Tesla Model 3 Review: The TRUTH After 26,000 Miles

Almost a year ago I received my Tesla Model 3 and have driven it over 26,000

miles

since then. Is it still the best car I've ever driven or was it a $50,000 mistake? Let's find out, many thanks to audible for sponsoring. In this video, in my original Model 3

review

video that I did last year, I mostly went over the features of the car because I had only had it for two months at that point. Now in this video I will go over my experience as an owner. a Tesla Model 3 for almost a year and focus on the three most important things I think people look for in a car: reliability, cost and enjoyment.

When I first bought my Model 3, I was a little skeptical about how reliable it would be because it was the first generation of its kind and there were a couple of horror stories online from early adopters who were experiencing software or hardware issues and my

model

3 was one of the first 15,000 or so produced, so I was a little nervous not to mention it. the big lifestyle change of switching from gasoline to a fully electric vehicle. I can honestly say that my

model

3 has been 100% reliable so far and yes, although that is to be expected from a new car, it is still a pleasant surprise simply because of the fact that Tesla is still relatively young compared to everyone else automakers at the moment and since the Tesla Model 3 remains a unique car in itself, I have never run out of battery.

I think I've ever had a range of 12

miles

. I stayed when I returned home from a road trip, so yes, there is range anxiety, but the model three's power graph is extremely accurate and predicts the estimated remaining range when driving, so as long as you pay attention to That and plan ahead, you'll be fine. I should never have to worry about running out of battery. I have never had any major software or hardware failures. I think the worst things I've probably experienced so far are minor things that are somehow related to the software, so for example one time my sound system broke. completely frozen, it was muted, all you know, you couldn't hear the sounds of music playing from Bluetooth or streaming, or even the sound effects of things like the turn signal.

I was muted and frozen for a long time, luckily things like that, minor software errors can be easily fixed with just a soft reset of the screen which takes about a minute. I've never had any major reliability issues. So far it's been perfect for how tightly integrated the Model 3 is with the software. In fact, I'm surprised it's worked so well so far. I was expecting a little more trouble because it's very software-focused, but fortunately I haven't had any major problems in the first twenty-six thousand miles and two repairs have been made to my model three, hardware scarce, in both cases.

Several times Tesla Mobile Ranger came to my location and fixed the problem on the spot in about an hour and the first repair was the driver's door handle wouldn't close, it just didn't close fast enough, it also took a bit. a long time so he fixed it and then Oh it was just a click on the wiper making a clicking noise so they were both very minor they were fixed as said for free covered under warranty which It brings me to the next category which is cost and surprisingly this is one of my favorite things about the Model 3.

Now my biggest and really only complaint about the cost of a Model 3 is the starting price. Yes, there is a thirty-five thousand dollar base model that was finally released and yes. It is the cheapest of all Tesla models; However, with all the desired add-ons you'd want in a Tesla, the Model 3 is still too expensive for most people; However, if you can afford it and it fits your budget, I sincerely believe that the high initial cost of the model three is totally worth it in the long run. My model 3 is long range or rear drive with Aero wheels and was around $50,000;

However, if you compare it to a similarly priced gas vehicle, the model 3 is one of the cheapest cars to own now since I bought my model 3 this is how much I have spent on gas, oil changes, repairs and maintenance and tire rotation now, of all those things for the first twenty-five thousand miles on a Model 3, you really only need to do one which is tire rotation, the reason I haven't spent anything on tire rotation is because I was lucky that there is a local tire store that offers free rotations to Tesla owners, just another benefit of owning an electric car, so your situation might be different, but that's why I haven't spent anything on any of those things, so I no longer bought gas or paid for oil changes or anything related to an internal combustion engine vehicle, my insurance went up about five hundred dollars a year, however, I think my insurance would have gone up that much anyway with any new car in a similar price range.

Really the only thing that has cost me money to drive my model 3 has been the electricity to charge the car and that electricity comes from two sources, either the electricity in my home or the Tesla supercharger, now where I live, my charging cost It's cheap, 6.8 cents per kilowatt hour and the average watt hour per mile for my model three is 248, which is really impressive because I live in Louisville, Kentucky where we experienced all four. In the seasons, it goes below zero in winter, exceeds 100 in summer and with an average of 248 watt hours per mile in all four seasons, it proves that the Model 3 long range is one of the best and most efficient, if not the best. electric car right now, so it took six thousand four hundred and fifty-seven kilowatt hours to drive a little over 26,000 miles and based on my calculations from a previous video, the model 3 gets about 80% energy efficient, so which actually took around eight thousand seventy-one. kilowatt hours and with my current electric rate of six point eight cents per kilowatt hour, that's five hundred and forty-nine dollars spent on electricity to drive my model three for 26,000 miles;

However, some of that electricity was obtained from superchargers where I spent a total of fifty-four dollars. Also note that I have basically charged free at certain charging points, such as parking lots and hotels, and even at relatives' homes when I visit them, so my total cost to drive my Model 3 for over 26,000 miles has been less than $600 and my electric bill has only increased an average of 36 dollars per month, which is absolutely incredible, to put it in perspective, a car that gets thirty miles per gallon at an average gas cost of two dollars and seventy-seven. five cents per gallon it would cost two thousand three hundred and eighty three dollars to drive twenty six thousand miles and if you add a fifty dollar oil change every four thousand miles that would be an additional three hundred and twenty five dollars so that's a total of two thousand dollars of savings in less than a year of course these numbers are personal to my situation it is different for everyone however this is still a real life example of how much a person can save by going all electric especially when purchasing a Tesla Model 3 now that we are.

Coming into the last category, which is enjoyment, and this is also one of my favorite categories of the Model 3. I can have two favorites, right? Not surprisingly, the Model 3 is a real pleasure to drive, but I'll quickly go over a few things I don't like because, after all, nothing is perfect coming out of the windshield and the window fogged up more than any other car I've ever driven and I don't know If it's just me. I don't know if it's just the area I live in it if it's my car I don't know what it is if you have a model three let me know if you see it if you experience this but luckily I just got a cheap fog reducer on Amazon that I put on the windshield inside the windshield, which helps a little, but it's still a little annoying how easily it fogs up.

I also wish the Franck had a different locking mechanism. I used the Franck a lot. It's the perfect size for a purse, some shoes, and a basketball, so every time I close it. I have to put my hand on it or maybe sometimes both hands and it leaves some fingerprints on the hood so I wish it could auto close or just have a different locking mechanism plus the lumbar settings don't save to a driver profile. so I don't understand that like any other seat, steering wheel and mirror settings it is saved to a driver profile except the lumbar settings which I don't understand, it's a bit strange however luckily it can be fixed via a software. update that brings me to the many things I love about the Tesla Model 3, one of them being the premium sound system.

Now listening to music is an amazing experience, but do you know what I really love to listen to on my model 3? I was, all along, audiobooks and today's sponsor is my favorite audiobook service. audible audible has the largest selection of audiobooks on the planet and now they have audible originals which are exclusive audio titles created by celebrated storytellers from many different genres now as an audible member each month you get one credit that can be used towards any audiobook of your choice plus two originals audibles that you can't get anywhere else, of course, audible has Elon Musk's biography and if you want to learn more about Elon Musk and his story. of how he became the leader of Tesla and SpaceX, you can get that or any other audiobook for free when you try audible for 30 days by visiting audible.com, slash Andy sly or text Andy sly - 500 500 so yeah you are like me and you enjoy listening to books more than reading them on audible it is the best that is why I love being able to entertain myself or learn something while doing one of my favorite things in this world and that is Drive my model 3 get your first audiobook for free by trying audible for free during 30 days visiting audible.com/smarter on minimal listings but with so much power and torque it's something that will always impress me with the instant torque and quickness it makes driving, especially things like merging and passing, effortless and fun, is Handles as well, if not better, than other sports cars in its price range due to better traction control by being in all and the low center of gravity and balanced weight distribution due to the battery being under the entire length about the car, but There is one thing that puts a lot of people off, and it's actually one of my favorite things about the Model 3: the clean, minimalist design of the entire car.

Driving a Model 3 makes you realize how useless and unnecessary the buttons and dials on most other cars are. It's an absolute life saver, literally yes there are times when it ghost brakes but use it as designed and you'll always have one hand on the wheel ready to take control and I love knowing that every time I use it it's getting better through the neural network simply removes the burden of having to endlessly look out the window at the same place and allows me to be more aware of my surroundings, which has honestly made me feel safer and when it comes down to it, the model 3 is simply smarter than any other car I've had the experience of driving or interacting with, it just automates basic things, allowing me to worry less.

My phone is my key, so since I have a smart lock at home I stopped carrying keys. In total all I carry is my phone and my wallet, my model 3 automatically unlocks when I get closer and locks when I walk away, it is always on and ready to drive and is completely silent when driving if it is raining, the wipers turn off They activate automatically if it recognizes a car. Go ahead, it automatically turns off my lights and then turns them back on after charging overnight while I sleep, it stops charging when it reaches the lemon I've set and I wake up to 80 percent charge every day or 100 percent charge percent if I'm about to go on a road trip I no longer stop at gas stations I can press a button tell it to play a song and it plays it I can tell it to drive somewhere and it gives me step-by-step directions in real time on a beautiful response From the 15 inch touch screen which is the best screen in any vehicle right now, in my opinion the Model 3 gets better over time through free software updates that are downloaded and installed automatically when I bought my Model 3 ago almost a year, had a max rated range of 310 miles on a full charge now after a free software update and even after any battery degradation from driving 26,000 miles my model 3 gets 320 miles of range on a full charge , it actually got better over time and Tesla is constantly releasing these software updates. with new features like sentry mode andnewly added mode and a 5% power increase, so no other car is doing this right now.

It's absolutely amazing, it's really comfortable even for a tall guy like me. The front seats are some of the most comfortable I've seen. I once sat in the slightly firmer back seats, not as comfortable, however Tesla needs to fix this with updated seats. I'm six foot four and can sit in the back quite comfortably without my head hitting the ceiling. Oh, on the roof it's all glass. and seriously it is one of the things that impresses drivers the most. I'm very glad that Tesla included that glass roof on all models, even the base model and the manual door handles are a little weird for new drivers, however as an owner, It's okay, I love having two trunks and of course the ability to control my car from my smartphone, like calling it or preheating it in the winter, really satisfies my inner geek, so after all, that was the Model 3, a $50,000 mistake, my biggest mistake was probably I didn't buy one for my wife before the Model Y was announced.

In short, the Model 3 is a beautiful car packed with the latest technology and is much better for the environment than any other new gas car . Yes, the Model 3 is still the best car I've ever driven and it ruined every other car for me, except maybe the upcoming Tesla Roadster. So what do you think? Do you have a model 3? Are you looking to get one? What is your favorite thing? Do you think it's worth it? Let me know, leave a comment below. Thanks so much for looking. My name is Andy. If you want to see more Tesla videos and tech-related videos in the future, be sure to subscribe.

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