So Elon Musk announced yesterday that Tesla’s finaly going to sell the 35k Model 3 they promised when the car was first announced. However, in order to achieve that price, they are going to close most of their B&M stores. Also, the entry-level model is only available in one color and has a slightly-less-impressive interior. But hey, 35k!
The real test I think will be if the company can produce enough cars with enough build quality to entice enough buyers to make the low-ball version profitable. Even then, though, it seems to me that one of the big things about commodity priced cars is commodity level service, which means you can get work done on it when you need it and where you need it. I can’t see how Tesla is going to deliver that.
And it makes little difference if the car is pretty much idiot proof, because any car dealer can tell you people > cars when it comes to idiocy.
Size wise is this closer to a Porsche 911? The Model S is too large IMO.
The Model 3 looks like it has good visibility too. A lot of cars have teeny-tiny windows these days.
It’s ever so slightly larger than a BMW 3 Series in all exterior dimensions, so quite compact.
Heh, the bloated G20 3-series is hardly “quite compact” by my standards, but I think you are correct when you look at American ideas of size. I wish the US got the same sort of selection of high-end small cars the rest of the world gets. Here, small = cheap in the eyes of American drivers, so the nicer the amenities the larger the car, usually.
Some of the photos from a frontal angle make the car look even more compact than it is, which I think would be even nicer. (Who needs rear seats?)
That 15" screen and center console, though! :drools:
I agree the new 3-series interior is a lot better than the old. I’m not over the moon about it (biased, though, as I like Audi’s style more, even if BMW seems to have cribbed more than a little from the Audi playbook). Still light years beyond anything inside a Tesla.
It’s 200mm longer than a new-Leaf, and 60mm wider. It’s not too bad! It’s the same width as the new Focus.
Well, we don’t even get the new Focus, as Ford isn’t selling anything but SUVs, trucks, and Mustangs here any more. Sad, because the Focus seems like a solid platform. In terms of size, I think maybe size creep is going global!
200mm is a lot though; when I got my latest car I had to carefully measure the garage length and part of my decision came down to how long the car was versus how long my garage space was…
Sedans in general are basically dead in the US, if you believe American manufacturers. VW, Nissan, Toyota, and Honda still make them, but they are definitely on the decline.
No joke. It seems the allure of sitting higher, being more insulated from our terrible roads, and enjoying an experience as far removed from actually operating a motor vehicle as possible has created a market for what we call SUVs, but which are rarely very sporty, often have iffy utility, but which are, in a technical sense, still vehicles.
The one niche where sedans still seem strong is the luxury segment, though even there SUVs reign supreme on the lot. But even rarer are coupes. When I was looking for my current vehicle, the selection of two-doors was, shall we say, lean, especially in AWD under $100k.
Seems like it. I see quite a few of these monstrosities on London streets these days. They look comically large by European standards. Also more and more pick-ups, which you never saw until very recently.
Land Rovers of various sorts are popular here among the well-heeled for their combination of 'Murican “SUV-ness” and perceived British upper-crust style. Admittedly, they are are rather nice looking for the class of vehicle, especially the ludicrous Evoque, which at one point came as a two-door SUV, a thing that is breathtaking in its signification of wretched excess.
As a tall person, I’d take a compact SUV (“crossover”) over a regular sedan any day. They’re roomy and comfortable.
I really like the looks of the new electric Hyundai Kona, even though I’ve been critical of SUV-alikes in the past. The reviews of it have been very praiseworthy. Makes me think about giving up my super cheap used Leaf and grabbing one.
Over here, the compact Suv’s just let you sit more like at a chair than a traditional car where your legs are more angled. They don’t necessarily offer more headroom!
SUVs/pickups have awful drivers. They either slow down for no reason, or race around while changing lanes. Or they can’t stay in their own lanes, and drift into others. They’re not just insulated from our roads, they’re insulated from society.
And in the days before SUVs, tall people had roomy and comfortable sedans. The format is not the issue. They can make sedans that fit anyone. That fact that they don’t, now, outside of luxury cars, is due to a host of things, including the fact that profit margins on SUVs are higher.
As a fellow tall person, I have substantially more legroom in my current sedan (Kia Optima) than any of the SUVs or crossovers I previously owned or test-drove.
I know a guy who is at least 6’3" who swears his Cooper Mini is the most comfortable fit he has ever had in a car.