Last Tuesday was Tesla Tuesday for me. After 2 years, 2 months and 20 days from placing my reservation I finally got to drive home in my very own Tesla Model 3, aptly named "The Future".
Since it's still somewhat early days of the Model 3, mine is the 1st available Long Range battery, with the premium upgrades. I opted for the the more sporty 19" sport alloys and the advanced Auto Pilot in Pearl White. I've only had the chance to drive it about 200 miles so far but it's absolutely amazing and a massive step up from the eGolf in terms of tech, driving feel, power, looks, range and efficiency.
This ups my range from the eGolf's 85 miles to 310 miles! Moves the drive wheels from the front to the rear , from being on 16" alloys with 55 series low rolling resistance tires (that are terrible) to 19" alloys with 235/40/R compound tires (yay grip!) Power jumped from 110hp to 271hp(feels like WAY more with the torque) and the battery from a 23KWh to a 75KWh pack. 0-60 went from 8.9 seconds to 4.7 seconds. While the VW interior fit and finish is stellar, the design is as basic as well... a Golf. While the interior of the Model 3 is where the spaceship features start to show. The immediate lack of the driver cluster hiding behind the steering wheel is the first clue that this is not your average car. In fact there are almost no buttons at all! Just 2 scroll wheels on the steering wheel and the 2 stalks behind the wheel. There is a (required) hazard light button above and the window switches on the doors... and that's it. No visible fussy air vents, no cluster of single function buttons, no gear lever or handbrake between the seats... no transmission tunnel because there's no transmission and the electric motor is in the back. I also now have a usable front trunk and the back trunk is pretty huge for a car it's size. I've already fit a 6 foot step ladder through it without it going between the front seats and all 3 of my kids in their various seats fit across the back as well.
Another HUGE advantage of the Tesla over the eGolf is the over-the-air software updates. NO ONE in the auto industry does this (Yet). And it's a huge advantage for Tesla, and a major plus for me, because my car is a week old, and it's already BETTER than it was last week and can do more functions.... for free...without having to go to a dealer and wait hours for a simple software sync. Many people use the Supercharger network as Tesla main advantage, and it certainly is another massive one, but I find the ability to update cars based on user feedback and requested features as a bigger advantage than those in the long run. Because older cars are still being updated, and as long as the car was built with the needed hardware it will continue to be updated. Not like Apple which makes your new fancy phone obsolete the day you buy it.
There are tons more advantages and upgrades over the eGolf, which I still have, but it's VW's lack of support for that car that make it more and more obsolete. Stay tuned as I will be doing some work to give the Model 3 that Voltzwagen special touch:)
The Future is electric, but it's finally here...now... and it's fun!! :)
