I picked up my Model 3 Performance on Friday from Madrid, one of the first 10 Model 3 deliveries here in Spain!
Here are my initial impressions:
- This thing is way better looking in real life that in the photos or videos. I was not expecting such a stunning car!
- Quality of the interior is excellent, again way better than I was expecting, seats are very comfortable and everything well thought out
- I love the minimal interior and the central tablet, doesn't need any more instruments in my opinion, works brilliantly as it is
- We get spotify here in Europe. Any music I want whenever I want, amazing! The Model 3 feels like a mobile theatre or the best way ever on which to enjoy a tablet multimedia experience, it barely feels like a car at all
- Maps and navigation were great
- Battery usage drained faster than I was expecting, You really have to drive very carefully to get close to the expected range and I loved testing out the insane acceleration, and couple that to going at 130kmh over the mountains up to Asturias, the 500km range was more like 350. Still, the supercharger experience was great, and once there are more of these around then there is really no problem
- I don't have the wall charger yet so just charged it overnight in a regular plug socket. Got 11km range per hour which was a great bonus, was not expecting so much
- My petrolhead brother in-law took it for a spin yesterday and said it was up there with Porsches with the way it drives. I love technology and great looking cars, but I don't really care about performance actually. What is great is being able to accelerate at any speed you want, it gives you amazing freedom!
- I haven't got to grips with autopilot yet. I tried it on the motorway on the way home and it freaked me out. I will try and figure this out next weekend
This is an amazing car for EUR78,000. Once someone can get a short range non-performance version for EUR45k, goodness me, its game over for the Germans! I cant imagine why anyone would choose a BMW, Audi or Mercedes over this. The only (big) negative now is that not many people here in Spain can afford EU60k+ for a car, and in fact, the Tesla sales person mentioned that sales in Spain are a little disappointing. That's why it is essential that the price comes down. Actually I think this is way too much car for the price, maybe Elon should have been slightly less ambitious, this thing is incredible!