is very minimalist - I loved it!
6. The Bolt is toast. So is the BMW 3 series.

Overall - amped that this car is coming soon and I have a reservation.

For those folks who are on the fence before buying a Model S:

1. I think that those who need a bigger car (I do, as I have 3 kids) go for the S - now.
2. I think TESLA will add some more stuff to the S and increase the price point away from the 3.
3. With the 1.49% financing, free supercharging, federal incentive (given how good the Model 3 is, they will burn through the 200K vehicle limit superfast)

 

[206er]

Thanks for the info!

So the rear seat is cramped? Like, how cramped? Please give a comparison.

 

[jonnyg]

Looked inside at the back seat, the dash, opened the doors or at least watched them get opened, examined the panel gaps, but no close-up pictures/videos? Come on!

 

[Tslanwbie]

Looked inside at the back seat, the dash, opened the doors or at least watched them get opened, examined the panel gaps, but no close-up pictures/videos? Come on!

The said tall guys requested me not to take pictures. And I obliged... Sorry sometimes I am like that way!

 

[jonnyg]

The said tall guys requested me not to take pictures. And I obliged... Sorry sometimes I am like that way!

Just kidding, I'd probably do the same.

Actually, I would probably just stand there and grin/drool the whole time and forget I even had a phone/camera on me.

 

[nikeykid]

i expect the rear seats to be at least as spacious as my old 328i which of course wasn't that much space but i don't imagine hauling four adults on a regular basis in it. model 3 sounds like the perfect complement car with the MX for families.

 

[AssortedBread]

Any luck on the high res upload?

 

[alseTrick]

Thanks for the info!

So the rear seat is cramped? Like, how cramped? Please give a comparison.

This is simply false based on every single Model 3 reveal event video.

 

[sdorn]

This is simply false based on every single Model 3 reveal event video.

Even the Model S is tight for three adults in the back seat, so necessarily the Model 3 is going to be smaller. That seems like a given for a smallish sedan. The laws of physics don't change inside of a Tesla.

 

[BluestarE3]

This is simply false based on every single Model 3 reveal event video.

As an example:

 

[alseTrick]

Even the Model S is tight for three adults in the back seat, so necessarily the Model 3 is going to be smaller. That seems like a given for a smallish sedan. The laws of physics don't change inside of a Tesla.

Cool. Though, the 3 is not "smallish".

 

[AssortedBread]

Even the Model S is tight for three adults in the back seat, so necessarily the Model 3 is going to be smaller. That seems like a given for a smallish sedan. The laws of physics don't change inside of a Tesla.

Thats where your wrong. You don't have to break the laws of physics to make the cabin size larger...

Watch this, by making the car more like a bubble (taller) using way more glass (increasing headroom) and pushing the driver forward (increasing leg room) you get a more spacious sedan.

 

[ecarfan]

Even the Model S is tight for three adults in the back seat,

It depends on the size of those adults. You guys are arguing over subjective impressions and not actual data (since we don't have interior volume and dimension data for the 3 to compare it to the S). You can keep arguing based on no data for the 3, or you can acknowledge that we just don't know enough yet to make a comparison.

 

[Tslanwbie]

This is simply false based on every single Model 3 reveal event video.

Do not have actual measurements, but it sure did look cramped to me.

 

[alseTrick]

Do not have actual measurements, but it sure did look cramped to me.

And my comment is based off of the experience actual passengers had in the rear seat. I'm not saying it is expensive.

 

[Neo_fd3s]

I still don't have any clue how Germans are able to fit into their own vehicles. The cabin interiors of the current 3 series and c class are cramped for anyone over 5ft8inch.
I guess this is 1 of those times it pays to be on the small side??
Regardless, I never have issues fitting in any car. I found the rear interior of the model S to be acceptable. The front seats were set to someone who was 5ft9 and the other 6ft. I had no issues in the back.
Since the 3 is smaller, it's the ideal vehicle for me. The model S is way too big for what I need to use it for.
Having the seats set to my 5ft6 frame would leave ample room in the back.
The 3 is the perfect "grown up" vehicle (for the record, I despise this saying. Just tell the truth. You either can't bend the way you use too, or the woman in your life can't. There's no shame in it).

 

[sdorn]

There is no sedan in the world where 3 average adult males (which according to Scientific American is 5'9.5" and 195.5 lbs in the US) aren't somewhat cramped (defined as not touching each other at all when sitting normally with their arms at their sides).

You can't sit three astride in a Model S without touching each other for certain. Unless someone is saying that the Model 3 will have a larger back seat than the Model S, then the OP's observation that the back seat looked "cramped" was likely accurate.

 

[3Victoria]

The S outside dimensions is just too big for us, else I would take advantage of the CPO S good prices. I have a Mini, so even the 3 will feel large to me . The 3 interior will be 'bigger' than expected as they moved the front seats forward, and the large rear window will add to the perceived roominess.

 

[Runt8]

There is no sedan in the world where 3 average adult males (which according to Scientific American is 5'9.5" and 195.5 lbs in the US) aren't somewhat cramped (defined as not touching each other at all when sitting normally with their arms at their sides).

You can't sit three astride in a Model S without touching each other for certain. Unless someone is saying that the Model 3 will have a larger back seat than the Model S, then the OP's observation that the back seat looked "cramped" was likely accurate.

Seems like the op needs to specify which dimension(s) he felt were cramped. My primary concern is foot space - I'll mainly be carting around two kids (currently in car seats), and the one who has to sit behind me has all of 4 inches of space between the car seat and the back of the driver seat. Width isn't a concern, and I feel like with the glass roof headroom probably isn't a problem either (for adults or my kids).

 

[sdorn]

Seems like the op needs to specify which dimension(s) he felt were cramped. My primary concern is foot space - I'll mainly be carting around two kids (currently in car seats), and the one who has to sit behind me has all of 4 inches of space between the car seat and the back of the driver seat. Width isn't a concern, and I feel like with the glass roof headroom probably isn't a problem either (for adults or my kids).

It's definitely not going to be a mini van. I have two kids, both in car seats, in my Model S. They both constantly kick the seat in front of them irritating the *sugar* out of whoever is sitting there. They have a few inches of room, but nothing like in our mini van where they can't even reach the seat in front of them with their feet fully stretched out.