TLDR:
I just test drove a Model 3 LR for the first time in my life (the Tesla service center is just 2 min walking distance away but until 2 days ago I didnt know that you could actually ask for test drive). Thought what better thing to do, while waiting, then to actually test drive the car and get used to it.
Some background:
I have never owned an automatic transmission car. I drove an old beat up tiny manual transmission car for 7-8 years, without any power steering, or power brakes or ABS, before coming to US. Late last year I got the license in the US, and started renting cars over the weekend to get used to these newer fancy cars. Despite driving these new fancy cars every other weekend or so, I never truly felt in full control of them. The steering wheels always felt too loose, the accelerator and braking too hit and miss. The width and lengths of the rentals are all over the place and you never get used to how wide or how long the car is. I even ended up getting into an accident on a cold, heavy raining, late night when I was driving on a highway upstate NY.
Fast forward to today:
I can now confidently say that driving the Model 3 on 'Sports' Steering with 'Hold' regenerative braking is very close to driving a manual transmission car without a power steering. Since coming to the US, I have driven different rentals, from Mazda SUVs and Kia Sedans to BMW series-5. Yes cars like BMW series 5 feel super super premium from the inside, but you never truly fully feel in control of the car. The cars are either too long, or too wide, the steering wheel feels too loose, and the brakes and acceleration feels hit and miss depending on the road you are driving.
As opposed to that the Tesla feels just about the right size and you feel in full control of the car. The hold regenerative braking is a game changer and I dont think I ever used brakes despite driving on the highways for 30 mins. You can basically feather the accelerator to slow down or speed up the car, just like driving a manual transmission in a fixed gear. The only difference is, in manual transmission, if you are too slowed down, you have to switch to a lower gear, accelerate the car and then switch back to a higher gear. But in Tesla you can immediately accelerate without any additional steps. As for the steering wheel in sports mode, it doesn't feel loose at all.
I had kind of given hope and thought that the older car experience was completely gone. I am glad Tesla has the braking and steering options and you feel just at home.
P.S: I never felt the need to engage the auto pilot even once as I was having so much fun.
why you do this Elon & minions
