So… Highland is out…

[Midpack]

I like the look of this refresh but my concerns are the way you put the vehicle in gear.
Would rather have a physical switch or lever to put the car into drive/neutral/reverse etc.
If the screen goes tits up then what’s the contingency?

Also, living close to Swindon, the town of roundabouts I’m going to need double jointed wrists to change indicator direction.

Of course they've included a contingency PRNDL, just like they did with the MS/X when they went stalkless. On the new M3 the backup buttons are up with the hazard flashers near the rear view mirror...

 

[boombap]

Of course they've included a contingency PRNDL, just like they did with the MS/X when they went stalkless. On the new M3 the backup buttons are up with the hazard flashers and the rear view mirror...

I‘m very curious where this actually is, it doesn’t appear to be in the same place as Model S because the surround of the wireless chargers appears to be covered in vegan leather instead of plastic, nor does there appear to be a swipe forward/reverse zone on the screen like with the S…

 

[boombap]

I may have spotted the UK (and I think European issue). When the boot it open, there are no rear light so a car stopped with hazards on and the boot open isn't correctly illuminated at night - screenshot taken from a video.


View attachment 970478

The BMW iX has the same issue, so they put more lights that you can see once the boot is open

View attachment 970479

I'm guessing this is a regulation, and either way, for a company priding itself on safety, I kind of think hazards should still be visible when the boot open, unless they've achieved this some other way?

I think someone has also suggested there's no rear fog light, but no idea if thats true

Looks like the ’reflectors’ in the diffuser are actually the reversing lights and I’d assume do double duty here.

About 1:15 in Björn’s video here you can see the reverse lights in action, haven’t seen the hazards anywhere yet.

 

[atuk]

Really???

Yes, really ... in my opinion.

I see it as a car.
For me it's a company car, therefore costing hundreds of £ less each month than an A4 Diesel.
Charging is cheaper than fuel ... i mostly charge off peak at home.
I like tech stuff, my house has some automation in it, and I also have a good phone that does many things.
I pay contactless or wireless and can't remember when I was last in a branch.
My TV is on a wall and looks like a picture, not on a stand in a corner taking up space.
etc.

But again, that's my opinion. I quite encourage change because I feel it brings us forward.

Here is some of my blue sky thinking ... in future we may not need stalks anymore, if nav is active the car will indicate itself. All these masses of cars provide so much data that at some point we may see self driving cars. Surely everyone can see that this won't just be "invented" and works properly, it has to be delevoped.

But hey, if someone doesn't like the car, the stalk situation, the looks, the whatever ... there are luckily some options out there now.

 

[GlynG]

but "if you do what you always did, you get what you always got".

But, have you considered perhaps the stalk is so intuitive, you don't have to think how to use the indicators on any car you drive, plus, the system is easy, robust, cheap, reliable and it just works - why would I want to change something I find perfectly fine and be forced to use a tiny haptic button - that I've got to look to find when I need it - Its as bad as trying to use the mobile when your driving - and that's illegal. Sometimes doing what you've always done is the right thing

I cant see removal of the stalks as anything but innovation for the sake of it and Tesla just identifying another part to remove from the car.

 

[Type2]

Yes, really ... in my opinion.

I see it as a car.
For me it's a company car, therefore costing hundreds of £ less each month than an A4 Diesel.
Charging is cheaper than fuel ... i mostly charge off peak at home.
I like tech stuff, my house has some automation in it, and I also have a good phone that does many things.
I pay contactless or wireless and can't remember when I was last in a branch.
My TV is on a wall and looks like a picture, not on a stand in a corner taking up space.
etc.

But again, that's my opinion. I quite encourage change because I feel it brings us forward.

Here is some of my blue sky thinking ... in future we may not need stalks anymore, if nav is active the car will indicate itself. All these masses of cars provide so much data that at some point we may see self driving cars. Surely everyone can see that this won't just be "invented" and works properly, it has to be delevoped.

But hey, if someone doesn't like the car, the stalk situation, the looks, the whatever ... there are luckily some options out there now.

Absolutely nothing you’ve just said backs up your assertion that “it is still an EV that's lightyears ahead of anything else”.

My Audi A6 V6 diesel certainly costs more to run than my M3P (apart from insurance), but when it comes to comfort, refinement and build quality it knocks the socks off any Tesla. Which is why I always use the A6 for long journeys. It also helps that the auto wipers and matrix headlights work perfectly. In fact if comfort and refinement were your priorities an M3 or MY probably wouldn’t even be on your shortlist.

As for your blue sky thinking, Level 5 automation is what many auto makers are aiming for. But if you think Tesla are going to achieve this anytime soon, or even think they will be the first to achieve it, then I suspect you are going to be very disappointed.

 

[Artiste]

Personally, I'm all for it. Bring changes, innovate.

If innovation brings improvement then I’m all for it. But I see absolutely no benefit in removing indicator stalks. There’s a reason they’ve stood the test of time - they are easy to use, intuitive and extremely effective.

Tesla like to be “disruptive”. Vision for wipers instead of a cheap, reliable sensor. Vision instead of cheap, reliable USS. Problem is it doesn’t work as well as what it’s replaced. Innovation then becomes a retrograde step, and is therefore pointless.

 

[MrT3]

Here is some of my blue sky thinking ... in future we may not need stalks anymore

and when that time comes it makes perfect sense to build cars without them - however that isn't the reality today, and if I purchase a car today I need it to be useful today, not years in the future.

 

[pdk42]

It looks like the "S3XY buttons" people already have an aftermarket stalks solution.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1697663908268351900

Yay, so a Highland is back on my shopping list!

 

[Jonnymack74]

I think it looks so much better than the old one in every way. The Y will look loads better when that version comes out too.
Interior looks nice too.
If it had auto door handles I could be tempted to love from My S seeing as we won't get RHD here

 

[boombap]

I think it looks so much better than the old one in every way. The Y will look loads better when that version comes out too.
Interior looks nice too.
If it had auto door handles I could be tempted to love from My S seeing as we won't get RHD here

S/X seem due for another refresh after this…

It‘s 3 years since Plaid, makes me wonder if part of why they decided not to bother shipping RHD is because they knew another update was coming soon, especially given Plaid was rumoured to have a bunch of features like the ambient lighting etc which never actually made it to production and others like the screen tilt which arrived too late for the first models that shipped.

Wild speculation but wouldn’t be surprised if they’re next again after Cybertruck launches and Highland starts shipping out of Fremont.

 

[randompixel]

Teslascope say all models will have been refreshed by end of 2024.

 

[FastLaneJB]

I know Tesla say that it’s effectively a model gets improvements but never a brand new car. Obviously with 50% new parts in this, it kind of is. I mean when BMW come out with a new 3 series how much of it is new and how much is carried over from the last gen? Looks can change quite a bit but bet there’s still quite a bit carried over sometimes.

I do wonder sometimes if Tesla will continue with the S and X. I think there’s value in a halo model but possible you get to a point that just refreshing an old design just isn’t the way to go. Cannot see them ever having Gigacasting as the volume wouldn’t make sense for it but maybe just scrap and come out with a whole new one of each.

That or just bring Plaid motors and air suspension to some 3 and Y’s, sunset the bigger cars.

 

[boombap]

The S has mega-castings already.
When the Y launched before the IDRA presses showed up at Fremont, for the single piece giga-castings, it had two, smaller, rear corner mega-castings for each arch joined by a short middle section,
Once the bigger giga-presses were ready, the Y switched to those and the old “smaller” mega-casting machines got switched over to the Model S line.
No need really to move to giga, when they have 90% of the benefits already.

Plaid 3 with a hatch would be S3XY though…

 

[MrBadger]

and when that time comes it makes perfect sense to build cars without them - however that isn't the reality today,

Direct hit - nail on the head.

If you introduce some big change, you either make that big change a ‘must have’, or it must work at least as well (performance and ergonomics) as what it is replacing. Or be an additional control.

Not, as is the Tesla preferred method, a total replacement that is always work in progress/beta, which works some of the time, in some circumstances, and never gets finished because it is realised that it will never reach parity so is replaced by something new (in two weeks or end of the year definitely) and the cycle starts all over.

It’s the Tesla way. A car full of half baked features that never work properly and never will and a load of promises that will never be fulfilled.

 

[Hurricane]

Teslascope say all models will have been refreshed by end of 2024.

As long as Tesla are able to stick to their timeline, and their record isn’t good. I’d imagine the Cybertruck must be about due for a refresh. Oh, it’s years behind and hasn’t been released yet.

And forget lack of indicator stalks. According to the Musk a massive fleet of robo taxis, with no steering wheels or pedals, will be released in 2024. Not for the first time I detect the unmistakable smell of bovine manure.

 

[Pants]

I see it as a car.

You have hit the nail on the head - it’s a car.

When people started to take delivery of their M3s in serious numbers four years ago and started to complain about poor build quality with dreadful paint, lights full of water and various other problems, the fanboys/girls tried to justify this with complete crap such as “you haven’t bought a car, you’ve bought a computer on wheels”. But you have discerned reality - it’s a car.

 

[WannabeOwner]

if nav is active the car will indicate itself

It'll have to read my mind then. I often indicate to show intent, which is different to navigation. An emergency vehicle approaching, I can signal to show I know they are there and which way I am moving out of their way; that I am going to yield to oncoming traffic on a narrow road; and so on.

Which is why I always use the A6 for long journeys. It also helps that the auto wipers and matrix headlights work perfectly. In fact if comfort and refinement were your priorities an M3 or MY probably wouldn’t even be on your shortlist.

I take the MS for long journeys, same reason. Comfortable air suspension, large airy cabin, arrive in far better shape on long journeys than I ever did in a small car - actually in much better shape than a comfortable / large ICE too. I put that down to less driver workload (AP etc., I've been driving MS since 2015, I just had plain cruise on ICE, before then) and quieter too. The enforced 20 minutes stops every 2h - 2h30m definitely help too

 

[Leytonstone]

A car full of half baked features that never work properly and never will and a load of promises that will never be fulfilled.

Model refreshes and launches are a useful reminder of how this all works

Take those euphoric videos from Carwow and that gushing old lady at Fully Charged. They never explain why the PIONEERING GAMECHANGER they are reviewing today has none of the features nor abilities they said it would have just last week. Can't go exposing the true speed of progress when survival rests on your audience constantly parting with more money.

 

[Whyone]

......and the fact that is still an EV that's lightyears ahead of anything else.....