The most anticipated vehicle of not just 2019, but possibly the last 10 years is in the EFTM Garage this week. The Tesla Model 3 Standard Range brings EV fans closer to the pioneers of this technology, at least price wise. Until now I’ve only driven this benchmark EV on a track. So over the next three days I’ll look at its real world performance. 

Engine 

The details are mysterious. But the pool of thought suggests an electric motor that produces 225kW of power sent to the rear-wheels. The battery is 55kWh in size. 

0 – 100km/h

5.6 seconds 

Fuel Economy 

0L/100km, Range 402km (WLTP)

Technology 

  • Autopilot
  • Eight surround cameras allow for 360-degree vision 
  • 12 ultrasonic sensors
  • Forward-facing radar 
  • 15-inch landscape tablet centre display

First Impressions

You can read and watch my first drive impressions here. But that was in the Performance variant, on a controlled road. This entry level model still has that Tesla feel. It’s sparse, futurist and quick, at all times. Having no instrument cluster you’d think was off-putting but it takes just minutes to get used to.

This is the best affordable EV on the market. There’s no doubt.

Any Negatives?

The ride is firm and as with all EV’s there’s a fair amount of road noise. I’ll be interested to see how the real world range aligns with my world. Sometimes I look at it and think, does it suffer from too much minimalism design wise?

I’ll have a full review next week!