BoldonLad
Not part of the Elite
- Location
- South Tyneside
EV Owners Thread
- Thread starter icowden
- Start date
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figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
I have a MINI Electric and have driven a Jaguar i-Pace and Cupra Born, but today I had my first go in the EV proxy car - a Tesla Model 3. It was a dual motor one with over 60,000 miles on it, 3 years old, hire car. I didn't want to like it - I am naturally put off by hype and obvious choices, but after a 20 minute drive over country roads I have to say I can see why people love them.
It's not all good though - this one had a horrendous, loud squeak/groan from a front suspension/steering balljoint somewhere - it was embarrassingly loud and always there. And the battery health appears to be suffering from 3 years of hire car abuse. But those aside, as a driver's car it's actually quite decent. So fast to accelerate, decent road manners, quite a nice turn-in for 4WD although did understeer if provoked (cheap hire car tyres no doubt don't help). Great traction though. Effortless to cruise along in, quiet, firm but not crashy ride.
The cabin needs a reset in thinking about what car cabins look like. Almost totally devoid of buttons, levers, knobs, handles - everything operates from the central screen. This can be a bit of a faff if you're unfamiliar but by setting up some common shortcuts you can get to most things quickly. The central screen was unexpectedly good - high resolution, instantly responsive, lots to play with, LOADS of data from the car to review. Interior build quality is not great - flaps are plasticky and open/close flimsily and the white seat material appears to be some kind of old-fashioned pleather but it is such a clean place to sit - there aren't even any visible air vents. Rear legroom is odd - there's no transmission tunnel but then the whole floor is raised so you sit with your knees up, meaning your thighs aren't supported by the seat squab. Huge boot but with a small opening.
I didn't play with all the driving modes and options and there is a lot to explore, but I have to say that despite the obvious build quality issues I still found it a compelling car. If available for a particularly good deal I could make a case for having one. As it is my new MINI Electric should be arriving in the next week or two.
It's not all good though - this one had a horrendous, loud squeak/groan from a front suspension/steering balljoint somewhere - it was embarrassingly loud and always there. And the battery health appears to be suffering from 3 years of hire car abuse. But those aside, as a driver's car it's actually quite decent. So fast to accelerate, decent road manners, quite a nice turn-in for 4WD although did understeer if provoked (cheap hire car tyres no doubt don't help). Great traction though. Effortless to cruise along in, quiet, firm but not crashy ride.
The cabin needs a reset in thinking about what car cabins look like. Almost totally devoid of buttons, levers, knobs, handles - everything operates from the central screen. This can be a bit of a faff if you're unfamiliar but by setting up some common shortcuts you can get to most things quickly. The central screen was unexpectedly good - high resolution, instantly responsive, lots to play with, LOADS of data from the car to review. Interior build quality is not great - flaps are plasticky and open/close flimsily and the white seat material appears to be some kind of old-fashioned pleather but it is such a clean place to sit - there aren't even any visible air vents. Rear legroom is odd - there's no transmission tunnel but then the whole floor is raised so you sit with your knees up, meaning your thighs aren't supported by the seat squab. Huge boot but with a small opening.
I didn't play with all the driving modes and options and there is a lot to explore, but I have to say that despite the obvious build quality issues I still found it a compelling car. If available for a particularly good deal I could make a case for having one. As it is my new MINI Electric should be arriving in the next week or two.
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The groan is the top wishbone joint. Tesla have recall for it. I had ours done before the problem was noticed. I did see and hear another Model 3 groan its way into the workshop
Interior depends on who is looking after it. Our has 60k on it now and is still in good condition.
As you say they are a very decent handling saloon. The later Model have slightly softer suspension, but you can get around the harsh ride by running slightly lower tyre pressure - recommended by Tesla themselves. Only dropping 3-4psi. Also running 18" wheels not the 19/20" .
Interior depends on who is looking after it. Our has 60k on it now and is still in good condition.
As you say they are a very decent handling saloon. The later Model have slightly softer suspension, but you can get around the harsh ride by running slightly lower tyre pressure - recommended by Tesla themselves. Only dropping 3-4psi. Also running 18" wheels not the 19/20" .
I had an interesting day out a week or so ago. The local Tesla shop was having an "open day" to test drive a Tesla Y or Tesla 3, so I thought I'd take one for a spin. The price of a base Tesla Y is almost exactly the same as the price of the VW ID4 that I currently drive.
Looks wise I slightly prefer the VW but both are fairly good looking. Both cars have a fairly spacious interior although the central box in the ID4 is much lower than in the Tesla. The boot on the Tesla looked a little smaller but then when you lift up the boot floor, there is a MAHOOSIVE well about 4x the size of the tiny one you have to squeeze your cables into in the VW.
The most noticeable differences are however the trim level and the touchscreen. The ID 4 Pro doesn't come with an automatic tail lift, or electric front seats with position memory. The Tesla does.
Then you move to the touchscreen, which frankly is a joy to use compared to the VW. The VW's touchscreen is painfully slow and often unresponsive. Functions are often layers deep (want to turn off the heated steering wheel? Sure - touch the heating button, wait 2 seconds, then change tab to classic controls then look for the tiny steering wheel icon on the far left and touch it 3 times. By contrast as soon as you touch the fan icon on the tesla, all the options are at your fingertips instantly. Same goes for the radio or anything else you might need to do whilst driving. And of course Google Maps is built in - no waiting for Android Auto to load and connect and retrying about 10 times.
The VW's air con is effective but wimpy. The Tesla's started with a roar as it brought the cabin down to a pleasant temperature very quickly.
Driving is also a pleasant surprise. The Enhance Autopilot functions are far far superior to the Automatic Cruise Control and lane keeping offered by VW. The Tesla was aware of its surroundings (it displays what it can see on the screen), slowed down far more politely and slowed or stopped for roundabouts. It was also happy to resume at traffic lights wheras the VW solution disconnects after 10 seconds stationary. Also the VW often charges suicidally at the car in front then slams the brakes on. Additionally, in the Tesla when you indicate you get a full view of the entire side of the car in a pop up camera window on the screen. The VW just has a little indicator light that hints at something being present.
The only thing I didn't like about the Tesla was the seats. They were not as comfy as the VW. Other than that, the Tesla is superior in every way to the VW ID4. You are getting a *lot* more for your money. More luxury, more speed, more range, more intelligence. I am going to cross my fingers that at some point in the next 3 years, my company puts the Tesla back on the company car list!
Looks wise I slightly prefer the VW but both are fairly good looking. Both cars have a fairly spacious interior although the central box in the ID4 is much lower than in the Tesla. The boot on the Tesla looked a little smaller but then when you lift up the boot floor, there is a MAHOOSIVE well about 4x the size of the tiny one you have to squeeze your cables into in the VW.
The most noticeable differences are however the trim level and the touchscreen. The ID 4 Pro doesn't come with an automatic tail lift, or electric front seats with position memory. The Tesla does.
Then you move to the touchscreen, which frankly is a joy to use compared to the VW. The VW's touchscreen is painfully slow and often unresponsive. Functions are often layers deep (want to turn off the heated steering wheel? Sure - touch the heating button, wait 2 seconds, then change tab to classic controls then look for the tiny steering wheel icon on the far left and touch it 3 times. By contrast as soon as you touch the fan icon on the tesla, all the options are at your fingertips instantly. Same goes for the radio or anything else you might need to do whilst driving. And of course Google Maps is built in - no waiting for Android Auto to load and connect and retrying about 10 times.
The VW's air con is effective but wimpy. The Tesla's started with a roar as it brought the cabin down to a pleasant temperature very quickly.
Driving is also a pleasant surprise. The Enhance Autopilot functions are far far superior to the Automatic Cruise Control and lane keeping offered by VW. The Tesla was aware of its surroundings (it displays what it can see on the screen), slowed down far more politely and slowed or stopped for roundabouts. It was also happy to resume at traffic lights wheras the VW solution disconnects after 10 seconds stationary. Also the VW often charges suicidally at the car in front then slams the brakes on. Additionally, in the Tesla when you indicate you get a full view of the entire side of the car in a pop up camera window on the screen. The VW just has a little indicator light that hints at something being present.
The only thing I didn't like about the Tesla was the seats. They were not as comfy as the VW. Other than that, the Tesla is superior in every way to the VW ID4. You are getting a *lot* more for your money. More luxury, more speed, more range, more intelligence. I am going to cross my fingers that at some point in the next 3 years, my company puts the Tesla back on the company car list!
FishFright
More wheels than sense
Wrong thread .
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Pale Rider
Legendary Member
Lots of complaints online about the ID4's touchscreen and the gadgets it controls.
The latest one are supposed to be much better.
Mine is the 2022 model with the latest software updates. That's supposed to be the *better* version !! God only knows what it was like before... (or indeed when the next major version release will be).
Eh?
FishFright
More wheels than sense
From the 12th of May until today has been deemed off topic.
Oh. What were we talking about that was off topic? I thought the thread had just been asleep.
FishFright
More wheels than sense
Oops wrong thread
figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
I have to say that one thing that really impressed me when I had a go in a Model 3 was the user interface, particularly the speed of response and the intuitive UX. And how it spotted and showed you all hazards around it - correctly identifying wheelie bins for example, and noting when traffic lights changed.
Grant Fondo
Guru
- Location
- Cheshire
So my erstwhile Q4 e-wrong spell may not last as long as expected. BMW i4 inbound next month.
Still gobsmacked how awful the Audi brakes are. Drums at the back like the Morris Minor I owned when it was 50p a pint
Still gobsmacked how awful the Audi brakes are. Drums at the back like the Morris Minor I owned when it was 50p a pint
