More details on Tesla’s upcoming Model 3.
At the car’s reveal last Thursday, Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk provided a lot of information about the company’s latest car but also left plenty of questions unanswered. That changed when Musk took to Twitter last night for an impromptu Q&A and revealed some more about what’s in store for Tesla’s latest.
Superchargers
Customers around the globe are worried about the availability of Superchargers in their area. During his Q&A Musk confirmed new or extra superchargers in Mexico, Ireland and Italy adding that decision would be based on the amount of orders per region. Also the lack of service centers in Spain will be addressed this year.
Additionally all Tesla cars will soon be getting an over-the-air software update indicating the free/busy status of superchargers, allowing them to route to the next one when another one is busy.
Order priority
Worried, about your place in the queue? You’re not the only one. Tesla has indicated earlier that priority will be given to Tesla and SpaceX employees, as well as previous Roadster, Model X and Model S owners. After that the rollout will move from the West Coast over the East Coast to Europe and Asia Pacific regions.
But just being on the West Coast doesn’t guarantee you a place early in the queue. Only the first orders will be treated that way, with Musk citing proximity to the factory and smaller turn around times in case of early issues as the main reason.
RWD vs AWD
While the demo cars at Thursday’s event were all-wheel-drive (AWD) versions, the base model will be rear-wheel-drive (RWD), with Musk adding that an upgrade to an AWD version would cost less than $5,000 and that it would be much faster than what was demoed on Thursday
While Musk volunteered that the RWD would have great traction on ice thanks to the fast torque response of Tesla’s drive train, he added their AWD would perform way better than regular AWD vehicles because of the torque being shifted from front to rear motors every ~0.01 seconds.
The Front
If there’s any remark about the car’s design, it’s about the front, more specifically the lack of the front grille or the lower lip of the car, with this shot from The Matrix being the most frequently used by people to illustrate their gripe.
Some people referred to certain Photoshops of the car’s front and Musk was eager enough to see them, adding that some tweaking is underway and that even a .01mm difference could make a difference.
The Trunk
Plenty of people seem to be complaining that the trunk opening is too small. While some are left wondering why the car isn’t a hatchback/liftback instead of a sedan. The answer lies in the all glass rear window, which would cause the hatch to come up too high if it hinged in the middle of the roof, so a sedan was the only option. Musk however did confirm that they should be able to increase the opening width and height, adding that a bicycle should still fit without any issues.
The Interior
While most of the questions were directed toward the spartan interior and the landscape touchscreen (yes, both will stay that way in the final production version). Musk added that the design would make more sense after part 2 of the unveil. Others wanted to know wether there would be enough leg room for someone at 6'5" or if there would be a vegan interior option (yes, on both counts).
And if you’re thinking of taking the car out on a camping trip and gaze at the stars through the massive glass window, that won’t be a problem either with Musk sharing that the rear seats will fold down, which will work great with the optional tow hitch.
The real kicker seems to be in the steering wheel system. While plenty of people volunteered the idea of a heads up display (HUD) in the car, some took to the steering wheel design, even calling it hideous to which Musk replied:
Musk even elaborated, saying the final steering controls will feel more like a spaceship.
So that means we can have an educated guess on what the final steering system will look like.
Liked this? Why don’t you follow me on Twitter?
