I don't agree with your argument, because the hatchback on our Prius worked fine with respect to interior space and rear seat room for us for 12 years.
Judging by the photos, our 2004 Prius was slightly smaller than the Model 3.
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No hatch-back on model 3 - Anyone else disappointed.
- Thread starter nolngrgrsngslde
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I don't agree with your argument, because the hatchback on our Prius worked fine with respect to interior space and rear seat room for us for 12 years.
Judging by the photos, our 2004 Prius was slightly smaller than the Model 3.
EcoHeliGuy
Member
Just want to point out that Mini has done just that, very successfully. Sharing of parts and assembly line, you can offer lots of shapes.
Not only Mini, almost all established manufacturers do this too. Modern platforms are modular and flexible, and you can build different body style as long as you have time and money for development, and production capacity to accommodate the expansion of model lines.
Tesla would love to do it too, but they have not grown to that stage yet.
Mini sold 338,000 cars in 2015; Tesla 50,500.
p-f-g
Member
US buyers like the perception of utility. If they valued actual utility, minivans would sell much more. If you consider how most SUVs are really used, a minivan blows it away with respect to utility.
"We" are not trying to categorize cars at all. We are just trying to buy the car that fits us best. Overwhelmingly, those cars have large rear doors to access cargo. I have not heard a single reason that a sedan is a BETTER CAR. Which is the only thing Tesla should be looking at. There are zero statistics about which trunk option sells better in mid-priced high-range electric vehicles.
Thank you kindly.
I prefer the sedan, actually.
Why? If there were two versions of the Model ≡, with exactly the same shape, interior and exterior, but one had the rear door hinged low, and one high, why would you choose the one hinged low?
Thank you kindly.
What about the "single reason" that Elon gave? That within the aerodynamic design constraints, the sedan trunk yields a better car. "Better" is in Tesla's perspective of course, and they obviously prioritized rear seat headroom over cargo access. They also needed to distinguish the Model 3 from the Model Y.
This is all plowed ground.
Less road noise with trunk. Don't like the cheap look of the hatch cover. More head room in the back seat with trunk.
ZAKEEUS
Member
In the U.S. Lots of people have 2 vehicles. A sedan and either a SUV or truck. A car can be used for utility but I most would rather keep the car clean and use the SUV/Truck for their utility needs. That being said, I drive a hatchback and I recently used it to drive back and forth to Lowes to pick up materials for almost 300' of privacy fence. If the trunk design yields better aerodynamics, that should really be the end of this argument.
We have a CR-V if we need to move cargo. I'm looking for primarily a business car. I work for a nonprofit and do a lot of fundraising - I have to go out and meet donors all the time. A sedan is more professional-looking, has less road noise, etc. A trunk and frunk provide more than adequate room for anything i need to carry with me and, as Elon Musk pointed out, the sedan design gets you better headroom in the rear due to rearranging where the supports are placed.
igotzzoom
Active Member
There are plenty of 5-door variants in Europe that look very similar to the conventional sedans. For a U.S. example, compare the BMW 4-Series "Gran Coupe" vs. the regular 3-Series sedan. The rear window is slightly less horizontal and the decklid is slightly longer on the 3-Series, but otherwise they look very similar. Also, the 5-door version of the Mazda 6 offered several years ago in the U.S. (and still offered in overseas markets) is similar. Ford also sells a 5-door variant of the Mondeo (sold in the U.S. as the Fusion).
3-Series
4-Series Gran Coupe
Ford Mondeo 5-door
Ford Fusion
Not sure how to make my question more clear. "with exactly the same shape, interior and exterior"
Thank you kindly.
diamond.g
Active Member
igotzzoom
Active Member
They're not "exactly" the same, but close enough (especially the Ford) that I'd gladly trade the minor difference in styling for the added utility of the liftback. As I've said, I'm still disappointed the Model 3 is not a liftback, but not disappointed enough to cancel my reservation.
How will it look exactly the same internally when one will have a hatch cover or an open hatch and the other will not.
