[ynguldyn]

Here's an update based on 7 months and 8500 miles of driving (read the top post first and then this).

The exterior has grown someone on me but I still have problems with it. It basically depends on where you're standing. Front views are better than rear. The standard suspension is too tall (and damn you SCCA for making it illegal to drop the car in Street SOLO classes). The 10mm drop of the Performance model is how all Model 3s should be. I still hate it that the car is not a hatchback, especially after seeing the Model Y that has both the hatchback and glass roof - a much better single-piece glass roof without a cross-beam in the middle. Also, for some reason this body makes it very difficult to find aftermarket wheels that would look good on it. Thin-spoked wheels so popular these days make the car look like a plus-size model wearing stiletto heels.

One other issue with that shape is that the trunk blocks the rear view and it's difficult to judge the distance to the cars behind me because I only see the top half of anything closer than 100ft, and I'm used to be concerned about any car that follows me whose headlights I can't see. So I often find myself checking the side mirrors to get a better idea what's happening there.

On the other hand, my daughter has her license now and sometimes drives the Tesla to school. It draws more appreciative looks from other kids than almost anyone else's car, even though there are quite a few seniors that drive _way_ more expensive cars that are their own, not occasional parents' loaners.

A few weeks after I picked up the car, I grew tired of looking at the larger than normal gap between the doors on the left and took the car to a Tesla service center. They kept it for a week (it actually went to a Tesla-certified bodyshop, which is one of the few in Boston that has nothing but 5 star Yelp reviews), while I drove an X loaner. When my car came back, the driver's door was repositioned properly, and I could find no other build issues with the car.

I still like the headlights of this car a lot. They are very bright, and its automatic high beams work better than my old F31's so I use them more often because I'm less concerned about bothering other drivers.

My opinion of the interior comfort has mostly improved. On the top of the list is the ability to preheat the car through the app. When I get out of the house in -15C weather to take the kids to school, I only wear a light jacket because the car is already warm - while in the F31 I would be freezing for the first five minutes or more. And even if I just jump into the car without preheating it first, warm air comes out in about 30 seconds, and the seats are warm in about a minute. Overall, between the electric heater and the genius vent design, the climate control in Model 3 is nothing short of exemplary.

Then there's all the storage space that's closer to what you find in a large American SUV. In the trunk, I found the niche where cars used to have their spares to be perfect for grocery bags. And I'm no longer annoyed by the fake leather - it's actually a nice material in its own right, and I think they just shouldn't have called it "leather". Rear passengers have more space for themselves than in F31 - it's no longer difficult to sit behind me (as a reminder, I'm 6'6"). However, as I've become more comfortable with the dynamic limits of the car, I started missing the side bolsters of BMW sport seats more and more. And as I kept tweaking my seating position I realized that I would appreciate another inch or so of the steering wheel's telescoping range.

The lack of buttons is liberating. You will not understand this until you've spent at least a few days with the car, so if you haven't please do everyone a favor and don't waste time arguing this point.

Going back to cold weather, this is where the most serious problems exist. When it's wet outside and it's above freezing during the day and below freezing overnight, you're guaranteed to have problems opening and closing the doors: handles and windows freeze. Fortunately there's a way to move the handles by knocking on them in a certain way, but windows were initially a huge pain and them became a bit less of a pain but still really annoying after a software update added preventive lowering based on outside temperature. Still, looking at my wife's 135i that also has frameless doors and never had a problem in the cold in 9 years of its life, I strongly believe Tesla should reengineer the doors and/or the window mechanism and offer a free retrofit to all current owners.

I'm really happy with the entertainment options. Or to be more precise, I have my Tunein and I don't need anything else. I just put a bunch of podcasts into the favorites and now have plenty to listen to during my commutes. Not being dependent on the phone here is a huge plus. Though my daughter only listens to the music from her phone, and she's happy with how it works too. BTW, bluetooth connections are much more reliable than BMW's, and I think audio quality is also better than H/K - though the absence of speed dependent volume adjustment is annoying.

Navigation is great, and it's gotten better since I bought the car. I'm not aware of any other built-in navigation system that's more capable without getting help from a connected smartphone.

I'm not sure what I should say about Autopilot since it's been at the center of so much scrutiny. For me, it works fine. You just need to understand its limitations. I see it as a tool that allows me to take some attention away off the road, so I can focus on a phone call or tap around on the screen in search of some new podcast or just have an easier drive home after a difficult day. In other words, don't listen to the hype, don't demand too much, and you won't be disappointed.

And once again I'm leaving the best for last: driving experience. The car does it better than anything I've owned or drove in my life. Sure, I've been in faster and better handling cars, but they would be unacceptably difficult to use as daily drivers. Model 3 is a totally civilized and comfortable commuter, but it can also perform in any situation. Knowing that the car will do what I want and when I want it is liberating. I've always been an aggressive driver, and while previously I would get a bit of adrenaline flowing in some stickier situations, with this car I'm always relaxed because I can rely on its abilities.

To be honest, when I bought the Tesla, I still hadn't decided what to do with my old F31. I loved that wagon (I built it exactly the way I wanted - MG on Cognac, ZMP, ZTR, adaptive LEDs, etc. - went to Munich to pick it up, and then drove it for three years never ever seeing another F31 that would be as good looking as mine), but then there was a week when I only drove the Tesla, then I got back into the BMW, and after a couple of miles understood that I just wouldn't be happy driving it anymore. I was now literally distressed by how unpredictably it behaved. So off it went to cars.com and CraigsList. Model 3 basically spoiled most gas cars for me. The 135i with its manual transmission is the slowest gas car I can still enjoy.

Besides spirited driving, I also want to talk about the way it handles itself in snow. Of course I put winter tires on it, and any AWD car with the right tires will do well, but then the Tesla's traction control is next level. All my knowledge of how to keep a car going in the right direction on slippery roads seems redundant now. With the Tesla, you just make sure to keep the steering wheel turned where you want to go, and the computer does a very cool little dance with brakes and motors to make sure it happens. Also, the car is RWD biased so just before the computer starts doing its job you can kick the rear out just for fun if you want it. But if that gets too out of hand, the car cuts power to the rear, powers the front to pull you out, and taps the rear brakes on each side in turn to make sure the rear stays in the track.

Finally, let me be a greedy bastard for a second: if you found value in my reviews and if you or someone you know does decide to buy a Tesla, I would appreciate a PM so I could give you my referral code.