MME Premium 4x to a Model 3 Performance - Now with Updated 5K & 10K Review

[jeffvick2005]

As some of you know from my goodbye thread, I said goodbye to my MME yesterday and have switched over to the Model 3 Performance. After it became apparent that my back road driving caused my HVBJB to continue to fail prematurely, I started looking at other EVs. I knew I needed something with more performance than my MME Premium 4x, and I worried that simply moving to the GT would result in the same problem and frustration with the 5 second limitation.

I actually had never thought of a Tesla because of all the talk of bland looks, cheap interior, and questionable build quality. However, after not being impressed with some of the other EV offerings that had any type of performance to them, I rented a Model 3 dual motor long range last month to take a 200 mile road trip. I will admit I was a little nervous, but I watched several videos about how to and how Supercharging works that made everything seem so easy.

About 150 miles into our trip we stopped to grab some snacks and there happened to be a Tesla Supercharger in the lot. I said to myself it can't be as easy as the videos show. Well, the videos were right. I plugged in and within 3 seconds the screen inside the car showed that charging had already started and was charging at over 200kw. We were inside about 10 minutes and I returned to find that in the 11 minutes we had been plugged in we added over 100 miles of range to the battery. One push of the button on the charge handle stopped the charge, I was immediately able to unplug, and we were on our way.

During our trip I was actually amazed on how comfortable the seats are in the Model 3. The passenger front does lack a lumbar adjustment, but the drivers seat has one. I thought I would be really annoyed that there was no gauge cluster in front of the steering wheel, but I found the speed and battery percentage and range were really easy to see because it is in the top left corner of the screen that is right next to where your right hand is on the steering wheel at the 2 o clock position. The interior does look bland, but I think the white interior I purchased makes the inside look a lot better.

I also thought I would be really annoyed with the lack of buttons and having to do almost everything through the screen. I found that a lot of the things you want to do you can ask verbally and the car responds instantly (I am actually still amazed on the quick response not only of the voice commands, but of any input via the scroll wheels or buttons on the screen itself). I have never had a delay where the system is "thinking" about what was asked.

On the way home we stopped at another supercharger, and had the same experience and left 10 minutes later with over 100 more miles added to the range.

When we returned from the trip, I took the car out in the back country roads I enjoy with the MME. Quite frankly, the car shocked the hell out of me. The car felt even quicker than the MME, and of course handled a little better since it was a lighter car. I did not want to make the same mistake not getting the higher performance model this time around so I started looking at the Model 3 Performance and playing with the build page on the Tesla website.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago and I see the exact build I would have ordered actually in stock. This is a big deal with Tesla because if they have a new car in stock they usually discount the car. In my case that came to $1,700 off, plus another $500 off using a referral code, in addition to the $7,500 tax credit the car currently qualifies for. That puts the price at just over $45K for a car that does 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds, a top speed over 160 mph, handles like it on rails with 235/25/20 tires and somehow actually has a smooth ride with only light to moderate road noise at speed. The car pulls so hard from a stop that I find myself not only giggling a little but even saying a few choice words as I am being pinned to the seat.

With Tesla, everything is done through your account on the website or app. So when I found the car I wanted I completed everything through my account and picked up the car the next day. Since this was an inventory car and it was not at my local Tesla center, we drove up to Seattle (about 200 miles) for delivery. At delivery the only quality issues found were a small scratch and the car pulling a little to the right. Even though we were taking delivery in Seattle, since every Tesla center is owned by Tesla, my local center was able to get those two items fixed.

As with just about everything with Tesla, service appointments are set up through the app. Once we got home, I was able to set up an appointment two days later with my local center and they were able to fix the scratch and align the car. I was amazed on how easy the service appointment went. Since we already have another car at home, I didn't ask for a loaner car. That made it really easy since with Tesla I could drop the car off after hours. I actually called first to confirm the instructions for a night drop off because it sounded so bizarre.

My night drop consisted of driving over, parking in one of the numbered spaces on their open lot, using the phone app to confirm I was there for my appointment and let the center know what space I parked in. That was literally everything. The do not even need the backup key card as they are able to remote start the car using their system once it is there for service. This is the first time I have used phone as key solely since it was not always reliable with the MME. The next morning the center was able to get started on the car and had the car done the next day, which was just in time for a 400 mile trip my wife and I were going on that weekend. I actually had them install the HomeLink system that is GPS enables so it will open/close the garage door on its own as I arrive/leave the house and they were able to add that during the service, charge my card on file, load all the paperwork onto my account and park the car in the lot for me to pickup after hours again at my convenience.

The trip was to Couer D' Alene, ID, which is about 400 miles from Portland. I will admit I was a little hesitant to take the Tesla. When we went to Spokane last year we actually took our ICE vehicle since there were only EA stations along the route with only limited amounts of chargers at each site and mixed reviews on Plug Share for those stations. However, looking at the Tesla website I could see there were Supercharger sites along the route, with lots more chargers at each site, and most of them at 250kw. On our way up, I actually hunted out one of the few 150kw chargers since we had planned on having lunch at the same time at a sit down restaurant at the same location. This would turn out to be the only charging stop we made on the way up and pulled into Kennewick, WA, at 16%. We just getting towards the end of lunch 40 minutes later when the app started letting me know I was already getting close to 100%. I thought there is no way, but after getting to the car 5 minutes later I found the car at 94% and we were on our and a total charge bill of $17.28 (64 kWh @ $0.27/kWh). With that much charge we made it to our destination with no need for an additional stop. When we got to the hotel, I was able to use the Tesla destination chargers on site (no charge) and get back up to 80% charge in only 4 hours.

My car has the normal auto pilot that comes with all Tesla's, but with the referral link I used at purchase it gives me 3 months of the full self driving package as well. I must say that system is a little unbelievable. The system not only maintains speed, distance, lane centering and taking curves in the road like the normal system does, but adds the ability to change lanes on its own as you come up to slower moving cars in your lane if there is another lane open that is clear. It then moves back into the right lane after passing the slow moving car. If you have a destination entered in the system it actually navigates turns, and freeway interchanges on its own, including stopping for stop signs and traffic lights. Without FSD, the system still sees and shows the traffic stops/signals on the display, but it does not actually stop/go on its own for those signals. After using the system almost the entire trip, I was very impressed with it but think the normal autopilot outdoes most systems on the market currently and can live without the car actually doing all of the driving to the destination.

While staying at the hotel, I became addicted to sentry mode on the car. Through the app, you can view any of the 4 exterior cameras and even the interior camera in real time. The interior camera also shows the current interior temperature in real time as well. It became addicting see if there was someone parked near the car and even more tempting to use the mic on the phone that allows you talk through the external speaker on the car if you wanted to (I never did, nor did I use the fart button that uses the same external speaker on the car if you so choose).

On the trip home we did not plan on a sit down meal so we left at an 80% charge and planned two stops along the way. Each stop was under 20 minutes and each stop added close to 200 miles range each time. When we pulled into our second stop in Hood River, you almost had to pick me up off the floor when I pulled into this at 5pm on a Tuesday:

These are all 250kw chargers and less than 20 minutes later (including a stop for some ice cream at that location) we were back on our way with more charge than needed to get home.

One of the many nice things with the charging network is that it integrates with the navigation system in the car. Once you have the trip in the navigation (you can do that from the app or the car itself), the system tells you the recommended stops, tells you how many stalls are available as you get closer, tells you the current price being charged, and how far the next closest supercharger location is located and how many are available, etc. Another nice thing is once you are plugged in and charging the system tells you in real time how much time you need to charge to get to the next recommended station and how many miles you will arrive with once there. That number starts in the negative and increases as you charge.

As with everything in life, there are always pluses and minuses. I will say the looks of the Model 3 are a little bland. The interior is also does not give that warm rich feeling that others in the segment offer. And although making a service appointment and having the local center is very easy, if you actually want to speak to someone it is a little harder since all of the requests, updates and even payments are done through the app. It is also not a unique car anymore since there are literally millions of units on the roads now. There is also not the community of enthusiasts and company backing like we have here on the MME forum.

Time will tell as to the reliability and comfort as I accrue the miles. But so far at a little over 1,700 miles, things have started off on the right foot. I will admit the looks are growing on me, but like I said before it is defiantly not a wow factor for the car.

I can't blame you, I would have made the same decision given the current pricing...I bought a GT because at the time it qualified for the full tax credit and the Tesla did not...the M3P now qualifies?
I am curious how you can spot an M3P while on the road - the badging is non-existant...to know if I'm dealing with an M3 that I can beat off the line or an M3P that I can't .

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[heisnuts]

I can't blame you, I would have made the same decision given the current pricing...I bought a GT because at the time it qualified for the full tax credit and the Tesla did not...the M3P now qualifies?
I am curious how you can spot an M3P while on the road - the badging is non-existant...to know if I'm dealing with an M3 that I can beat off the line or an M3P that I can't .

The M3P qualifies for the tax credit as long at the MSRP is under $55K. In order to meet that cap you can add about $1,000 in options. So in my case I went with the free midnight silver color and added the $1,000 white interior.

It is a little hard to tell the performance model as there are only 3 differences. 1) the car has a carbon fiber lip spoiler on the trunk, 2) there is a red underline on the Dual Motor badge on the rear, and 3) the red Brembo brake calipers showing through the 20" black wheels.

 

[dmastro]

The M3P qualifies for the tax credit as long at the MSRP is under $55K. In order to meet that cap you can add about $1,000 in options. So in my case I went with the free midnight silver color and added the $1,000 white interior.

It is a little hard to tell the performance model as there are only 3 differences. 1) the car has a carbon fiber lip spoiler on the trunk, 2) there is a red underline on the Dual Motor badge on the rear, and 3) the red Brembo brake calipers showing through the 20" black wheels.

Those are the dead giveaways. Just don't get caught by a M3P stealth! Early in the run, they offered the performance without any of those distinguishing attributes.

 

[Socalsp3]

Don't know if they redesigned the suspension but i rode in a newish M3 and it felt like a Corolla.

 

[heisnuts]

Don't know if they redesigned the suspension but i rode in a newish M3 and it felt like a Corolla.

The performance version has a stiffer ride than the Corolla or even the base Model 3 due to the 35 series low profile tires (it may also have a different suspension, but I don’t know that for sure). I don’t find it uncomfortable and actually welcome the precision steering the setup provides.

 

[Jferrari427]

The M3 is about to be redesigned (slightly) this fall- expect a resale value drop

I would consider Tesla but the styling, design, ride quality and craftsmanship are a no-go basically the whole car is a hard NO lol.

 

[Tha_Ape]

The M3P qualifies for the tax credit as long at the MSRP is under $55K. In order to meet that cap you can add about $1,000 in options. So in my case I went with the free midnight silver color and added the $1,000 white interior.

It is a little hard to tell the performance model as there are only 3 differences. 1) the car has a carbon fiber lip spoiler on the trunk, 2) there is a red underline on the Dual Motor badge on the rear, and 3) the red Brembo brake calipers showing through the 20" black wheels.

I did something similar, but I had to PAY $1000 for grey. That's one of the ups and downs of Tesla (price changes often). I also sadly missed out on the free FSD for 3mo AND inventory price cuts (I got the car a month prior). All that complaining out of the way, I love the car even though it needed an alignment when it was brand new

If you're strictly looking at acceleration, I can't think of any other car under $50k (im including the 7500 off) that can do nearly what it can. If you need to get over and "make that next left" you'll be able to do it.

 

[Frebster]

It's my understanding starting Spring 2024 Tesla is opening up their charging network to MME, which will hopefully remove range anxiety.

 

[tfitzgex]

You have an interesting use case if your HVBJB was repeatedly failing. Sounds like the M3P is a much better fit for you. Of course it has stronger acceleration than a Mach E - it is a much smaller and lighter car. If you are willing to accept the tradeoffs (i.e. the "bland looks, cheap interior, and questionable build quality" to name just a few) for the slingshot acceleration you crave, I'm glad you like it! Have you ever considered just buying a dirt bike?

I'm on my 3rd HVBJB, due to my spirited driving.. I'm ordering a mY next week.

 

[heisnuts]

I'm on my 3rd HVBJB, due to my spirited driving.. I'm ordering a mY next week.

Congratulations. Be sure to check existing inventory first as they may have your car in stock and offer a discount. Also, if you don't have a referral code from an owner, let me know via PM and I can give you one. It will give you $500 off your car and gets me some Tesla points as well. You do have to use the code when you order or reserve it. It cannot be added after you order the car.

 

[voxel]

I haven't. Honestly, I am still getting used to sport mode. The acceleration from a stop in sport really boarders on violent and makes you wonder how you are not snapping an axle as you are pinned to the seat ?. You must make sure your head is already back on the seat back or you are going to feel the thud as it hits the seat back on acceleration.

I'd say the GT PE from 0 to 30mph is about neck snapping as the M3P. Any performance EV with mid-3s easily feels like a rocket compared to a mid-4 "regular" AWD EVs.

I've never driven the Plaid version of a Model S and probably don't need too lol.

 

[LinkRS]

As some of you know from my goodbye thread, I said goodbye to my MME yesterday and have switched over to the Model 3 Performance. After it became apparent that my back road driving caused my HVBJB to continue to fail prematurely, I started looking at other EVs. I knew I needed something with more performance than my MME Premium 4x, and I worried that simply moving to the GT would result in the same problem and frustration with the 5 second limitation.

I actually had never thought of a Tesla because of all the talk of bland looks, cheap interior, and questionable build quality. However, after not being impressed with some of the other EV offerings that had any type of performance to them, I rented a Model 3 dual motor long range last month to take a 200 mile road trip. I will admit I was a little nervous, but I watched several videos about how to and how Supercharging works that made everything seem so easy.

About 150 miles into our trip we stopped to grab some snacks and there happened to be a Tesla Supercharger in the lot. I said to myself it can't be as easy as the videos show. Well, the videos were right. I plugged in and within 3 seconds the screen inside the car showed that charging had already started and was charging at over 200kw. We were inside about 10 minutes and I returned to find that in the 11 minutes we had been plugged in we added over 100 miles of range to the battery. One push of the button on the charge handle stopped the charge, I was immediately able to unplug, and we were on our way.

During our trip I was actually amazed on how comfortable the seats are in the Model 3. The passenger front does lack a lumbar adjustment, but the drivers seat has one. I thought I would be really annoyed that there was no gauge cluster in front of the steering wheel, but I found the speed and battery percentage and range were really easy to see because it is in the top left corner of the screen that is right next to where your right hand is on the steering wheel at the 2 o clock position. The interior does look bland, but I think the white interior I purchased makes the inside look a lot better.

I also thought I would be really annoyed with the lack of buttons and having to do almost everything through the screen. I found that a lot of the things you want to do you can ask verbally and the car responds instantly (I am actually still amazed on the quick response not only of the voice commands, but of any input via the scroll wheels or buttons on the screen itself). I have never had a delay where the system is "thinking" about what was asked.

On the way home we stopped at another supercharger, and had the same experience and left 10 minutes later with over 100 more miles added to the range.

When we returned from the trip, I took the car out in the back country roads I enjoy with the MME. Quite frankly, the car shocked the hell out of me. The car felt even quicker than the MME, and of course handled a little better since it was a lighter car. I did not want to make the same mistake not getting the higher performance model this time around so I started looking at the Model 3 Performance and playing with the build page on the Tesla website.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago and I see the exact build I would have ordered actually in stock. This is a big deal with Tesla because if they have a new car in stock they usually discount the car. In my case that came to $1,700 off, plus another $500 off using a referral code, in addition to the $7,500 tax credit the car currently qualifies for. That puts the price at just over $45K for a car that does 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds, a top speed over 160 mph, handles like it on rails with 235/25/20 tires and somehow actually has a smooth ride with only light to moderate road noise at speed. The car pulls so hard from a stop that I find myself not only giggling a little but even saying a few choice words as I am being pinned to the seat.

With Tesla, everything is done through your account on the website or app. So when I found the car I wanted I completed everything through my account and picked up the car the next day. Since this was an inventory car and it was not at my local Tesla center, we drove up to Seattle (about 200 miles) for delivery. At delivery the only quality issues found were a small scratch and the car pulling a little to the right. Even though we were taking delivery in Seattle, since every Tesla center is owned by Tesla, my local center was able to get those two items fixed.

As with just about everything with Tesla, service appointments are set up through the app. Once we got home, I was able to set up an appointment two days later with my local center and they were able to fix the scratch and align the car. I was amazed on how easy the service appointment went. Since we already have another car at home, I didn't ask for a loaner car. That made it really easy since with Tesla I could drop the car off after hours. I actually called first to confirm the instructions for a night drop off because it sounded so bizarre.

My night drop consisted of driving over, parking in one of the numbered spaces on their open lot, using the phone app to confirm I was there for my appointment and let the center know what space I parked in. That was literally everything. The do not even need the backup key card as they are able to remote start the car using their system once it is there for service. This is the first time I have used phone as key solely since it was not always reliable with the MME. The next morning the center was able to get started on the car and had the car done the next day, which was just in time for a 400 mile trip my wife and I were going on that weekend. I actually had them install the HomeLink system that is GPS enables so it will open/close the garage door on its own as I arrive/leave the house and they were able to add that during the service, charge my card on file, load all the paperwork onto my account and park the car in the lot for me to pickup after hours again at my convenience.

The trip was to Couer D' Alene, ID, which is about 400 miles from Portland. I will admit I was a little hesitant to take the Tesla. When we went to Spokane last year we actually took our ICE vehicle since there were only EA stations along the route with only limited amounts of chargers at each site and mixed reviews on Plug Share for those stations. However, looking at the Tesla website I could see there were Supercharger sites along the route, with lots more chargers at each site, and most of them at 250kw. On our way up, I actually hunted out one of the few 150kw chargers since we had planned on having lunch at the same time at a sit down restaurant at the same location. This would turn out to be the only charging stop we made on the way up and pulled into Kennewick, WA, at 16%. We just getting towards the end of lunch 40 minutes later when the app started letting me know I was already getting close to 100%. I thought there is no way, but after getting to the car 5 minutes later I found the car at 94% and we were on our and a total charge bill of $17.28 (64 kWh @ $0.27/kWh). With that much charge we made it to our destination with no need for an additional stop. When we got to the hotel, I was able to use the Tesla destination chargers on site (no charge) and get back up to 80% charge in only 4 hours.

My car has the normal auto pilot that comes with all Tesla's, but with the referral link I used at purchase it gives me 3 months of the full self driving package as well. I must say that system is a little unbelievable. The system not only maintains speed, distance, lane centering and taking curves in the road like the normal system does, but adds the ability to change lanes on its own as you come up to slower moving cars in your lane if there is another lane open that is clear. It then moves back into the right lane after passing the slow moving car. If you have a destination entered in the system it actually navigates turns, and freeway interchanges on its own, including stopping for stop signs and traffic lights. Without FSD, the system still sees and shows the traffic stops/signals on the display, but it does not actually stop/go on its own for those signals. After using the system almost the entire trip, I was very impressed with it but think the normal autopilot outdoes most systems on the market currently and can live without the car actually doing all of the driving to the destination.

While staying at the hotel, I became addicted to sentry mode on the car. Through the app, you can view any of the 4 exterior cameras and even the interior camera in real time. The interior camera also shows the current interior temperature in real time as well. It became addicting see if there was someone parked near the car and even more tempting to use the mic on the phone that allows you talk through the external speaker on the car if you wanted to (I never did, nor did I use the fart button that uses the same external speaker on the car if you so choose).

On the trip home we did not plan on a sit down meal so we left at an 80% charge and planned two stops along the way. Each stop was under 20 minutes and each stop added close to 200 miles range each time. When we pulled into our second stop in Hood River, you almost had to pick me up off the floor when I pulled into this at 5pm on a Tuesday:

These are all 250kw chargers and less than 20 minutes later (including a stop for some ice cream at that location) we were back on our way with more charge than needed to get home.

One of the many nice things with the charging network is that it integrates with the navigation system in the car. Once you have the trip in the navigation (you can do that from the app or the car itself), the system tells you the recommended stops, tells you how many stalls are available as you get closer, tells you the current price being charged, and how far the next closest supercharger location is located and how many are available, etc. Another nice thing is once you are plugged in and charging the system tells you in real time how much time you need to charge to get to the next recommended station and how many miles you will arrive with once there. That number starts in the negative and increases as you charge.

As with everything in life, there are always pluses and minuses. I will say the looks of the Model 3 are a little bland. The interior is also does not give that warm rich feeling that others in the segment offer. And although making a service appointment and having the local center is very easy, if you actually want to speak to someone it is a little harder since all of the requests, updates and even payments are done through the app. It is also not a unique car anymore since there are literally millions of units on the roads now. There is also not the community of enthusiasts and company backing like we have here on the MME forum.

Time will tell as to the reliability and comfort as I accrue the miles. But so far at a little over 1,700 miles, things have started off on the right foot. I will admit the looks are growing on me, but like I said before it is defiantly not a wow factor for the car.

Howdy heisnuts,

I am glad you have a satisfactory conclusion to your issues with the Mach-E, but I have a question concerning your multiple HVJB failures. It says you had a Premium AWD ER, is that correct? I was under the (apparently mistaken) assumption that the HVJB issues with the the GT and GT PE models, not the standard performance versions?

Also, you commented on the acceleration feeling from your Model 3 Performance edition. Have you driven a GT or GT PE for comparison? I understand that the 0-60 times are lower for the Model 3 Performance, but the GT and GT PE are noticably quicker than the standard Premium trim vehicles.

Thanks in advance for your time!

 

[Mach1E]

Howdy heisnuts,

I am glad you have a satisfactory conclusion to your issues with the Mach-E, but I have a question concerning your multiple HVJB failures. It says you had a Premium AWD ER, is that correct? I was under the (apparently mistaken) assumption that the HVJB issues with the the GT and GT PE models, not the standard performance versions?

Also, you commented on the acceleration feeling from your Model 3 Performance edition. Have you driven a GT or GT PE for comparison? I understand that the 0-60 times are lower for the Model 3 Performance, but the GT and GT PE are noticably quicker than the standard Premium trim vehicles.

Thanks in advance for your time!

Every Mach E is subject to HVJB failure. It’s a bad design and a few percent seem to get a bad one.

The extra power in a GT (and the likely fact that GT owners drive more aggressively) lead to a higher failure rate in GTs.

For those getting multiple failures on the same car? My bet is something ELSE is causing the failures. The likelihood of 3 bad units in a row is exponentially small.

 

[LinkRS]

Every Mach E is subject to HVJB failure. It’s a bad design and a few percent seem to get a bad one.

The extra power in a GT (and the likely fact that GT owners drive more aggressively) lead to a higher failure rate in GTs.

For those getting multiple failures on the same car? My bet is something ELSE is causing the failures. The likelihood of 3 bad units in a row is exponentially small.

Thanks for the information .

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