Why are you buying a Model 3?

[ecarfan]

"Why are you buying a Model 3?"

Because I don't need a car as big as the S. The 3 is somewhat smaller, will fit in my home parking space better, be easier to park and manuveur in tight spaces like city parking garages, and there is better visibility immediately forward to the front of the car.

 

[EaglesPDX]

Closet tree hugger. Reduce GHG, cut oil use (air/water pollution, oil trade deficit, oil wars costs, stop financing oil terrorism) and promote the solution to sustainable future for US. Support US jobs and industry.

Can't say that in my neighborhood (guns, gods, gooberism) so I say I do it for status, aggressive driving capability, tech flash, silent mode so the secret UN troops occupying US can't hear me coming or going. The neighbors are still suspicious but it provides cover.

 

[GTIceman]

Don't need a car the size of the Model S but might still buy one if I don't like the final Model 3 interior

 

[EaglesPDX]

Don't need a car the size of the Model S but might still buy one if I don't like the final Model 3 interior

Do we have dimensions on the T3 yet to know how much smaller? Smaller, lighter more range is my preference.

 

[Lon12]

Because GM wouldn't let us buy the EV1!

 

[GTIceman]

Do we have dimensions on the T3 yet to know how much smaller? Smaller, lighter more range is my preference.

I don't believe so and I agree with you on all those items. That is why I said we might still get an S. Looking at leases right now.

 

[JBsC6]

I prefer smaller sporty AWD Aston Martin like sedan

 

[Woosie]

Zero emissions is a big draw for me, combined with long-term useable range. I'll be using this a my commuter car until I retire. My Leaf couldn't support that for a decade's worth of commuting; I loved the Leaf but was glad I had a 3 year lease as opposed to a purchase. It was really nice to get into a new car and pay < $40/month for the privledge. The Model 3 will solve both problems, using the Supercharger network. Autopilot sounds great but is not a "driver" for me.

 

[JeffK]

Autopilot sounds great but is not a "driver" for me.

Ha! I see what you did there.

 

[Mark C]

Because I own my own fuel source, so when I retire I won't have to worry about buying gas versus groceries. Owning a solar powered home and EV is an immense draw for me. I was holding out for an EV that had 150 or more miles of range at a price I could, at least by stretching, pay.

The Bolt might actually fit that requirement, but I am not going to pay more for a homely Chevrolet than a Tesla. Then, there's no indication that a Bolt will be available where I live before my 3 is built. Finally, I want to support this new fangled company that has the audacity to challenge the status quo that I am tired of supporting.

 

[kablammyman]

It started like this:
"My 40 mile 1 way commute suxs....if only i can use the carpool lane.."
"oh look, electric cars can use the car pool....lets look into them"
"these electric cars sux...ugly and not much range. If only i could afford a tesla, they at least look nice"
as i do my research, "oh yeah, I forget how fast they are!"
then the final nail in the coffin "NO MORE SMOG CHECKS??? Sign me up!!"
The safety, ease of commuting, quiet ride, auto pilot and all the rest is icing on the cake.

 

[eisbock]

4) A car that is built from the ground-up with tech integrated, not as an afterthought around the thing.

This is too true. Technology sucks on modern cars. They build the base vehicle, which is a steel frame around an engine, then realize the market wants "tech". So they add a shitty navigation system that freezes half the time, has outdated maps, poorly mapped maps, ugly/cumbersome interface, and becomes obsolete in a year. It feels disconnected from the car experience.

Driving a Tesla is like driving a computer, not a car with a computer inside it.

 

[tliving]

I'll give the same answer I gave Tesla the other day when they wanted to re-evaluate my trade. I can either:

a) Trade my car in for ~45K (67K miles S85) and pay 60K for a newer S with equivalent features plus the AP and AWD I want (but not loaded)

OR

b) Wait for the 3 and buy a fairly loaded 3 for about $60K and KEEP my S. More Teslas more fun. I get AWD and AP and I get to keep my beloved S. Plus the AP on the 3 is likely to be newer than what you'd get on a S today.

Why would anyone choose option A? I can wait. I suspect their "trade up now" program is going to suffer from this kind of math.

 

[jsmay311]

(I won't be certain to purchase anything until after the 2nd reveal and announcement of options and pricing. That said...)

I'm a (satisfied) Gen 1 Volt owner. I do 80% of my driving without gas, but I like the idea of getting to 100%. And with new EV models coming out, I'm kind of itching for an upgrade.

-A Gen 2 Volt would get me to 90%+ electric miles and has a lot of other nice improvements vs Gen 1.
-A Bolt would get me to 100% electric for local driving, but the lack of a robust CCS DCFC charging network for long-distance trips rules it out since I'm a 1-car household.
-A Model 3 + Supercharger network would get me to 100% for all driving.

Also, the Model 3 would be an upgrade for:

• Performance
• Efficiency
• Styling/"cool factor"
• Driver visibility (hopefully -- it's poor in the Volt)
• Seating for 5
• Advanced tech (Autopilot, etc.)
• Possibly getting other nice upgradable options, like AWD, sunroof, etc.

I just hope the final Model 3 production design has decent cargo space (i.e., an improved trunk vs the prototype) and the dash and touchscreen designs aren't too weird or impractical. So... TBD until the next reveal.

 

[Lem89]

1. Electric quiet deadliness with hyper acceleration and range

2. Oh so purdy exterior design beauty for me to admire and be inside of

3. Attractive cost effectiveness for my ordinary and humble wages and means

4. Tesla's visionary, integrity-laced, and industry-shaking mission: http://waitbutwhy.com/2015/06/how-tesla-will-change-your-life.html

5. Elon Musk is legendary

 

[Model 3]

just hope the final Model 3 production design has decent cargo space (i.e., an improved trunk vs the prototype)

It is hard to say by the pictures from the unveiling, but I do think it seems like it has a decent cargo space in the trunk. The problem is the narrow opening that may make it hard to utilize it fully. So lets just to hope that the final design has an improvement on this.

 

[DarthO]

Number one, I am a geek. I love tech and the model 3 is the first Tesla within my price range.

Second, I drive 75 miles round trip in the metro NY area for work. The 3 has ideal range for two days of driving off a charge, plus I can drive in the HOV lane which would shave off ten minutes or so of driving during the commute home. Of course sometimes the HOV lane is just as bad if not worse than the regular lanes on the LI Expressway.

Third, I love the fact that it is more economical and greener than a ICE vehicle.

 

[siai47]

To replace my 2014 Model S with something a little smaller and with at least some of the tech missing from my pre-autopilot S. I reserved a 3 on the first day of reservations and in the interim have traded in the Model S on two new cars, one of which is a 2017 Volt. My S was primarily used in an urban/suburban environment and replaced (wait for it) a Mitsubishi I-MiEV. The model S is a truly fantastic vehicle but is a little large for driving in slow speed city traffic and maneuvering tight parking lots/spaces. Because the S is such a beautiful car I was very protective about keeping it that way. After dealing with the limited range on the I-MiEV, I never had "range anxiety" in the S but gained driving anxiety worrying about parking lot rash and repair times in the event of damage from a collision. The Volt which is quite a bit smaller than the Model S is a better fit for me. The Gen 2 Volt has an electric range similar to the useful range of the I-MiEV which fit my daily driving miles almost perfectly. The Volt also gives me a couple of features I wanted such as adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, collision warning/braking and better phone integration which was missing on my older S. In addition, although not as safe in a collision as the S, the Volt offers me some chance of surviving an accident which was absent in the tiny I-MiEV. I also need a car for extended trips several times a year. I do a 1300 mile trip between a home in Michigan and Florida. Even with almost ideal Supercharger placement along the route, it adds nearly eight hours to the normally eighteen hour trip. This requires an overnight rest stop which adds even more time. Although it's doable in the Tesla--which is a really great highway car, it still isn't the best solution for me. When the final 3 design is revealed and delivery dates start to firm up, I can make the decision as to what I am going to do. Right now, the 3 should replace the Volt. Possibly I will keep the Volt and replace the other car I got when I traded the S (a 2015 bi-fuel CNG Impala) as my current long distance trip car. Time will tell.