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So I drove the Model 3 this Sunday. It was a RWD Model 3 with LR battery and premium interior. I also own a ‘16 M3.
Interior
Interior is spartan, not a fan of the swath of black plastic in the center console. Finger print city. Seats are a bit plush and narrow for me so you sit on them, not in them. View from the driver seat is better than the F series. Minimal bulk, nose drops away, glass roof adds a lot of light. Fit and finish were on par with BMW, but plastics were more base model BMW than M3.
Exterior
I cant decide. Front looks bad IMO, sides are good, rear is OK. Overall nothing special.
Handling
Probably more on par with a base 3 Series. Very little lean but tires lag behind in response. Better tires would fix this at the expense of tire noise I guess. Braking is a moot point if using full regen. It brakes with the best, feel is a bit wooden. Steering is artificially heavy with no feel IMO.
Performance
This is where it shines. RWD Tesla seems faster off the line than a 335i. More importantly, it’s effortless. Feels slow but its faster. throttle in std mode is front loaded. Going from 75% to 100% throttle nets nothing. You might think that the throttle ends at 75%. Quick to 80 mph then its slower progress. Exactly the opposite of my M3 which pulls hard all the way.
Personally, I would have to say the Performance version would have the edge to 75 mph or so, but above that, probably not. With a tune on an M it would be nullified IMO. Handling is nowhere near an M. Interior is a big step down. Autopilot is nice but not super important to me. I think I want to hold out till the Porsche EV comes out. That should improve all the negatives above. I know cost will be higher, but such is life.
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