Used Tesla Model 3 long-term test
The used Tesla Model 3 won lots of What Car? accolades when it was new, but what's it like as a secondhand vehicle? We're living with one to find out...
The car 2021 Tesla Model 3 Long Range All-wheel drive | Run by Claire Evans, consumer editor
Why it's here To see if you can enjoy all the pleasures of Model 3 ownership without having to stump up the cost of a new model
Needs to Eat up motorway miles with ease, have enough range for longer excursions and be a comfortable and economical mobile office when needed
Mileage on arrival 19,298 Mileage now 28,508 List price when new (2021) £50,890 Value on arrival £31,000 Test range 280 miles Official range 360 miles Private price now £22,207 Dealer price now £24,983 Running costs (excl. depreciation) Charging £778, replacement tyre £210
15 November 2024 – Innovation meets practicality
What does the Tesla Model 3 have in common with an aeroplane? It’s the result of the belief of someone with a seriously big vision. Like the Wright brothers, who made the world’s first airplane flight in 1903, and RJ Mitchell who created the Spitfire, my car is part of the end product of Elon Musk’s 2003 ambition to create affordable, mass market electric vehicles (EVs).
When you consider that the Tesla brand was launched seven years before the Nissan Leaf first went on sale, it’s easy to see just how way out there his aims were. Yet, 21 years later I was able to buy a secondhand Model 3 from a showroom under an approved used scheme for £31,000. That’s about the same price as a new Volkswagen ID 3 family hatchback, and at least £14,000 less than a BMW i4 electric executive saloon.
There’s a lot of customer back-up with my car, too, unlike an EV bought from a used car supermarket. It’s an approved used Tesla, so I can call on the expertise of the company’s technicians if I have any issues or questions about the car. I can also make use of the mobile servicing innovation, which allows me to book repairs via the Tesla app at a location of my choosing, keeping disruption to a minimum.
Like the brand, the Tesla Model 3 has some unusual features, too. I can set the parking sensors to show me the exact distance from any obstacle in centimetres, so I can reverse precisely into a space. And, while the ‘summon’ feature, which lets me stand beside the car and drive it in and out of a parking space using the app may sound like a gimmick, it’s actually really useful in car parks with tight spaces to avoid car park paintwork dings.
Here I should also add that some of the innovations on my and other Teslas aren’t always very practical. The most obviously unhelpful features are the glovebox opening button and the headlight settings, which can only be accessed via the touchscreen menu.
There are some other shortcomings, too. My car doesn’t have Apple CarPlay, so connectivity with my iPhone isn’t as good as it could be, and the automatic function on the windscreen wipers struggles to react to British drizzle or turn itself off soon enough after the rain has stopped. Neither of these are big issues that have marred my time with the Model 3, though.
Niggles aside, my car has been a reliable, consistent driving companion. The only problem I’ve had in six months and 8000 miles is a slow puncture, which can’t be blamed on the car. This echoes the response we got from Tesla owners in the latest What Car? Reliability Survey, who told us that any faults on their cars were mostly fixed for free in less than a week.
As a Long Range example, my Tesla Model 3 goes a long way between charges. While I’ve not managed to get the official 360 miles out of the car, it’s consistently achieved more than 280 miles in warm and colder weather, and the range doesn’t dip significantly at motorway speeds like some other EVs I’ve driven, so I've had no range anxiety.
It’s also helpful that if I stop to charge up part-way through a journey that’s programmed into the sat-nav, while I’m charging it the car constantly updates the amount of charge I’ll have left at the end of the trip. These aspects are important because they’ve allowed me to plan longer drives, including the location and duration of any necessary top-up stops, with accuracy.
The other big plus of Tesla ownership is the public charging network. While some brands have partnered with EV charging network providers, Tesla is the only car maker to invest in the Tesla Supercharger network in the UK and the differences in the charging experience can be massive.
Not only is the 140-plus site, 1600-plus charger network uber-reliable, it’s also one of the most affordable ultra-rapid networks, with daytime off-peak prices as low as 47p per kWh.
While some charging locations are at motorway service areas, others are in scenic and useful spots. I've enjoyed exploring various charging sites near to home and further afield. My favourite charging station is in the Denbies Vineyard estate, in Surrey, which has some lovely countryside walks and a hotel with spa and yoga classes.
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