2017 Tesla Model 3

2017 Model 3 Photos
You've read the review (or maybe you haven't), and you've learned how the Tesla Model 3 is a bit of an odd duck. As we spent a couple days with the EV, we came to learn a few of its quirks. Here are five nifty features that — in addition to the electric powertrain, unique styling and loads of tech — really make the car unique. Smartphone/key card unlocking The Model 3 knows you're coming. Its key is actually a card, and it uses short range radio-frequency identification (RFID) signals to communicate with the car. Using the key card, though, you can authenticate your smartphone, allowing it to communicate with the Model 3 via Bluetooth. Then you can control certain functions with your phone, including the door locks. The key card, when used instead of the phone, needs to be swiped over a sensor in the B-pillar, but you can leave your phone in your pocket, so long as you have the "Walk Up Unlock" and "Walk Away Lock" features enabled. Still, you should keep a card with you (in your wallet or purse) in case your phone dies. It seems like a gimmick, but there are countless times we've walked out the door into the snow, locking the door behind use, before realizing we've left the key fob inside. Our phone in our pocket or, more likely, in our hand. We're glued to that damn thing. If only we could've used that (or something small enough to keep in our wallet) as our car key. It makes getting into and driving away in the Model 3 a seamless, automatic act. This seems like the next logical evolutionary step to banishing bulky, inconvenient keys and fobs. Central touchscreen The 15-inch touchscreen on the dash is central command for basically every non-driving function in the vehicle. In it are a number of menus, controlling everything from audio to navigation to climate control to lights to locks to regenerative braking levels. You even use it to open the glovebox. This means that there aren't a lot of buttons elsewhere in the vehicle — or even an instrument cluster. That's not to say we don't have complaints about it. Read our review if you want to hear about those. HVAC system Sure, it's interesting that HVAC is included in the myriad functions controlled through the central touchscreen, but there are two other reasons the Model 3's setup in pretty neat. First is the way you operate it. On the screen, there are boxes for the driver and passenger. Each has a dot that you move around to aim where you want the air to flow. The dot in each box can be split in two, so you can aim the airflow in two different directions on each side of the vehicle. The second cool thing is that you don't even see the vents, which are incorporated into a single, larger vent hidden in the dash. Because you don't have to touch them to …
Full Review
You've read the review (or maybe you haven't), and you've learned how the Tesla Model 3 is a bit of an odd duck. As we spent a couple days with the EV, we came to learn a few of its quirks. Here are five nifty features that — in addition to the electric powertrain, unique styling and loads of tech — really make the car unique. Smartphone/key card unlocking The Model 3 knows you're coming. Its key is actually a card, and it uses short range radio-frequency identification (RFID) signals to communicate with the car. Using the key card, though, you can authenticate your smartphone, allowing it to communicate with the Model 3 via Bluetooth. Then you can control certain functions with your phone, including the door locks. The key card, when used instead of the phone, needs to be swiped over a sensor in the B-pillar, but you can leave your phone in your pocket, so long as you have the "Walk Up Unlock" and "Walk Away Lock" features enabled. Still, you should keep a card with you (in your wallet or purse) in case your phone dies. It seems like a gimmick, but there are countless times we've walked out the door into the snow, locking the door behind use, before realizing we've left the key fob inside. Our phone in our pocket or, more likely, in our hand. We're glued to that damn thing. If only we could've used that (or something small enough to keep in our wallet) as our car key. It makes getting into and driving away in the Model 3 a seamless, automatic act. This seems like the next logical evolutionary step to banishing bulky, inconvenient keys and fobs. Central touchscreen The 15-inch touchscreen on the dash is central command for basically every non-driving function in the vehicle. In it are a number of menus, controlling everything from audio to navigation to climate control to lights to locks to regenerative braking levels. You even use it to open the glovebox. This means that there aren't a lot of buttons elsewhere in the vehicle — or even an instrument cluster. That's not to say we don't have complaints about it. Read our review if you want to hear about those. HVAC system Sure, it's interesting that HVAC is included in the myriad functions controlled through the central touchscreen, but there are two other reasons the Model 3's setup in pretty neat. First is the way you operate it. On the screen, there are boxes for the driver and passenger. Each has a dot that you move around to aim where you want the air to flow. The dot in each box can be split in two, so you can aim the airflow in two different directions on each side of the vehicle. The second cool thing is that you don't even see the vents, which are incorporated into a single, larger vent hidden in the dash. Because you don't have to touch them to …
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Retail Price

$35,000 - $44,000 MSRP / Window Sticker Price
Engine
MPG
Seating 5 Passengers
Transmission 1-spd auto
Power 258 @ rpm
Drivetrain rear-wheel
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