Tesla Model 3 Review

A Tesla Model 3 review by Calum McGregg

The Tesla Model 3 - you’ve all heard of it, and if you haven’t, where've you been hiding?

The Model 3 was the car that took Tesla from a small EV manufacturer to the world leader in EVs. And everyone has been playing catch-up ever since.

The Model 3 is seen by many as the gold standard when it comes to EVs. And Tesla continues to provide free over-the-air software updates that continuously improve the car, so that it continues to uphold that gold standard everyone knows and loves. With the refresh at the start of 2024, the new Model 3 looks sleeker, more refined, and the view of the road from inside the car is unparalleled across the rest of the EV market.

I’ve driven the Model 3 and I can comfortably say that it’s the best EV I’ve driven when it comes to long road trips, the range is phenomenal, and I was able to get 280 miles from a full charge while still using the air conditioning and driving at the speed limit - no hypermiling here!

The ride quality has greatly improved with this refresh, I was able to glide over some potholes and bumps in the road that would normally make the whole car shake, and I can confirm my coffee did not spill a drop.

From a built-in dash cam to Tesla’s very sophisticated Collision Avoidance Assist (that automatically brakes to keep you and your family sage) - the safety features of the new Model 3 remain top of its class.

One of the main things people notice about the Model 3 is the minimalistic interior. This has been taken a step further with this refresh as the stalks have been taken away leaving just the steering wheel and the centre display. For me, this was a challenge for the first couple of days of driving. But once I got used to it I found it was a far better solution as it allowed me to keep my hands on the wheel more often and with the indicators being located on the left side of the wheel, it made it convenient to indicate when changing lanes.

There is a new 8” display in the back which allows rear passengers to control their air conditioning and watch what they want, when they want. So say goodbye to the constant “Are we there yet?” as this display will help keep the kids entertained for those long car journeys.

The new Model 3 benefits from a 10% improvement in range, bringing it to 318 miles for a single charge according to Tesla and as mentioned earlier on, I was able to get 280 miles from a single charge, meaning there’s a 38-mile difference in what is quoted by Tesla. When you combine this with Tesla’s Supercharger Network, any road trip can be conquered with relative ease.

The Model 3 can go from 20% to 80% in as little as 20 - 25 minutes when using a Tesla Supercharger. Keeping yourself entertained during this time is a breeze with the built-in entertainment options the car has, from Netflix to Stardew Valley, there’s something for everyone.

With access to the Tesla Supercharger Network, you also benefit from cheaper charging tariffs when you’re on the road. When I took a recent trip to Cornwall I was able to charge for only £0.29/kWh at a Tesla charger as opposed to £0.79/kWh at the neighbouring Ionity charger. Doing this for the whole week I was able to save well in excess of £50 for my whole journey.

Thinking of a non-electric car to compare to the Model 3, the BMW 3 Series definitely stands out. Both cars retail for around the £40,000 mark and both benefit from fantastic features and are a similar size, but for many the potential savings by switching to an EV are too great to pass up on, for example when I first switched to an EV my monthly fuel cost dropped from £240 to £20 a month, which is probably why you’ll see far more Model 3s on the road.