drove a Tesla Model 3 AWD Dual Motor

M

MrPlow

Joined
Nov 22, 2020
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Was driving by a dealership yesterday and saw a used shinny Model 3 Dual Motor Extended Range AWD just sitting there with doors open and salesman ready for me to just jump in for a test drive. Never driven an EV before or even ridden in one, but I have been in plenty of super fast sports cars with sub 4 second 0-60. I could tell the salesman was genuinely thrilled to be the "Tesla test driver guy" for the day. All they have to do to sell them is say stomp on the pedal, and then sale is completed 1 hour later. haha

I didn't really bother setting the seat properly at first and got out onto a open stretch of empty road. I floored the thing for the first time and the dang instant acceleration is really something a human has never experienced before in a car that isn't being rear ended at 90MPH by a dump truck. The dang thing ripped my hands away from the steering wheel as my body was trying to avoid being tossed into the back seat. The acceleration happened so fast my brain didn't even have time to process the visual data and I almost stuffed the thing into the ditch, but saved by the tesla lane departure system pushing me away from the white line. The instant savageness of these cars is just literally like seeing a hyper RC car blown up to human sizes.

I think this must be what it is like for people who try heroin for the first time. It's an experience your body never even knew it could experience and going back to living without it feels like pure dread.

I'm the opposite of a compulsive buyer, to a fault at times over analayzing stuff, but it took less than 3 hours for me to finance $15,000 for a 2019 electric rocket ship.

The real kicker is that I get free Level 2 charging at my work locations, so that $400 a month I spend on gas covers my monthly payments + insurance. After about 8-10 years the car will pay for itself in fuel savings. The used EV market is now at a tipping point where the prices make enough sense to actually have gas money pay for the car itself if you plan on driving the car into the ground to extract max equity value. I also eventually plan on going totally off-grid with a large solar array for the house. Something about making my own "fuel" at home just tingles my geek g-spot like no other. :eek:

Now, I'm sort of sad I won't be seeing how my 2002 Sienna will clean up on Valvoline Restore and Protect after 4 oil changes, it will be getting an oil change once ever 2 ears and put into dump hauler status.
 
terry274 said:
Yep, the test drive will get you everytime!
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It's funny how every initial complaint I had about the dash, the reliance on the single center screen, the low entry height, etc, all of that instantly became no problem once I felt that instant accelerator pedal drug boosted into my testosterone delivery system.
 
I bought a Tesla after a test drive too. Mad Max acceleration, good handling, good ride, decent fit and finish - and cheap compared to the competition.

I bought a new SR+ almost 5 years ago. I can only imagine the attraction of a dual motor version at less than half what I paid.

You should formally check the status of the battery. If it's good you're golden. If it's way down, that's a concern.
 
That acceleration is undoubtedly a huge selling point for most buyers that have never driven an electric vehicle. It is likely an unavoidable feature of making a motor that will keep the car powered at speed. More like a side effect to me, since that torque was also present in my Volt, but of course, not to that extreme.
I cannot help but wonder though, how all that unbridled torque could have been used for a much more beneficial purpose.
Couldn't it have been harnessed to increase range, or sensitivity to battery degradation, or some other more "sane" purpose?

I guess I just see it as a "wasteful" feature.
 
MrPlow said:
It's funny how every initial complaint I had about the dash, the reliance on the single center screen, the low entry height, etc, all of that instantly became no problem once I felt that instant accelerator pedal drug boosted into my testosterone delivery system.
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What happens when the thrill of quick acceleration is gone and you have to live with all those complaints every time you get in that car?
I doubt we will hear about buyers remorse and the wish to have your old car back.
 
Trav said:
What happens when the thrill of quick acceleration is gone and you have to live with all those complaints every time you get in that car?
I doubt we will hear about buyers remorse and the wish to have your old car back.
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I don't have buyer's remorse and I paid the new car price. My Tesla has been an excellent car. I really like the voice commands and use them all the time. It has a couple of quirks I could do without - the random swipe of the windshield and phantom braking (which has improved over time) being two that come to mind, but then I've never had a car without quirks. On the subject of quirks we could talk about Fords, Chevrolets, Dodges, Buicks, Volvos, Toyotas and BMWs.

My Tesla is not as good as an ICE on long trips but way better for local use and local trips (100 miles or less). I've taken it on 2 X 4,000 Km road trips which is about as far as most people drive these days.

My Tesla is only 4.75 years old of course. I can comment further in 5, 10 and 15 years - if I last that long.
 
So, mine is the performance model dual motor, just realizing. Over 100,000 miles, but fine for the price. It does 0-60 in 3 point something seconds.

The braking regen is really strong and feels like driving a v12 engine that can rev to 60,000 rpm on a single reduction gear. Has that great manual transmission feel without the noise.

I think some people might be wondering why I am so crazy hyped over it compared to the EV they have driven, but the instant pedal rocketing is apparently on another level with this model even over other fast models. 0-60 in 5 seconds is still **** fast, let alone like 3.5s.

The acceleration itself is not the whole selling point. It's like going from playing a shooter video game online at 500ms of ping compared to 10ms of ping. 10ms feels instant, no lagging, totally connected. The instant savage torque from the car adds a hyper resolution to the feel of being connected to the vehicle and a true body limb just added on. The driver's view also has that Ferrari type of open view sitting right over the road feel to it. Being able to see so far down due to the sloped and bowled hood, the perception of speed is increased for me many fold compared to the nearly equally as fast Audi S series I borrow from time to time with over 400HP but has a bulging hood that blocks the road view and makes it visually feel slower even though it hauls serious rear end.
 
Trav said:
What happens when the thrill of quick acceleration is gone and you have to live with all those complaints every time you get in that car?
I doubt we will hear about buyers remorse and the wish to have your old car back.
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That could be a problem, and probably is for some owners, but they are in the minority by a country mile. Don't take my word for it, that's the numbers. Of course you know how well these cars sell.

Tesla Model 3 and Model Y dominate customer satisfaction, ranking highest in the 2026 J.D. Power U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience Study, with the Model 3 (804/1000) and Model Y (797/1000) leading the industry. Owners highly value the driving performance, low operating costs, and charging network.

Beyond performance, both the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y are exceptional daily drivers, widely praised for low running costs, high efficiency, and advanced tech like Autopilot that reduces commuting stress. Show me another car that offers performance and easy usability, and then consider the price. There aren't any.
The Model 3 offers better handling and range, while the Model Y excels in cargo space and ride height. Both are ideal for home charging routines.

You may not care for Teslas, and that's fine. We are all welcome to our opinion and vote with our wallet. But the fact remains; Tesla owners love their cars. In Q1, the Model Y was the 5th best selling US vehicle, after the 3 pickups and the CR-V. There's a reason for it.

So yeah, there is more to these cars than acceleration. For new-to-Tesla drivers, the initial shock of Tesla's instant acceleration can somewhat normalize over time, but the thrill rarely disappears, often transforming into a deep appreciation for the car's effortless power and safety.
 
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Since I can't edit my original post. Mine is the high Performance upgrade of the dual motor, not the regular version. Got it cheaper due to being more scratched and dinged than some other used ones, and over 100,000 miles but with almost 20K and 1 year of powertrain warranty left. Since looks don't matter to me... bonus savings!

The other cool thing about getting an older used Tesla is that many of them can take plug in mods to increase the power by a significant amount. The dual motor cars with the 980 rear motor can be hacked to give the full 450+ or whatever HP is being held back on the normal long range version. It adds around 150HP to the base config dual motor.

Or you can pay Tesla to "hack" their own car for you can unlock 3.7s 0-60, which is still faster, but not quite the 3.2s of the Performance model.

I am going to have to calculate how much tire I am spending each time I slam the pedal, that's a legit cost increase concern of mine. It has no concern for tire health at the slightest. haha
 
MrPlow said:
I think this must be what it is like for people who try heroin for the first time.
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Comprendo completemente. I get that kind of frisson from shepharding a new variety of tomato plant to fruition.

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Etsy
 
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