Indeed, there is no reason to believe Model 3 steering wheel will not have controls on it - and quite a bit of reason to believe it will, both the prototype with D-pad or trackpad like controls on it as well as Elon Musk's spaceship response to a steering wheel question that might be relevant as well. Also, it just makes sense to have them available.
That said, could those controls be a paid option? Certainly they could.
The issue I have with offering additional controls and buttons is that you need to retool. Everything I've seen points to building Model 3 more or less on the same production line. I'm not even sure if we'll see a "premium" interior, because that means you can't make all Model 3 on the same interior line.
This thought coupled with the Tesla email that says Model 3 will be offered with not only fewer, but "far fewer" options, makes me think there won't be much interior or exterior customization available. Hell, I can see the only Model 3 customization being in the motors and battery. Otherwise, it'll be a "one size fits all".
At least for now. I suspect the Model 3 launch will be extremely light on options and upgrades to keep tooling and production costs down. That other thread about the sound system may have some merit to it... maybe there won't be any sound upgrades at all? Make the base system a little beefier and eat the extra costs because it's cheaper and
faster in the long run compared to offering an upgrade as an option.
At this point, we're looking at a balance between building not only the cars as fast as possible, but also the machines. Maybe Tesla didn't have time to build the extra machines to give us stuff like boosted sound or interior upgrades.
I wouldn't be surprised if those machines never get built based on Tesla's goals and timelines with this car. The primary objective seems to be pumping out generic taxis as fast as possible without regard for what the customer actually wants.
"You won't care."
Perhaps 3-4 years down the road when Tesla is struggling to sell Model 3s without any available comfort options they will invest in more tooling to make Model 3 more customizable. This will piss a ton of owners off. I doubt Tesla will accept that not every single person wants a taxi, but perhaps one day they'll realize that people who do want a taxi (or have come to terms with it) might want a more interesting interior.
I wanted this car day 1, but after taking a more realistic look at things, I might wait 5 years when Tesla realizes they can't sell this car for $35k in the numbers they'd hoped and hopefully come out with a refreshed and improved Model 3 that wasn't rushed.
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