The MotorTrend portal has published a test of the Tesla Model 3 Highland. The journalists claim that the manufacturer has listened carefully to the public and has corrected almost all the shortcomings of the old version. The batteries and motors were not touched because, implicitly, everything was fine there. Mechanically, the Tesla Model 3 Highland and the Tesla Model 3 before the facelift are almost the same car, there are not even castings in the new version. But the exterior design has been changed, the trim has been improved, the interior has been polished.
Tesla Model 3 Highland, reviewed by MotorTrend
Exterior
As declared by the manufacturer, the body of the Tesla Model 3 Higland is all new apart from the rear fenders and doors. The doors themselves close with a solid sound – no longer reminiscent of Toyota. Moving the lights to the tailgate was supposed to solve the problem of poor fit and uneven gaps. The redesigned bodywork and differently arranged air ducts have resulted in the Tesla Model 3 Highland’s drag coefficient / Cd dropping from 0.225 to 0.219.
The result is an approximately 10 per cent higher range of the car.
Tesla Model 3 from before the facelift (white, left) and Tesla Model 3 Highland (c) MotorTrend
Interior
The wood has disappeared from the cockpit, replaced by fabric. A strip of ambient lighting runs above the dash and wraps around the doors. According to the MotorTrend journalists, the two-tone white interior with black panels looks best. But even the earlier black has been broken up with a lighting strip. The lack of a drive selector lever forces the software to guess whether we plan to move forward or backward. The Tesla Model 3 Highland reportedly rarely manages this. Therefore, a person can select a direction on the edge of the screen closest to him or with buttons near the mirror.
Interestingly, reviewers approved of the touch-sensitive buttons. They made them think of high-end brands (Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin), so they forgave them. They only complained about the turn signals. The screen itself has a thinner frame, with controls for seat heating and ventilation at the bottom. The rear seat and backrest are now set at a slightly different angle, which should translate into greater passenger comfort. The rear air vents are controlled via a touchscreen, which, according to the manufacturer’s presentation, also has multimedia functions:
Driving experience
While the powertrain itself has not changed, the cabin has been decently soundproofed. The difference from the older version has been described as “night-and-day”. All windows are now soundproof. Better fit and a lower Cd result in lower wind noise on the bodywork. The front boot lid has also been dampened, and the suspension bushings and brakes have been changed to ensure that no noise reaches the interior. At the final stage, the quietness is taken care of by softer trim materials and thicker underfloors.
The new frequency-adaptive passive shock absorbers are still firm, but have significantly improved the ride quality. On bumps, the head no longer jumps as much; the rumble from the rear only comes when the rear dampers are compressed to the maximum. This applies mainly to the rear-wheel drive version. The steering works identically.
Tesla Model 3 Highland, disadvantages
The journalists at MotorTrend still don’t like the relocation of all the controls to the centre screen. They would not be offended by a small screen with additional controls or a projection display (i.e. HUD). They also didn’t like that the glass roof doesn’t allow for translucency control. The cabin elements got very hot in the sun. Finally, they think Tesla should rethink the removal of ‘redundant’ sensors, especially parking sensors.
Tesla Model 3 Highland in RWD and Long Range AWD (c) MotorTrend
Autopilot was found to work perfectly well as adaptive cruise control, Extended Autopilot elicited mixed feelings (although it had useful features), while FSD beta proved untrustworthy and led to several dangerous situations. Overall: the Tesla Model 3 Highland was considered a much better car than the variant it replaces.
Worth reading: 2024 Tesla Model 3 Highland First Drive: Making Real Improvements and watch:
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