Tesla Model 3 revealed

[DonkeyApple]

dxg said:

Well, this is VERY interesting:

http://arstechnica.co.uk/cars/2016/12/tesla-needs-...

It's a massive step forward. As mainstream manufacturers start to deliver EVs then absolutely no one would continue to tolerate the genuinely terrible interiors and fit and finish of the Tesla products. Taking someone from Volvo shows that not only have the appreciated this up and coming threat but that they know that Volvo interiors are really rather good.

[Flooble]

I can't help but suspect a lot of the interior cheapness is weight saving though. Put in all the "heft" that you would expect on a luxury car and suddenly it's a 3.5 tonne monster with a range of 100 miles ...

[DonkeyApple]

Flooble said:

I can't help but suspect a lot of the interior cheapness is weight saving though. Put in all the "heft" that you would expect on a luxury car and suddenly it's a 3.5 tonne monster with a range of 100 miles ...

It's just really badly put together when contrasted to the products of the established car builders. Tesla are very new to the game of building cars and they didn't exactly rush out to buy expertise from the established automotive industry so have made lots of unnecessary errors along the way. I love the concept of the cars but sitting in one is almost a flashback to Soviet build quality.

With the likes of Jaguar, BMW and the other mainstream prestige manufacturers aiming to join the niche within a couple of years they are massively on the back foot in regards to this vital part of their product.

[Flooble]

It will be interesting to see what happens. I wonder about the rest of the vehicle, if they are not screwing the trim together properly are they doing the rest of the car as effectively as other manufacturers? If you look at other EV offerings they don't have the same level of, um, "EVness" as the Teslas - e.g. a Leaf has a bonnet which contains a motor looking for all the world like a regular engine. No "Frunk", no clever "skateboard" for the batteries taking up no space. Now is that Tesla being innovative, Nissan being backward, or Tesla ignoring engineering pitfalls that Nissan learned the hard way with its normal cars?

[Digitalize]

I think it's mainly down to Tesla concentrating all their effort on making the chassis, drivetrain, software etc work as best as it could, that the interior was a second thought for them.

It's by no means bad, but it's more Ford Mondeo than BMW 7 Series.

[DonkeyApple]

Flooble said:

It will be interesting to see what happens. I wonder about the rest of the vehicle, if they are not screwing the trim together properly are they doing the rest of the car as effectively as other manufacturers? If you look at other EV offerings they don't have the same level of, um, "EVness" as the Teslas - e.g. a Leaf has a bonnet which contains a motor looking for all the world like a regular engine. No "Frunk", no clever "skateboard" for the batteries taking up no space. Now is that Tesla being innovative, Nissan being backward, or Tesla ignoring engineering pitfalls that Nissan learned the hard way with its normal cars?

It might be the benefit of Tesla's production line being built from a blank canvas whereas the astablished firm found it cheaper to not fully adapt or start from scratch in that regard?

But if you look at shut lines on manybof their cars it's clear that pissed, part time Leyland workers were more consistent.

It's just not a premium product when you get past the new tech, which is fine until the competition arrives.

[Tuna]

DonkeyApple said:

It's just not a premium product when you get past the new tech, which is fine until the competition arrives.

Arguably the competition has already arrived. Chevvy do a car that is very competitive to the Model 3 and has been out for nine months or so now. However, Tesla have that 'Apple glow' to them that convinces people they're buying something unique. Despite consumer bodies and governments getting quite vocal about things like Autopilot not actually being all that different to standard cruise control on mainstream cars, we still get breathless pieces in the media about how the 'future is here'. It shows how little they pay attention to the rest of the car industry.

The question is how long the premium can be maintained. It's taken years for people to realise that the iPhone is not necessarily the best phone ever.

[p1stonhead]

I have a feeling this car will be £40k base minimum when it's released now.

They have already announced a 5% increase due to the weak pound.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/dec/22/t...

Anyone seen this though?

Tesla spots a potential crash (two cars up by having radar that can go under cars apparently) and brakes before the guy in front actually crashes. Very impressive!

https://youtu.be/om3z1yLQtwo

Edited by p1stonhead on Wednesday 28th December 16:15

[NelsonP]

p1stonhead said:

Tesla spots a potential crash (two cars up by having radar that can go under cars apparently) and brakes before the guy in front actually crashes. Very impressive!

https://youtu.be/om3z1yLQtwo

Edited by p1stonhead on Wednesday 28th December 16:15

Impressive. Two other lessons in there too:
- Don't follow too close (red car)
- 4x4s roll over pretty easily

Edited by NelsonP on Saturday 7th January 08:17

[DonkeyApple]

NelsonP said:

p1stonhead said:

Tesla spots a potential crash (two cars up by having radar that can go under cars apparently) and brakes before the guy in front actually crashes. Very impressive!

https://youtu.be/om3z1yLQtwo

Edited by p1stonhead on Wednesday 28th December 16:15

Impressive. Two other lessons in there too:
- Don't follow too close (red car)
- 4x4s roll over pretty easily

Edited by NelsonP on Saturday 7th January 08:17

Very true. It does highlight that automation will help the morons who just focus on the car infront and not the whole picture around them.

In reality, what the Tesla is displaying is the importance of basic roadcraft, don't sit too close and keep an eye on what the cars all infront are doing and behind.

[dxg]

Another interesting hire:

http://arstechnica.co.uk/cars/2017/01/telsa-hires-...

But look at the guy's name and the name of the role!! A case of nominative determinism if ever I saw one!

[manracer]

dxg said:

Another interesting hire:

http://arstechnica.co.uk/cars/2017/01/telsa-hires-...

But look at the guy's name and the name of the role!! A case of nominative determinism if ever I saw one!

Looking forward to firewire charging when mine (eventually) arrives...

[Dan_1981]

So..... model 3

Real world distance of around 200 miles? Does this seem realistic?

Price - circa £35k?

How much does it cost to fully recharge if it's plugged in at home? (Roughly) i know these things vary.

How many have actually signed up to purchase from here?

[jkh112]

Yes, depending on battery size, maybe more.
Maybe, depends on exchange rate and options chosen.
Around £5, depends on electricity price and battery size.
Don't know, but I have a reservation.

[jamoor]

jkh112 said:

Yes, depending on battery size, maybe more.
Maybe, depends on exchange rate and options chosen.
Around £5, depends on electricity price and battery size.
Don't know, but I have a reservation.

This is the thing, if Tesla have their way it will cost you £0 to fill using their solar city and power wall systems.

Their aim is to be sustainable.

[jkh112]

Why wait for tesla? You can have solar panels and a storage system now.
I have solar panels which in theory recharge my car for free but I still assume there is a cost to me recharging the car as if it was not there then more solar power would go into powering my home
To say it would cost nothing to recharge at home is a bit misleading if you have to buy an expensive system and then make sure you do not use that energy to power the home but instead use it for the car.

[Tuna]

jamoor said:

This is the thing, if Tesla have their way it will cost you £0 to fill using their solar city and power wall systems.

Their aim is to be sustainable.

Sustainable is not the same as free. They've already announced that people buying a Tesla from the start of this year will pay a fee to use their supercharger network. As the technology becomes more mainstream the costs will increase.

Even if you have solar panels at home, using them is not free - they have an installation cost, need a certain amount of maintenance and have a finite lifespan (especially some of the power electronics). And then people forget that for three months of the year in the UK you get very little from a solar panel. So far as we know, Musk hasn't yet broken the laws of physics.

[Guvernator]

I'm firmly in the camp that EV's are the future for a few reasons. Electric motors are by far the most efficient way we have found yet of turning energy into motive power without the associated problem of local pollution (I'll ignore the wider problem of electricity generation). It's obvious that most car manufacturers agree as nearly all of them are spending massive amounts on EV R&D.

However I do wish they'd bloody hurry up and get their acts together. I can live with a 300 mile range, I can even live with having to charge them over night. What I can't live with is that the majority look absolute pony and the one's that don't cost a fortune.

Even the Tesla at close to 6 figures merely looks halfway decent rather than really nice and anything vaguely affordable just looks rubbish. So car manufacturers, can you please hurry up and release a car that's affordably to the average UK new car buyer i.e. around 30-35k but not make it look like it was a reject from the Jetsons cartoon. Something that looks like a slightly futuristic BMW\Alfa saloon or equivalent SUV would suffice.

[George111]

Guvernator said:

What I can't live with is that the majority look absolute pony and the one's that don't cost a fortune.

EV or Hydrogen cell aside, I agree with you; Why do they have to make alternative fuel vehicles look like something from a 70's Dr Who episode. Why does the i3, which even I admit has the makings of a very useful vehicle, have to look so silly ? Then there's the Leaf

[louiebaby]

dxg said:

But look at the guy's name and the name of the role! A case of nominative determinism if ever I saw one!

This deserved more respect!