Edmunds Buys, Tests and Ditches $35k Off-Menu Tesla Model 3
Yes, the more affordable Model 3 is real. Here’s how it differs from higher-priced versions.
Back in early 2019, Tesla debuted two new variants of its most affordable vehicle, the Model 3. Dubbed the Standard and Standard Plus, respectively, the pair were both intended to bring Model 3 pricing within reach of more customers by trading off some features for a lower list price of $35,000.
Yet when auto buying guide Edmunds’ Road Noise column listed the best electric vehicles for under $40k last September, the Model 3 didn’t make the cut. Edmunds’ editors said this was because the base price was actually closer to $40,000 before state-specific incentives and nebulous gas savings claims, and once destination fees were included. But on speaking with Tesla dealers, it turns out that they actually missed the ball.
Carlos Lago, Edmunds’ Manager of Feature Content, says that Tesla itself should bear some of the blame for the pricing confusion, given that the Model 3 Standard isn’t advertised by its maker. We’re inclined to give him that, as if you attempt to select the cheapest Model 3 available on the company’s site, you end up with a pricetag of US$39,990 plus destination fees and tax, putting it well above the $40k mark. And critically, availability of a more affordable model isn’t noted anywhere in the process. As a newcomer to the brand, you’d have literally no idea it existed.
But exist it does, and after receiving a deluge of complaints from Tesla fans, Edmunds’ editorial team decided to buy the mythical $35k Tesla Model 3 Standard for their long-term test fleet. And now, Lago has shared his findings on how it differs from other variants — as well as his thoughts on the order process — in a followup video which you can watch above. While it’s not a full review, per se, it still offers an interesting look at what now represents the most affordable Tesla money can buy.
Initially, the Model 3 Standard was a physically different car to the Standard Plus, but in the interests of reducing its own costs, Tesla quickly switched to instead make it a further software-limited variant of the Standard Plus, instead. And despite announcing a price increase for all other variants after rolling back plans to switch to an online-only sales model just a month after announcing them, Monroney pricing for the Model 3 Standard remains unchanged at $35k to this day.
So how does the Model 3 Standard differ from the Standard Plus? Per Tesla itself, range for the Model 3 Standard is software-limited by 10%, and the company also says that it has disabled its onboard music streaming service, navigation with live traffic visualization, and heated seats. In the same blog post, it also says that all Teslas now come with its Autopilot feature enabled. But as you’ll see in the video, it turns out that much of Tesla’s own information on the Model 3 Standard is simply incorrect.
Most notably, while the most recent discussion of the Model 3 Standard / Standard Plus on Tesla’s site says that all of its vehicles ship with Autopilot, the feature is absent from the car which Edmunds purchased earlier this year. In its place, says Lago, is a standard cruise control much like that you’d find in most other cars at this price point. You can also access the navigation with live traffic functionality that Tesla says the Model 3 Standard lacks, although it’s only free for 30 days, after which you must pay $10/month to continue the service.
And although Tesla’s blog post says otherwise, heated seats are included too, albeit for the driver and front-seat passenger only — but that’s also true of the Standard Plus variant available online. And Edmunds also found other changes that Tesla doesn’t disclose online, some of which apply to both vehicles. Perhaps the biggest of these changes is the absence of both a subwoofer and amplifier in the Model 3 Standard’s trunk. This change, which also applies to the Standard Plus, means that although rear speakers are installed, they’re completely non-functional.
In addition, the Standard version loses Tesla’s Immersive Sound feature, which replaced Dolby surround sound in the company’s vehicles from 2018. Both Standard and Plus variants also lack floor mats and have fake foglights up front. But at the same time, Edmunds found quite a few features in the Model 3 Standard that they weren’t expecting, like the dashcam and Sentry Mode features, as you’ll see in the video.
Their biggest concern, though, had little to do with the car itself, and more to do with the company’s ordering process and ethics. As you’ll learn in the piece, Tesla’s reps pushed hard for Edmunds to purchase the car as quickly as possible to ensure eligibility for a now-discontinued federal tax credit, then dragged their feet badly when it came to delivery. The result was that Edmunds lost out on the credit, and yet Lago tells us that the company not only refused to make up for this but failed even to apologize for the inconvenience.
Compared to Edmunds’ earlier effort, this time around it’s done a rather better job, although we did still spot one error. Lago tells us that range is sub-200 miles, since Tesla recommends not charging its vehicles beyond the 90% mark, but given that the vehicle is already being software-limited, it’s physically impossible to fully charge its batteries, and so it can safely be topped up to a 100% indication. (Tesla specs the Model 3 Standard for 220 miles, and the Standard Plus for 250.)
But with the exception of that mistake, it otherwise makes for quite an interesting and informative piece. As for Edmunds’ future plans, it has apparently reversed its decision to keep the 2020 Model 3 Standard in its long-term fleet, but says that the Tesla Model Y will be replacing it “very soon”.
Photos: Edmunds