Tesla Model 3: 2018 Motor Trend Car of the Year Finalist

We Like: Great range, supercharging availability, excellent driving dynamics

We Don’t Like: Raised-knee position for rear-seat passengers, interior materials

Speculation and pontification—not to mention about 400,000 preorders. That’s the Tesla Model 3 in a nutshell.

Having the chance to spend some time with the car was akin to interviewing an infamously reclusive celebrity. Would it live up to the paparazzi’s stratospheric expectations? In a great many regards, it did.

The Model 3’s punchy torque (0–60 mph in 4.8 seconds) and laserlike handling impressed every judge who buckled in—though at the price of decidedly firm ride quality. The 310-mile range (from the up-level battery pack) is killer. However, the $60,000 price of the fully loaded long-range car put Jonny Lieberman in fits over this supposedly affordable EV.

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Personal aesthetics aside, the Model 3’s design is relentlessly clean and airy (particularly with our car’s optional glass roof). Its interior was more polarizing—some enchanted by its Scandinavian austerity, others reckoning it too stark. And long-legged back-seat passengers might question their friend’s evangelism for this car.

The divisions grew deeper when it came to Tesla’s rethinking of interior controls, where nearly every function requires a visit to its 15-inch iPad-like touchscreen. We’d been forewarned that the screen interface was a work in progress. Nonetheless, “it might be going too far too fast in eliminating tried and true ways to control aspects of the car,” Alisa Priddle said.

The Model 3 is a rolling Rorschach test. Change is great; change is strange. Will it ultimately change the automotive landscape? Said Chris Walton: “If this is the future of automobiles, then I’m OK with it.”

2017 Tesla Model 3 (Long Range)
POWERTRAIN/CHASSIS
DRIVETRAIN LAYOUT	Rear-motor, RWD
ENGINE TYPE	3-phase internal permanent magnet electric motor
BATTERY TYPE	Liquid-cooled lithium-ion
POWER (SAE NET)	271 hp
TORQUE (SAE NET)	307 lb-ft
WEIGHT TO POWER	14.4 lb/hp
TRANSMISSION	Single-ratio transaxle
AXLE/FINAL-DRIVE RATIO	9.0:1
SUSPENSION, FRONT; REAR	Control arms, coil springs, anti-roll bar; multilink, coil springs, anti-roll bar
STEERING RATIO	10.3:1
TURNS LOCK-TO-LOCK	2.0
BRAKES, F; R	12.6-in vented disc; 13.2-in vented disc, ABS
WHEELS, F;R	8.5 x 19-in flow-formed aluminum
TIRES, F;R	235/40R19 96W (M+S) Continental ProContact RX
DIMENSIONS
WHEELBASE	113.2 in
TRACK, F/R	62.2/62.2 in
LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT	184.8 x 72.8 x 56.8 in
TURNING CIRCLE	38.1 ft
CURB WEIGHT	3,902 lb
WEIGHT DIST, F/R	48/52%
SEATING CAPACITY	5
HEADROOM, F/R	40.3/37.7 in
LEGROOM, F/R	42.7/35.2 in
SHOULDER ROOM, F/R	56.3/54.0 in
CARGO VOLUME	14.6 cu ft
TEST DATA
ACCELERATION TO MPH
0-30	2.1 sec
0-40	2.9
0-50	3.7
0-60	4.8
0-70	6.1
0-80	7.7
0-90	9.6
0-100	12.0
PASSING, 45-65 MPH	2.1
QUARTER MILE	13.4 sec @ 104.9 mph
BRAKING, 60-0 MPH	119 ft
LATERAL ACCELERATION	0.87 g (avg)
MT FIGURE EIGHT	25.7 sec @ 0.74 g (avg)
TOP-GEAR REVS @ 60 MPH	16,250 rpm
CONSUMER INFO
BASE PRICE	$45,000
PRICE AS TESTED	$57,500
STABILITY/TRACTION CONTROL	Yes/Yes
AIRBAGS	8: Dual front, front side, f/r curtain, front knee
BASIC WARRANTY	4 yrs/50,000 miles
POWERTRAIN WARRANTY	8 years/100,000 mile (/120,000 mi w/Long Range Battery)
ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE	4 yrs/50,000 miles
FUEL CAPACITY	75kW/h
REAL MPG, CITY/HWY/COMB	89.7/128.2/103.7 MPGe
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB ECON	131/120/126 mpg (est)
ENERGY CONS, CITY/HWY	26/28 kW-hrs/100 miles
RECOMMENDED FUEL	110-volt, 220-volt electricity

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