Blog Tesla Model 3 Reviewed As ‘Coolest Car of 2017’

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Automotive journalist Doug DeMuro, who attracts millions to his auto reviews on YouTube, has posted a thorough overview of the Tesla Model 3. He says the Model 3 is “the coolest car of the year.”

Among the observations in DeMuro’s column on the Model 3:

Acceleration – DeMuro drove the “long-range” version, capable of zero to 60 in 5.1 seconds. He was impressed with the car’s midrange power. “The Model 3 is raucously fast from 30 or 40 miles per hour — though ‘raucously’ is probably the wrong word, since the car makes absolutely no noise. It’s like a drama-free BMW M3.”

Handling – The Model 3 “stayed mostly flat in cornering and delivered no drama, even going fairly fast through some sharp turns. Body roll is minimal and steering is oddly responsive.”

Interior room – At 6-foot-4, DeMuro had no trouble sitting behind the wheel, but found the back seat tight for someone his size. “It’s totally livable.”

Screen – “I’m happy to report it’s just as sensitive, intuitive and wonderful to use as ever.”

Gripes – “I wish there were an auxiliary speedometer in the center, the ride is a bit rough with the optional 19-inch wheels, and — most of all — I wish the interior were just a little nicer.”

See the full video below.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te6VqldjTT8″ video_title=”1″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

 

[ElecFan]

The Truth Behind Doug DeMuro's Tesla Model 3 Review
DeMuro blew his Model 3 review by ignoring Tesla's biggest secret.
​

Ha ha, he makes Tesla even larger and more mystical than it was already. And I must say, I agree with him for the most part. The car-industry (as we know it) will be dead. Long live the car-industry! (the new one, that is)
Finally the ice car manufacturers will be reduced to marginal players, which should've been done decades ago. Trump is the last warrior who desperately tries to keep the inevitable from occuring.
Why is it inevitable? Because people want EV. Everyone who has driven one says it: if you've drive electric, you don't want to go back.

 

[internalaudit]

What secret?

 

[N5329K]

What secret?

That the Model 3 should be considered more like an iPhone and less like a car, and that hardware issues are not important but the software must always be flawless.
Robin

 

[EXOTIC1]

Guy at the hard

That the Model 3 should be considered more like an iPhone and less like a car, and that hardware issues are not important but the software must always be flawless.
Robin

That's pretty true. The manager at the hardware store saw me pull up in my MS and asked "how do you like driving your appliance"
lol

 

[eisbock]

We've already beaten the lack of gauge cluster thing to death, but what I think people will never get used to or like over time are indicator lights on the central screen.

How many times have you accidentally popped on your high beams when turning and realized right away because a bright blue light is illuminated right in front of your eyes? Now that blue icon is super tiny and on a white background, easily overlooked. I can see myself driving around blinding people all the time.

Auto high beams may take care of this, but reading up on that feature for Model S (is it even on Model 3?) it appears to be garbage and far below the quality of other manufacturers. Seems a lot of people turn them off, meaning we're right back at the problem discussed above.

I personally don't really like them in general because I feel they're not quick enough on the draw and tend to temporarily blind oncoming traffic, which are usually 2-ton deathboxes traveling at high speeds, piloted by somebody without a self-driving car.

Also the turn signals, something mentioned in the video. I haven't sat in a Model 3 yet, but the screen needs to be close to the steering wheel to be effective, and it looks like you can potentially cover up the speedometer and signal section if your hand is in the 2 position (common place to put a hand when driving). Or maybe you're leaning on your elbow against the window, putting you at a bad angle, unable to see even your speed!

As somebody who likes music that often drowns out the indicator clicking, I can see myself accidentally driving around for ages with a signal on, especially because the stalk pops back into the neutral position!

Say what you want, but putting all that stuff in the central screen makes it harder to see it from all angles and hand positions. Only upside is the classic one hand hood high noon position won't cover up your speed!

 

[Marsnaut]

Also the turn signals, something mentioned in the video. I haven't sat in a Model 3 yet, but the screen needs to be close to the steering wheel to be effective, and it looks like you can potentially cover up the speedometer and signal section if your hand is in the 2 position (common place to put a hand when driving). Or maybe you're leaning on your elbow against the window, putting you at a bad angle, unable to see even your speed!

I can definitely foresee the turn signals being a problem.

I drove a rented BMW for a week and never got used to the fact that the stalk did not 'click.' You push it up/down and it resets back to its neutral position instantly without proving the tactile feedback. To leave the blinkers on, you need to hold it in position (up/down).

I consistently failed to signal properly - mainly by not leaving the blinkers on. Without the indicator lights in front, it will be even harder to tell. However, I hope with practice it will eventually become muscle memory.

 

[DR61]

I have driven Minis with resetting turn signals for 12 years, along with Volvos with conventional signals. Zero problems adapting to either. Also the Minis with a central speedometer have not been a problem, even though they are farther from the line of sight than the M3 speedometer.

By the way, the M3 center screen has a black background at night; it switches backgrounds for night mode when light levels indicate.

 

[eisbock]

I can definitely foresee the turn signals being a problem.

I drove a rented BMW for a week and never got used to the fact that the stalk did not 'click.' You push it up/down and it resets back to its neutral position instantly without proving the tactile feedback. To leave the blinkers on, you need to hold it in position (up/down).

I consistently failed to signal properly - mainly by not leaving the blinkers on. Without the indicator lights in front, it will be even harder to tell. However, I hope with practice it will eventually become muscle memory.

I personally love the feel of a stiff, robust turn signal stalk. Most newer cars have soft, squishy, jelly stalks that glide silently in and out of position and you can barely tell if you're actuating them. The old cars had satisfying actuation feel and sound much like pumping the forend of a shotgun. Made me want to use the turn signals more!

By the way, if you have to hold down the signal stalk, how are you supposed to signal when approaching a red light? Just hold it down the entire time?

 

[Marsnaut]

By the way, if you have to hold down the signal stalk, how are you supposed to signal when approaching a red light? Just hold it down the entire time?

Sorry, I wasn't clear. It's similar to a DSLR camera where you have to hold the shutter release down to focus, and then press it all the way down to actually take the picture (but still using the same button).

If you flick the stalk up/down gently, it flashes only as long as you continue to hold it. In my normal car, this would just leave the turn signals blinking.

To leave the turn signal flashing on the BMW, I needed to push the stalk up a bit higher (like speed settings for the windshield wiper). It was hard to tell when you crossed the threshold from "hold" to "on" without the actuation. It required me to hover my hand underneath to make sure it didn't click back down.

 

[gregd]

Among the usual mix of comments below Doug's video (two thirds trolls, one third people who didn't actually watch the video, and in the margin, some interesting points) was a comment by one person about the rear window. It only goes down about half way, as I believe we've known for some time.

Most everyone seem to have attributed this to the geometry of the window and door panel, but this person said it was also a matter of regulation - "a lower height limit to the car floor to prevent kids from going through the window."

Just curious is this is true... really?

 

[DR61]

No; like most medium sized sedans, the rear wheel arch intrudes too much to allow rear door windows to go all the way down. Very common.

 

[gregd]

No; like most medium sized sedans, the rear wheel arch intrudes too much to allow rear door windows to go all the way down. Very common.

I guess what I was thinking was something like this. If there's a minimum height for the rear window anyway, the designers can let the rear wheel "intrude" into the doorway more, up to the point where the window's "down" position is met. I understand that the shape of the door limits the window movement, but if that window position limit had to be there for other reasons, perhaps Tesla took advantage of the space in order to optimize something else (door length, shape, crash members, etc). Perhaps that's why it's so common.

Seems far-fetched, I know, but stranger things have happened.

 

[chesthair]

You can turn on individual cabin lights by pressing them. The screen menu is used to turn them all on at once or to set to manual or automatic mode. The headlight setting is the same and almost everyone will set it and forget it to automatic. The wipers would theoretically be the same but in my experience automatic wiper settings are never accurate enough to rely on.

 

[chesthair]

Mod S auto wipers work amazingly well. Same experience expected in Mod 3, besides there are software tweaks that tesla does that is very progressive to fix complaints.

 

[chesthair]

That the Model 3 should be considered more like an iPhone and less like a car, and that hardware issues are not important but the software must always be flawless.
Robin

very true!

 

[RobertFF]

Had a chance to sit in a 3 at Fashion Island, CA sales yesterday. I am very long legged. The 3 driver seat was roomier and more comfortable for me than our S. For now, the small wheels on the steering wheel can not switch between numerous other functions like our S, requiring you to use the center touch screen to make all changes.

 

[Joe85sti]

Doug actually reviewed a newer model 3 performance (at least a September build), running V10.

 

[Mrcarcrazy]

Enjoyed the video. He’s a strange dude but I like his videos typically.

 

[Bentesling]

Really enjoyed reading his Older stuff at Jalopnik I think it was, before he moved to a job with some larger auto company. Glad to hear he is still doing interesting reviews.