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Tesla Model 3 Performance Review – At 2 Years and Counting! Are We Two Years into a Revolution?

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You are right -- my arithmetic is wrong.
We can probably agree though that breakeven is at $5,000/$0.28 kWh = 17,857 kWh, or over 10 years ~ 150 kWh a month

That sounds about right. 3 supercharger stops a month. That's about where we're at I'd say! Some months are a lot more but some are a lot less. I'm going to see if I can check on Tesla's website to get a printout of all my supercharger stops just to see if that rough guess is accurate.
 
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All fine on those calculations when it comes to charging except they aren’t financial. The present value of $5000 is nowhere near the 10 year value of it. Unless you’re a frequent long range range driver using the SC very frequently in the first couple of years, taking the $5k refund was a better financial decision.

Now, people’s situations are unique and everyone decides for themselves what things are worth.
 
That sounds about right. 3 supercharger stops a month. That's about where we're at I'd say! Some months are a lot more but some are a lot less. I'm going to see if I can check on Tesla's website to get a printout of all my supercharger stops just to see if that rough guess is accurate.
You can copy the history of charges table from the Tesla website to a spreadsheet. PM me if you would like the Google Doc I use for the purpose; it has a seekret function to parse out the costs from the other data. Or if you like to roll your own here is a way to go about it. Once you have the costs by themselves in a column you can click on the column header and read off the sum directly in the lower right hand corner.

Supercharger Use.png
 
You can copy the history of charges table from the Tesla website to a spreadsheet. PM me if you would like the Google Doc I use for the purpose; it has a seekret function to parse out the costs from the other data. Or if you like to roll your own here is a way to go about it. Once you have the costs by themselves in a column you can click on the column header and read off the sum directly in the lower right hand corner.

View attachment 564212
It appears that if you have free supercharging your account does not track your supercharger visits in a way that I can see anyway.
 
We bought our MP3+ in September 2018 as well before the unlimited supercharging promotion expired. We've kept it since I drive a lot and after 197 supercharging stops and 45K+ miles, the total cost would have been $2454.79. So we'll definitely break-even by year 5 of ownership.
 
@dfwatt I'm the proud owner of a pearl white M3P (delivered 3/10). So far I love it - moreso than the 650hp Cadillac wagon that it replaced.

Can you share a list of the mods you've done? Mostly I'm interested in suspension & wheels. The ride height of your car looks perfect in the pic you posted. I'm considering the MPP KW coilover kit + camber arms (and eventually all the links/arms).

Cheers & thanks,

/TCP
 
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@dfwatt I'm the proud owner of a pearl white M3P (delivered 3/10). So far I love it - moreso than the 650hp Cadillac wagon that it replaced.

Can you share a list of the mods you've done? Mostly I'm interested in suspension & wheels. The ride height of your car looks perfect in the pic you posted. I'm considering the MPP KW coilover kit + camber arms (and eventually all the links/arms).

Cheers & thanks,

/TCP
Funny you should ask. I'm writing up a review of all the suspension wheel and tire mods that I've made and I can publish this separately or I could simply attach it to this review. Either way I'll let you know where it is
 
Funny you should ask. I'm writing up a review of all the suspension wheel and tire mods that I've made and I can publish this separately or I could simply attach it to this review. Either way I'll let you know where it is

@dfwatt That's awesome, I would be most grateful.

IMO the one weak spot in the M3P is the stock suspension. It's mushy and it wanders around while cornering and at high speed. With a competent suspension, the M3P would be quite a package. I'll never track my car, and I'm not nearly the enthusiast that many on this site are, but I do like it to go where I point it when I'm out on the street.

If there is one thing I miss about the Cadillac (CTS-V Wagon), the suspension was fantastic--and I never thought I'd say that about GM. It had the Magnetic Ride feature which worked very well, and a staggered wheel setup that was nicely matched to the car. For a 4,400-lb. car, it was extraordinarily capable.

/TCP
 
@dfwatt That's awesome, I would be most grateful.

IMO the one weak spot in the M3P is the stock suspension. It's mushy and it wanders around while cornering and at high speed. With a competent suspension, the M3P would be quite a package. I'll never track my car, and I'm not nearly the enthusiast that many on this site are, but I do like it to go where I point it when I'm out on the street.

If there is one thing I miss about the Cadillac (CTS-V Wagon), the suspension was fantastic--and I never thought I'd say that about GM. It had the Magnetic Ride feature which worked very well, and a staggered wheel setup that was nicely matched to the car. For a 4,400-lb. car, it was extraordinarily capable.

/TCP

I actually think that the stock suspension strikes a pretty decent ride/handling balance. But if you want more control, get the MPP Sports Coilover kit, and also consider the MPP rear suspension trailing and traction arms. Also, lightweight forged wheels (I am deeply partial to VS Forged) improve both the ride (dropping about 8 lbs a corner) and to a lesser degree the handling, and will drop .15 secs off the 0-60 time. If you want to lose some more unsprung weight, consider the MPP lightweight aluminum alloy rear spring arms but you will have to get new rear springs too, as these will not work with either the stock or the replacement MPP sport Coilover Springs.

Combined, these changes transform the vehicle, improving both ride and handling quite dramatically. I'll try to summarize all this in a quick review . . . .
 
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@dfwatt Forgot to ask, with your wheels, did you move to a staggered setup or keep them square?

Thanks,

/TCP

I like the appearance of staggered but not the terminal understeer so what I went for was minimally staggered with 9.5 by 20 in front with 265 / 30 and 10.5 inch wheels in back with 275 / 30. Although I don't like pushing it on the street, it does not understeer at any reasonable speed. I'll post some better pictures that reveal wheels and tires more clearly later. When you look at the car from almost any angle, it's hard to appreciate how wide and chunky those tires are.
20200108_113423.jpg
 
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Nice review. You're totally right about the power and driving experience. I got a 2020 LR AWD a few weeks ago. The acceleration and power is insane and a speeding ticket waiting to happen, but the chill from driving it on the freeway with EAP on is incomparable to anything else I've ever driven, luxury or otherwise. Takes out all of the worry that comes with driving.

Also, never having to carry car keys again is a major, major, MAJOR win. Phone key + smart lock at home = no keys ever again. I can't wait until I can use my phone as my license and for NFC to really take off so I can ditch my wallet completely.

@dfwmatt; how stiff is the suspension? I considered getting a Performance but decided against it because I wanted a slightly softer ride
 
Nice review. You're totally right about the power and driving experience. I got a 2020 LR AWD a few weeks ago. The acceleration and power is insane and a speeding ticket waiting to happen, but the experience of driving it on the freeway with EAP on is incomparable to anything else I've ever driven, luxury or otherwise. Takes out all of the worry that comes with driving.

@dfwmatt; how stiff is the suspension? I considered getting a Performance but decided against it because I wanted a slightly softer ride.

The stock OEM Performance Suspension isn't any stiffer it just has a slightly lower ride height. I have an aftermarket coilover setup from Mountain Pass Performance and the shocks are adjustable so I have them set moderately firm. The ride is still surprisingly supple, but with 265 / 30 and 275 / 30 tires front and rear the ride is not pillowy. On the other hand the car's capacity for cornering is hugely augmented relative to stock.
 
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