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

[RedStallion]

Watch: Exclusive Tesla Footage Suggests Reasons for Autopilot Crashes
A Texas crash is one of 16 between Teslas and emergency vehicles being investigated by regulators

Tesla removing the radar from their cars to save money isn't helping safety either. Their so-called Autopilot was always unsafe and their advertisement is criminal. They were claiming AP wasn't responsible for crashes because it wasn't engaged at the moment of crash, then it became clear that AP disengages before crashes and when people turning the steering wheel trying to avoid collision. They had a big problem with phantom braking and were tweaking AP, which now has a hard time detecting stationary objects. Tesla is constantly lying and hiding from customers all their safety issues.
I wouldn't want to do anything with such an unethical company.

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[heisnuts]

Now that I am over 5,000 miles I wanted to give my updated thoughts on the M3P.

The short version is I continue to be very impressed with the sedan. I have not had anything go wrong, including all of the charging sessions both at home and Tesla Superchargers on the road. I also continue to be pleasantly surprised when I discover new features like being able to ask Siri from my watch to open the trunk, precondition the car, open the frunk, or lock/unlock the car even when I am far away from the car.

Now for the longer version. Going from a SUV to a sedan has naturally been a change for the better when it comes to handling and performance. Having 235/35/20 Pirelli P-Zero Summer Only tires make the car handle like it is on rails. The car launches from a stop to 60 in 3.1 seconds, and that has not gotten old. It also impresses on acceleration out of turns as I am pinned to the back of the seat and find myself giggling a lot of the time unconsciously. I have been pleasantly surprised on how nice the car rides in normal everyday commuting. It soaks up bumps and uneven pavement well.

I have also been very impressed on how well the tech inside works and how much easier it makes daily commuting. When you tap the turn signal to change lanes the side camera comes up on the display, adding to the visualization monitor that is always up showing the cars around you and their location. You can move the position of the camera to different locations on the screen, turn it off completely if you want, or even open up all the cameras at one time and have them split in the screen so you can see them all at once even when driving. I have the turn signal set to automatically cancel after a lane change so after completing a lane change the signal turns off just like after completing a turn. Everything just always works, even PAAK, which so far has only not worked on the first try one time. And as soon as I took the phone out of my pocket everything worked fine and I was off and running. I was really worried about not having a physical fob for the car, but that too has turned out to be not a worry at all.

I thought not having Apple Car Play would suck, but it has not turned out to be bad at all. The navigation system uses Google Maps just like I did with Car Play and because it has internet connection through Tesla, it routes using current traffic data. The system learns your daily commute and now when I get in to go to/from work, the system automatically routes the best way given current traffic conditions right when you get into the car.

I also thought no Car Play and no satellite radio would be challenging, but I have found that Apple Music works just as well, if not better, and costs about the same for the subscription as I paid for Sirius XM in the MME. The nice feature with Apple Music is you can pick any song on demand and it learns the music you like and will automatically pick music for you that you can accept or reject, making the system get better each time when it picks music for you. The sound quality is also a lot better, but I do not know if that is because of Apple Music or the fact that the stereo system is just that much better than the MME. The system also lets you send and receive texts verbally so you do not have to take your eyes off the road or play with the phone or screen when driving.

I also thought not having a display in front of the wheel would suck, but that too has not turned out to be as bad as I thought. I have learned to view my speed out of the corner of my eye since it is right next to my right hand when on the wheel at 10 & 2. A HUD be the perfect solution, but the current set up works OK.

I have actually come to like a lot of the minimalist design features of the car like no start/stop button, stalk for the gear shifter, etc. As soon as you open the door, everything powers on and the car is ready to go. When you leave everything shuts off, the doors lock and the windows roll up if you have them down. You can set it to stay unlocked in certain locations, like home in the garage, just like you can set the security cameras to stay off when parked in locations like your home garage. I had Tesla install their Home Link system to open/close the garage. They charge $350, including installation, and the system is GPS based so you can set it to automatically open the garage as you pull up to the house and then close the garage as you leave the driveway. I have found I like that feature more than I thought I would even though there is a button on the top of the screen to open/close manually if you want. There are times I wish for a few more buttons or switches, but for the most part using the screen or voice commands for everything does work OK. The nice thing with the tech is that everything works and the response time is quick. If that were not the case, doing everything through the screen would suck.

Public charging has been a game changer with this car. I used to have to plan road trips and have backup plans available with the MME. There were also some trips we did not take the MME due to lack of chargers faster than 50 Kwh along our route, like along the Oregon coast. With this car planning is all of 5 minutes to see the superchargers along the route and go. Even along the Oregon Coast there are enough superchargers to get from the northern border to southern boarder without having to be stuck looking for the few 50 Kwh chargers along the route for the non-Tesla crowd. And it's not just the availability of chargers, it is also the speed of charging. Even on a long road trip where I came into a charger at 16% charge and purposely picked a 150 Kwh supercharger so it gave us a little time to sit down and eat, 40 minutes later the Tesla app was pinging me telling me I was over 90% charge and had better get back to unplug before hitting 100%. I have never been at a supercharger for more than the 40 minute example above, and don't think it has even been 30 minutes on any other charge session. I also have never had a charging failure or broken charger in any of the over 15 charging sessions I have had at supercharger locations. The Tesla charging systems really makes range irrelevant and I find myself not worrying about how many miles are left since I always know I can charge quickly if it is needed. It is also really nice to have the navigation system show the charging stations in the area, how many stalls are open at that time, and the price I will be paying given the current time of use.

The ride is a lot better than I thought it would be, and the handling is amazing with the 35 series tires. I realize this is a sedan vs the SUV so the handling would be better, but I really thought the ride quality would be worse than the MME. I don't know how Tesla did it, but the suspension soaks up the bumps really well and with an even lower center of gravity the car handles like it is on rails going through the turns on my back country roads.

Although there is a lot to love, there is always room for improvement. It would be nice if Apple Car Play would be a factory option. I know there are aftermarket options to make this work, but with all of the tech in this car, I don't see why Tesla left it out. I also think that Tesla should have included a few switches/buttons inside for essential items light the headlights and wipers. The auto everything works OK, but there are times I have wished for an actual button or switch on the dash rather than going through the screen. I also think a HUD would make a world of difference, especially if it included navigation on it as well.

 

[DevSecOps]

Now that I am over 5,000 miles I wanted to give my updated thoughts on the M3P.

Pro Tip - Link your 5k review to the top of your OP so that we can find it without scrolling through all the pages.

Aside from the superchargers (because I can't use them yet) I echo most all of your comments for Rivian (since they basically copied a crap load from Tesla). ACP/AA being gone doesn't bother me one bit, the garage door feature is amazing, responsiveness is perfect, no power button, ready to go when you get in, 0-60 in 3.0, no 5 second limit etc etc.

Good write up and glad you are enjoying the M3P.

 

[Maquis]

If you were used to the compressed sound quality of SXM in the MME, almost anything else will sound better.

 

[heisnuts]

Pro Tip - Link your 5k review to the top of your OP so that we can find it without scrolling through all the pages.

Aside from the superchargers (because I can't use them yet) I echo most all of your comments for Rivian (since they basically copied a crap load from Tesla). ACP/AA being gone doesn't bother me one bit, the garage door feature is amazing, responsiveness is perfect, no power button, ready to go when you get in, 0-60 in 3.0, no 5 second limit etc etc.

Good write up and glad you are enjoying the M3P.

Thank you as always, Todd. I added the link at the top of my original post.

 

[Ghost Ryder]

Thank you as always, Todd. I added the link at the top of my original post.

How does it do in your back road jaunts? Tried track mode yet?

 

[heisnuts]

How does it do in your back road jaunts? Tried track mode yet?

I am really impressed on how well the car handles and performs. It is simply a precision guided missle. There is so much power going to all 4 wheels there is even torque steer at times and although the 0 to 60 time is 3.1 seconds, it feels even faster than that. I have not tried track mode yet as I prefer to have the nannies on to try to prevent disaster. There have been a few times I have gone into a turn a little hot or had too much throttle coming out of a turn and I could actually feel the car correcting saying hey bud there is still the law of physics you have to adhere to

 

[Ghost Ryder]

Track mode will let you dial in the nannies to your liking. From 0-100%. Also it will prep the car for better cooling of the battery and motors.

 

[heisnuts]

Track mode will let you dial in the nannies to your liking. From 0-100%. Also it will prep the car for better cooling of the battery and motors.

I have been really impressed with the cooling abilities. Even after some pretty hard driving if I put in a supercharger in the navigation on a cooler day the car actually has to warm the battery to precondition it for the supercharger (it will tell you if it needs to warm the battery as you get closer to the supercharger location). It will also keep fans on after shutting off the car a lot of the times after a harder run allowing everything to cool down even after stopping.

 

[dmastro]

Thanks for the detailed write up. Your feelings about the car are very similar to mine. I've driven my 2018 AWD LR for nearly 5 years now and enjoy the heck out of it.

I get that we're on an MME forum so there's going to be a lot of hate for the T car, whether it's based out of dislike for Elon, looks, or whatever, but I still think they are currently the standard for EVs, especially at current pricing.

 

[heisnuts]

Thanks for the detailed write up. Your feelings about the car are very similar to mine. I've driven my 2018 AWD LR for nearly 5 years now and enjoy the heck out of it.

I get that we're on an MME forum so there's going to be a lot of hate for the T car, whether it's based out of dislike for Elon, looks, or whatever, but I still think they are currently the standard for EVs, especially at current pricing.

I kinda get that, but then I do not buy or reject a product just because of the CEO of the company. I don't think there are a lot here who say the main reason they bought the MME is because of Jim Farley or one of the Ford family members.

Personally, I just did not really know a lot about the Tesla and the looks of the car didn't invite me to learn more about the car. It wasn't until I actually rented the car and drove it for the weekend that I realized how much fun, performance, convenience and value the car offers. Now I can say I get why they sell so many of these things, especially now given the price advantage it has in the market and the supercharging network that has become the gold standard of public charging.

That is not to say I have a dislike for the MME (I still stick around here). It just doesn't suit my particular needs right now.

 

[voxel]

If you were used to the compressed sound quality of SXM in the MME, almost anything else will sound better.

Tesla's audio is noticeably better than all mainstream EVs. The Mach-E audio is just meh. I owned a Y and Mach-E together last fall and had them parked next to each other with Spotify running (well it disconnects and reconnects as you exit and enter each EV). The Tesla audio is much clearer. The 3 audio system is even better than the Y because of the smaller cabin.

I like the Model 3 better than the Y but Autopilot (and Rivian's Driver+) still are half-baked. I prefer BlueCruise and Hyundai/Kia systems where you can change lanes and speed up and steer without the ADAS system disengaging completely.

The lack of USS, 360 camera, blind spot monitors on the mirrors, and no rear cross traffic alerts are appalling. Not getting another Tesla until those features are added. The Rivians are basically Teslas with those features. The Rivian software and voice control... well those are half-baked currently.

 

[Maquis]

Tesla's audio is noticeably better than all mainstream EVs. The Mach-E audio is just meh. I owned a Y and Mach-E together last fall and had them parked next to each other with Spotify running (well it disconnects and reconnects as you exit and enter each EV). The Tesla audio is much clearer. The 3 audio system is even better than the Y because of the smaller cabin.

I like the Model 3 better than the Y but Autopilot (and Rivian's Driver+) still are half-baked. I prefer BlueCruise and Hyundai/Kia systems where you can change lanes and speed up and steer without the ADAS system disengaging completely.

The lack of USS, 360 camera, blind spot monitors on the mirrors, and no rear cross traffic alerts are appalling. Not getting another Tesla until those features are added. The Rivians are basically Teslas with those features. The Rivian software and voice control... well those are half-baked currently.

My point was that if your listening to Sirius, none of that really matters.

 

[heisnuts]

It's hard to believe in less than four months now I have managed to accrue over 10,000 miles on the car. Work is only 7 miles away so the rest of the miles have been out in the back country roads and three road trips totaling about 2,000 miles. The short answer is I am still in total amazement how well everything works in this car. It has been a game changer when it comes to performance, charging, OTA updates, and ease of use.

When I saw how quick this car took off, I thought there was going to be no way I would ever be able to be at WOT for any amount of time. I was wrong. As the miles racked up, I became used to the performance and now have several areas where it is safe to be coming out of a hairpin turn and be WOT for at least a few seconds before letting regen braking bring the speeds back in check or taking off from a complete stop and getting to 60 in 3 seconds. It still induces a huge grin and giggles, but part of that is from the sheer G force forcing my cheeks back towards the seat.

Charging continues to be flawless both at home and at superchargers. I have never encountered a problem or hiccup over the 10,000 miles. Even if I change settings on the app for home use, it has never complained or not charged to the level asked. The superchargers work so well that I don't even put that much planning on road trips. I punch in our destination and let the car tell me what to do. I did use the hotel's Tesla destination charger on our first road trip since it was easily available. On our second trip the hotel valet said there was a line to use the chargers so I skipped that and charged at a nearby supercharger as we ate lunch at a restaurant at the same location. I am still amazed on the speed of the superchargers. The longest charge session at any supercharger was a "slow" V2 150kWh charger where it took almost 45 minutes to go from 16% charge to 94% charge. At home, using the Tesla mobile charger plugged into a NEMA 14-50 outlet, the car will go from 10% to 90% overnight even if I lower the amps on the charger to 20A.

Even though it has been less than four months now, I have gotten at least 5 or 6 OTAs now automatically, and have not had a failure yet. If I wasn't paying attention, I might have missed them since they update overnight and other than one message saying it updated you wouldn't know it.

Once I got used to how everything worked, I realized how easy everything is to operate. I though having the use the screen for everything would become annoying, but I soon found how you really use the scroll wheels on the steering wheel and the stalks/buttons on the stalks for most features and also have voice commands that work pretty well for other items.

The car is not perfect. I do have one rattle that has developed in the back roof pillar, but so far the radio has to be off to hear it (which is very rare for me) so I have not taken it in for repair. Although service is pretty easy to get an appointment, you have to be comfortable doing everything trough the app. The appointment is set up through the app, Tesla encourages even the drop off for service be done through the app (they do not need your phone or key card to drive the car), during the service all the communication is done through the app, the paperwork is sent to you on the app, payment (if any) is charged to your card on file in the app, and when done they tell you through the app that the car is parked outside and you can pick it up. I actually like the setup as it works well for me, but if you are someone who likes to be able to call and have someone pickup the phone to assist you, this will be a frustrating experience. They do have mobile service too, but there are some repairs that will require you to drop it off at a service center.

Another downside is there is not a lot of assistance from Tesla when it comes to education on their cars. Both in service and sales, it is very much like self checkout at the store. I know a lot about the car and how things work from watching lots of videos from owners explaining how everything works and good shortcuts to know about both before and after the purchase. If it wasn't for those videos, I would not have known to ask a Tesla owner for a referral link to order my car (which saved me $500 off the car and got me free FSD for 3 months. Tesla is currently also offering 6 months of free supercharging if you use a referral link for your purchase/order good through the end of the year.), nor would I know about a lot of helpful tips on how to get to a lot of features easily when driving.

 

[Unobtanium]

I heavily considered Tesla, but at the time the P cars were mid 60s and I wanted more refinement and performance for the dollar, also, build quality and road noise scared me off. It seems people who get a good one absolutely love then though, and with suspension mods they can be made to handle very well.

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