Test drive Tesla Model 3, which will be brought to Russia
The most affordable Tesla does not have the usual buttons and sensors, the roof is made of glass, and it also starts itself and is able to overtake a powerful supercar. We were among the first to touch a car from the future
After the premiere of the new Tesla Model 3, the number of pre-orders for an electric car, which few have seen live, exceeded all the most daring predictions. During the presentation, the counter exceeded 100 thousand, then 200 thousand, and a couple of weeks later the milestone of 400 thousand was taken. Once again, customers were willing to make an advance payment of $ 1 for a vehicle that did not yet exist in production. Something has definitely happened to the world, and the old formula “demand creates supply” no longer works. Nearly.
More than a year and a half has passed since the premiere of the most affordable Tesla, but the Model 3 is still a rarity even in the United States. The first cars appeared on the streets just two months ago, and at first the quotas were distributed only to the company's employees. The pace of production is dramatically behind the original plans, so the "treshka" right now is a tasty find for everyone. For example, in Russia, the head of the Moscow Tesla Club Alexei Eremchuk was the first to receive Model 3. He managed to buy an electric car from one of the Tesla employees.
For the first time sitting in a Tesla Model S a few years ago, I made a serious mistake - I started evaluating it like an ordinary car: the materials are not premium, the design is simple, the gaps are too large. It's like comparing a UFO to a civilian plane.
Acquaintance with the Model 3 began in static, when the car was charged on one of the "superchargers" in the vicinity of Miami. Despite the general family resemblance, it was not difficult to grab a three-ruble note from the mass of other "esoks" and "xes" with a glance. At the front, the Model 3 resembles a Porsche Panamera, but the sloping roof hints at a liftback body style, although this is not the case.
By the way, unlike the owners of more expensive models, the owner of the Model 3 always pays for charging, albeit a little. For example, a full charge of a battery in Florida will cost a Model 3 owner a little less than $ 10.
The salon is the realm of extreme minimalism. I don’t consider myself a Tesla fan yet, so my first reaction was something like this: "Yes, this is a Yo-mobile or even its running model." So the utilitarian by Russian standards Hyundai Solaris in comparison with Model 3 may seem like a luxury car. Perhaps this approach is old-fashioned, but most expect from the interior in 2018, if not luxury, then at least comfort.
There is simply no traditional dashboard in the "treshka". There are no physical buttons here either. Finishing the console with "veneer" of light wood does not save the situation and rather resembles a plastic skirting board. In the place where it hangs over the steering column, it is easy to feel the torn edge, as if cut off with a hacksaw for metal. A horizontal 15-inch screen is proudly located in the center, which has absorbed all the controls and indications.
And this, by the way, is a car from the first batch with the "Premium" package, which includes higher quality finishing materials. It is scary to imagine what kind of interior the buyer of the basic version will get for 35 thousand dollars.
The air duct deflectors are elegantly hidden between the "boards" of the center panel. At the same time, the air flow control is implemented in a very original way. From the large slot, air is fed strictly horizontally into the chest area of the passengers, but there is another small slot from where the air flows straight up. Thus, by crossing the streams and controlling their intensity, it is possible to direct the air at the desired angle without resorting to mechanical deflectors.
The steering wheel is also not an example of design art, although it does not cause complaints in terms of thickness and grip. There are two joysticks on it, the functions of which can be assigned via the central display. With their help, the position of the steering wheel is adjusted, the side mirrors are adjusted and you can even restart the main screen if it freezes.
The main feature of the Model 3 interior can be considered a large panoramic roof. In fact, with the exception of small areas, the entire roof of the "treshki" has become transparent. Yes, this is also an option, and in our case it is part of the "premium" package. Base cars will have a metal roof.
"Treshka" is not as small as it might seem. Despite the fact that the Model 3 (4694 mm) is shorter than the Model S by almost 300 mm, the second row is spacious here. And even if a tall man is in the driver's seat, it will not be cramped in the second row. At the same time, the trunk is of medium size (420 liters), but unlike the "eski" it is not only smaller, but it is still not so convenient to use it, because the Model 3 is a sedan, not a liftback.
On the central tunnel there is a box for small things and a charging platform for two phones, but do not rush to rejoice - there is no wireless charging here. Only a small plastic panel with "cable channels" for two USB-cords, which you can lay yourself under the desired phone model.
While I was poking around in the car, standing at the "gas station", three other Tesla owners approached me with one question: "Is this her?" And you know what? They liked the Model 3! Apparently they are all infected with some kind of loyalty virus, as are the Apple fans.
The Model 3 does not have a traditional key - instead, they offer a smartphone with the Tesla application installed, or a smart card that needs to be attached to the central pillar of the body. Unlike older models, the door handles do not automatically extend. You need to pry them off with your fingers, and then the long part will allow you to grab onto it.
The selection of gears is carried out, as before, in a Mercedes-like manner, with a small lever to the right of the steering wheel. There is no need to "start" the car in the traditional sense: the "ignition" is switched on if the owner with the phone sits inside, or if the key card is on the sensor area in the area of the front cup holders.
From the first meters, you notice the silence typical of Tesla in the cabin. It's not even about good sound insulation, but about the absence of noise from an internal combustion engine. Of course, during intensive acceleration, a small trolleybus hum gets into the cabin, but at low speeds the silence is almost standard.
The puffy steering wheel of a small diameter fits perfectly in the hand, which, together with the sharp steering rack (2 turns from lock to lock), sets it up for a sporty mood. Compared to terrestrial cars, the Model 3's dynamics are impressive - 5,1 seconds to 60 mph. However, it is noticeably slower than its more expensive siblings in the lineup. But there is a suspicion that in the future, "treshka" may become faster thanks to new software.
The range of the top version of the Long Range, which we had on the test, is almost 500 km, while the most affordable version has 350 kilometers. For a resident of a metropolis, this will be quite enough.
If the two older models essentially share one platform, then the Model 3 is an electric car on completely different units. It is mostly assembled from steel panels, and aluminum is used only in the rear. The front suspension retains the double wishbone design, while the rear has a new multi-link.
The rest of the Model 3 is noticeably poorer than the Model S and Model X, moreover, it has neither air suspension, nor all-wheel drive, nor "ridiculous" acceleration modes. Even the rain sensor is still missing from the list of options, although there is a chance that the situation will change dramatically with new updates. All-wheel drive and air are expected in the spring of 2018, which is likely to further narrow the price gap between the Model 3 and the rest of Tesla.
The good roads of South Florida at first hid the Model 3's main drawback - the extremely stiff suspension. However, as soon as we drove on poorly paved roads, it turned out that the suspension was overly clamped, and this was by no means an advantage.
Firstly, in combination with inexpensive interior materials, such rigidity makes the car shudder nervously on bumps. Secondly, those who like to drive along winding paths will quickly find that the moment of a slip into a skid comes too unpredictably for the Model 3.
By default, the sedan is shod with 235/45 R18 tires with aerodynamic hubcaps over the "cast" wheels - something similar we have already seen on the Toyota Prius. The hubcaps can be removed, although the design of the rims is not an example of elegance.
Any Model 3 has all the necessary automatic piloting equipment on board, including twelve ultrasonic sensors in the bumpers, two forward-facing cameras in the B-pillars, three front cameras on the top of the windshield, two rearward facing cameras in the front fenders and one front-facing radar. which increases the autopilot's field of view to 250 meters. All this economy can be activated for 6 thousand dollars.
It seems that the cars of the near future will be exactly like the Tesla Model 3. Since a person will be freed from the need to manage this delivery process from point A to point B, then there will be no need to entertain him with interior decoration. The main toy for passengers is a large screen of the multimedia system, which will be their portal to the outside world.
The Model 3 is a landmark car. She is destined to either make the electric car popular, and take the Tesla brand itself to the market leader, as happened with Apple. Although exactly the opposite can happen.
| Drive unit | Rear |
| engine's type | 3-phase internal permanent magnet motor |
| Battery | 75 kWh lithium-ion liquid-cooled |
| Power, hp | 271 |
| Power reserve, km | 499 |
| Length, mm | 4694 |
| Width | 1849 |
| Height, mm | 1443 |
| Wheelbase, mm | 2875 |
| Clearance, mm | 140 |
| Width of front track, mm | 1580 |
| Rear track width, mm | 1580 |
| Maximum speed km / h | 225 |
| Acceleration to 60 mph, s | 5,1 |
| Cargo space, l | 425 |
| Curb weight, kg | 1730 |
