Kristen and Joe drive the NEW Tesla Model 3 Highland
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MotorTranscript
00:00 Welcome to Motor Trend and allow us to introduce you to the brand new Tesla Model 3 Highland.
00:08 I am behind the wheel of the new Tesla Model 3 Highland.
00:13 Not one but two brand new, updated and refreshed Model 3s.
00:18 With these cars we're going to give you everything that you ever wanted to know about them.
00:23 We are the first publication in North America to see and get to touch, feel, drive these vehicles.
00:30 We're going to talk about the design, we're going to talk about what's new, we're going to compare them, we're going to drive them, we're going to talk about performance figures and range tests.
00:38 We're going to compare the new Model 3 to the old one.
00:41 And finally we're going to give you the Motor Trend opinion.
00:44 Is this a market improvement over the old Model 3 and should you buy one?
00:51 The day began with the cars being dropped off by some Tesla employees who showed us around and answered our questions.
00:57 We were given two cars, a rear wheel drive standard range and a dual motor all wheel drive long range model.
01:03 Each sporting one of the two new colours and wheel types. More on that later.
01:08 We also hired an old Model 3 so that we could compare it with the new ones.
01:13 First thing we did was hand the cars over to our test team so they could perform our industry leading independent dynamic tests.
01:19 0-60, 60-0, curb weight, figure 8, we did it all folks and we'll get you up to speed on those results later.
01:26 But first, let's take a closer look at everything that's new and notable on the Model 3 Highland.
01:31 So come on Kristin, the new Model 3 Highland, what do you think about the design?
01:43 Well, there is so much to talk about. First of all, I think it is an improvement.
01:46 Remember the old Model 3, it tried to keep Model S proportions but shrunk down to Model 3 size.
01:53 Didn't really work, it was kind of bulbous, frog like, a little swampy.
01:56 But now it's all been sleeked out, looks good, skinny headlights, no fog lights, skinny grille down here.
02:03 I think it just looks a lot cleaner.
02:05 Yeah, they've taken a lot of the fussiness out of the front end, right?
02:08 They've redefined the shape slightly by making the DRLs more prominent within the headlights.
02:12 Like you said, down here they've gotten rid of the fog light but they've also gotten rid of the side cooling pods.
02:17 So this used to be kind of weirdly split into three and now it's just one cohesive piece.
02:21 So it's very nice at the front end, it looks more purposeful.
02:25 It does. And if you move up the hood, this edge has been kicked up just slightly so the air,
02:30 instead of kind of smacking into the windshield, flows over it more easily.
02:34 And in fact, this is the most aerodynamic Tesla you can currently buy.
02:37 That's how much they cleaned it up. So the old Model 3 had a CD of 0.225, this one has a CD of 0.219.
02:45 And I believe that's where the additional range has come from, right?
02:48 Yes, because all the drive components, everything, all that stuff has stayed the same.
02:53 And science says if you keep all that stuff the same but you make it more aerodynamic, then you get more range.
02:58 Lots of small incremental improvements have added up to quite a significant change in that department.
03:02 That's interesting.
03:03 So moving along the side, we have two new wheel designs, which you can see here.
03:08 But to be honest, the side is not that different. It's still very much a Model 3 shape from profile.
03:15 There are two new colours though. This one is called Ultra Red and that one is…
03:19 Stealth Grey.
03:20 Stealth Grey.
03:21 Which I like.
03:22 Whilst it's true that the only panels which have been carried over from the old Model 3 to this new one are the doors and the rear quarter,
03:29 it's still easy to look at this update as purely aesthetic, when in reality, according to Tesla at least,
03:35 they have gone far deeper than the body panels.
03:38 And we also found out, did we not, from the Tesla engineers that dropped the car off,
03:43 that it's not just the fascias and the panels that have been redesigned, it's what lies beneath them.
03:48 It's everything that they affixed to, all of the fixing points, all of the mounting points,
03:52 everything has been subtly adjusted based on customer feedback and all those millions and millions of miles
03:57 that people have put on Model 3s since 2017.
04:00 Back to the Highland's new wheels for a sec.
04:03 Our rear-wheel-drive car is sporting the new 18s with the redesigned aero cover.
04:07 And the all-wheel-drive car is running on the new 19s, which also feature these small black aero covers between each spoke.
04:14 Moving to the back, there is so much to talk about, so much to look at.
04:19 That's right.
04:20 Now, if you just look at it really fast, you're like, oh, OK, the taillights, same general shape.
04:24 But if you notice, the trunk no longer cuts them in half.
04:27 It is a single-piece taillight. So please, please be my guest.
04:30 Look at that, the entire taillight.
04:33 Isn't that nice?
04:34 That is really nice. Nice touch.
04:35 I never liked how the old one cut the taillight in half.
04:38 Once you saw it, you couldn't unsee it.
04:39 It was kind of annoying. Kind of messy.
04:41 While the exterior dimensions of the car haven't changed, the trunk has grown in size ever so slightly,
04:47 with some additional cubby storage on either side.
04:50 Also, the lower rear fender has received the same treatment as the front,
04:55 with a simplified design that includes the lower black plastic section enveloping the rear reflectors,
05:00 giving us something of a diffuser-like design.
05:03 Again, what we're seeing, the sort of mantra here that the designers and the engineers have had is lots of small changes,
05:10 adding up to a big overall change, not only to the way this thing looks,
05:15 because it is kind of, the more I look at it, the more I go, yep, there's, you know, it's an attractive car,
05:20 whereas I don't know as I think that the Model 3 of previous generation was that attractive.
05:24 I don't think it was that attractive.
05:26 Finally, what this thing rides on.
05:28 And that is a new tyre, the e-Primacy T2, co-developed between Tesla and Michelin specifically for Model 3,
05:36 with a focus on reducing road noise and increasing range.
05:41 In addition to that, the rotors and wheel couplings have also been redesigned, as has the suspension geometry.
05:47 In fact, the suspension has had a significant overhaul,
05:50 from new bushings and dampers with frequency-dependent valves which aim to smooth out road surface impurities,
05:56 to added bonding points between suspension and chassis, helping to disperse vibration more evenly.
06:02 What we're looking at with the Highland is a fully revised package,
06:05 from the tyres interfacing with the road, right up to the seat you sit on and the wheel you grab.
06:10 Speaking of which…
06:12 Shall we jump inside and see what the interior of the Model 3 Highland is?
06:15 Yes, yes, yes. Some controversial stuff in there.
06:18 That's right.
06:19 Here we are then.
06:21 Inside of the Model 3 Highland.
06:23 Yes.
06:24 I like the layout.
06:25 Yes.
06:26 It has low belt lines, low cowl.
06:28 You can see out of the front of this car.
06:30 That's right.
06:31 That's really nice.
06:32 I like this continual line that starts actually all the way back at the rear doors and comes all the way around the front.
06:38 It matches the eye. It's metal accents or metal look accents with a nice ambient light.
06:43 Yes, you can dress it up with ambient light. That's a new feature.
06:46 The centre console has been redone, so it has slide-out cubbies.
06:51 Very nice.
06:52 That's good.
06:53 More metal accenting, right? Metal effect, metal look materials.
06:56 In general, just more metal. Less wood.
06:58 That's right. And I think a lot of textiles.
07:00 Yes. Tesla has said it's trying to move away from wood, perhaps to differentiate itself from some Scandinavian…
07:07 Correct.
07:08 …competitors.
07:09 Yes.
07:10 So, yes, more textiles, less woods, more vinyl.
07:12 They've done what they set out to achieve because it feels like a Tesla in here.
07:16 It does. I mean, you still have this big floating screen.
07:19 Tesla says the bezel is skinnier, it's brighter, it's a little more responsive.
07:22 So, that'll be good, but you still have to do everything through the screen.
07:25 That's right.
07:26 Big, fussy menu items, which is kind of sketchy to use when you're travelling at speed.
07:30 But people seem to be fine with it. This thing sells.
07:32 That's right.
07:33 The good news is, if you've driven a Tesla before, what we're happy to report is there are no big changes.
07:38 No big changes, but as with the exterior, the interior of the Model 3 Highland is the story of many small changes, which all add up.
07:47 Overall, the material quality has come on leaps and bounds, as has the fit and finish.
07:52 There's a decidedly more premium feel to the Model 3 Highland.
07:57 As one Tesla rep put it to us, the interior should feel familiar, yet refined.
08:02 The seats are super plush and comfortable, and now, as well as being perforated, they're actually ventilated.
08:09 Functional. Yes, before it was just for show, but now there is seat cooling. That's nice.
08:15 Yes. Now, that's the thing. Remember a few moments ago when I said that if you've driven a Tesla before and you have an idea of where things are, then you won't be surprised?
08:23 There's a big surprise, and it is right here.
08:25 So, this situation here, there's no stalks anywhere.
08:31 So, you ask, "What do I do to change lanes? Where are my indicators?"
08:35 Well, they're on the wheels, just like a Ferrari or a Lamborghini, so that's not too radical.
08:39 You have your windshield wiper here, you have your lights, your cruise control, everything is here.
08:44 And those are haptic, right? Yes.
08:45 Those are not conventional buttons, but they feel like a button when you press them.
08:49 They feel like a button. The steering wheel doesn't vibrate. It's just like a, "You've hit this button."
08:53 So, actually, don't mind it in practice.
08:55 And the horn is in the center of the…
08:57 Yes. There you go. That wasn't there before.
08:59 The horn is where the horn should be. We like this. The New Yorker in me is happy about this.
09:02 So, we've covered off… Let me think about this.
09:04 Right-hand stalk indication, things like the windshield wipers,
09:08 those things have all been moved inboard to the steering wheel, where, pray tell, is the gear selector.
09:14 Oh, here, let me show you.
09:16 What you would do is you would get on the brake, and then you would swipe to put it into drive.
09:26 And that's how you do it. You use the screen to put the car into drive.
09:29 Great. It's like I'm playing Angry Birds.
09:31 Yes. Yeah, except you're operating a 4,000-pound vehicle.
09:34 Exactly. And then what happens if that fails?
09:36 And we're not suggesting that it ever will, but what if this screen crashes?
09:40 Then how do I maneuver the car?
09:42 So, there's an auxiliary control up here, hidden in this panel.
09:46 There's PRND up here. If this, for some reason, is not working,
09:51 this will light up so you can still put the car into drive, reverse, whatever.
09:56 In the previous gen, Model 3, they only used acoustic glass in the front.
10:00 That's right.
10:01 So, windshield, front windows. But now, the use of acoustic glass has expanded to the rear glass.
10:06 And that was to address the concerns and the feedback from Model 3 drivers,
10:11 and I think passengers, who said it was a little loud, a little tinny.
10:16 Yeah. So, we're going to test that out, too.
10:18 Joe. Yes.
10:19 How tall are you?
10:20 On a really, really, really good day, where I'm wearing two-inch heels, six foot.
10:24 And I'm like 5'11".
10:25 Well, I ask because I want to know how legroom is for you.
10:30 Legroom, honestly, seems pretty good. How's my headroom?
10:33 Oh, yeah. Okay.
10:36 Yeah, okay. But I feel like one of the things that people also had feedback about
10:41 was the fact that the seats were a little low and there wasn't as much thigh support.
10:45 It doesn't look like there's a marked improvement to that.
10:49 I don't think there's been a tremendous change from old generation to this, in terms of that.
10:54 I mean, look, it's one of those things, right?
10:56 We've got a flat floor car and we've got seats that have to appeal to everybody
11:00 and work for everybody to one degree or another.
11:02 And we are sitting on top of the batteries.
11:04 Correct. For longer-legged individuals, yeah, there's a little bit of room here.
11:08 But it's not the worst thing in the world, especially when, as we've said, there's good legroom.
11:11 I can, you know, I'm pretty comfy.
11:13 And speaking of comfy, these seats, this rear bench is definitely an area where they've made some improvements.
11:20 It's a lot comfier back here. There's more bolstering, more padding.
11:23 I feel more supported, but similarly, it's not tough. It's not a rigid support.
11:29 It's a nice, soft, you know, I'm kind of reclining in.
11:32 I'm feeling like I could do a nice long drive here.
11:34 So the next thing we want is the screen. That's another big change.
11:38 This is the big change, isn't it, really?
11:40 Yes, this is the thing.
11:41 On the previous generation, all we had was air conditioning vents that were controlled from the front screen.
11:47 Yeah, you could toggle them if you wanted to.
11:48 Sure, but otherwise, you know, you were a passenger.
11:50 Whereas now, I can take full control of my own comfort.
11:54 This is its own fully independent system.
11:58 But that's not the only thing the screen does. There's also an entertainment option.
12:01 We've got all of our musical options here, as well as, and this is the big one, I think, for the kids and for the passengers, for the Uber rides and stuff.
12:10 We've got all of our entertainment things here, and it's completely independent of the big screen.
12:14 So you could theoretically be watching something up there, and I could be watching something on a different streaming platform with different audio back here.
12:22 I can have Bluetooth on, you can have Bluetooth on.
12:24 We can be completely in our own worlds in the same car, which I think is a cool touch.
12:28 Inside and out, the design of the new Model 3 Highland seems improved.
12:32 And so while there isn't much in the way of anything new or groundbreaking today, that's because it was all pretty innovative in the first place.
12:39 What Tesla needed to focus on were the small but significant elements of quality control and refinement.
12:45 It still remains to be seen if these interiors will creak and rattle after 150,000 miles, but on the surface at least, it seems as though Tesla's really tightened everything up with this refresh.
12:55 So far, we've been impressed by the new Model 3 Highland's design.
12:59 But in order to truly see the difference between this new model and the previous one, it was time to get the two side by side and see how all of those little changes have come together to create one almighty difference.
13:11 You brought a present!
13:14 Now we're cooking with gas, we can take a look at the Model 3 Highland next to the previous generation.
13:22 Wow! When you put them side by side, the changes are...
13:25 Unbelievable!
13:26 Monumental!
13:27 It's a starker contrast as I could imagine.
13:30 I cannot believe how bulbous and kind of busy this front end is.
13:35 Frog-like!
13:36 Yeah, I mean we've probably used those words before to describe the Model 3.
13:41 But we're repeating for emphasis now because just look!
13:44 Absolutely! By comparison, this... I don't know, shades of lotus about this front end perhaps?
13:50 Yeah, yeah.
13:51 You said earlier Tesla Roadster the original, which again...
13:54 I'm sort of feeling Evora now a little, which is the highest praise I can bestow on anything.
13:59 Yeah, this is pretty remarkable. It's a very, very interesting comparison to make for two cars which are, I think most people are going to think are very, very similar.
14:08 But really when you dive into it, and especially when you get them next to one another...
14:12 The changes are subtle but significant, I think.
14:15 You know, you look at the rear, I think it looks particularly fresh from the rear.
14:20 And then you go inside, you look at the inside of the old Model 3.
14:23 I didn't think it needed an update, and then you look at the new one and you're like, "Oh, that's actually good. That's good."
14:28 We were lamenting the fact that there's no wood in this Highland interior, and then I got into this and I went, "Oh, look at that wood. It looks so old and beaten and tight."
14:37 Yeah, I actually didn't mind that there was no wood in here.
14:40 The seats are remarkably less comfortable. They hug you in less. You feel like you're on them rather than in them.
14:47 I won't say that I didn't miss the swiping for the gear.
14:54 Yeah, I like that it had a column shifter. That was so nice.
14:57 If Tesla's told us one thing, it's that with time, people adapt and adopt new technologies.
15:01 I think that in a few years' time, we might look back and go, "Oh, yeah."
15:05 I mean, I still miss typing on T9 keyboards.
15:08 Okay, well, that's a new thing.
15:09 I'm a boomer, so that's me.
15:11 Are you a boomer?
15:12 Inside I am.
15:13 Okay, an interior...
15:15 If you're someone who thinks Tesla's cars all sort of look alike, it's because that was very much done on purpose.
15:21 Once a newcomer, Tesla needed to visually set itself apart in a world of established brands and corporate faces.
15:28 The very first Model S debuted in 2012 with a rather anonymous look.
15:32 It wasn't until a later refresh that it wears the design that's now familiar to the rest of the Tesla lineup.
15:38 And so while the Model 3 Highland is far from a page one rewrite, this refresh has come a long way towards subtly redefining what Tesla car design will look like in 2024 and beyond.
15:49 And whilst you may think that this refresh has been done purely for aesthetics, in reality, these updates were sorely needed in order to facilitate a number of crucial re-engineering projects on Model 3.
16:00 The old car's ride wasn't great.
16:03 Sometimes choppy and other times flat and lifeless.
16:06 It felt unsettled over bumps and transferred way too much of that energy up into the car's cabin where the interior squeaked and rattled,
16:14 and the noise from the wind and road surface echoed around beneath the glass roof.
16:19 So, how does the new one compare?
16:22 We've got two Tesla Model 3 Highlands, so it's time to find out how they are to drive.
16:27 The Model 3 Highland does not have any powertrain updates, meaning its battery and motors remain untouched from the old Model 3.
16:34 Guess everyone was satisfied with them enough that Tesla left them alone.
16:38 But, because of the subtle design changes that have resulted in a reduction in drag, and also because of the new tires with lower rolling resistance,
16:46 Tesla now claims the Model 3 Highland's range has actually increased.
16:50 How does the new Model 3 rear-wheel-drive standard range handle?
16:54 Because that is where Tesla have spent the majority of the time in terms of refreshing this car mechanically.
17:02 That one line that Tesla told us about how they really wanted to keep what people liked about the car
17:08 and only improve the things that people didn't like as much about the car, that keeps running through my head because I think it's so true.
17:14 People have always liked the way the Model 3 drives, and here, I have to agree.
17:19 You know, you've got that instant torque electric car, duh, that's going to be the case, but the steering, quick, flat throughout,
17:27 there's not any sort of weird dead space. It's very intuitive steering, it's confidence-inspiring, and the regenerative brakes are very smooth.
17:38 All of that revised work that they did to the front end, to the suspension, the revised dampers, the bushings,
17:49 all of the extra bonding points between the suspension and the chassis, those are all working in tandem,
17:54 along with the wheels, the revised brake rotors, to provide a far, far more cohesive driving experience.
18:02 And that's not to say that the previous Model 3 wasn't a great driving car. It was a very fun driving car.
18:08 It handled remarkably well, it did track a little bit, I found, especially when you were pushing it through a corner.
18:15 And I'm happy to report, as I push it through this corner now, yes, a little bit of understeer, but it's not tracking.
18:23 They've done a lot of really good work to try and flatten this car out, keep it just as dynamic as it was before,
18:30 but add a sense of refinement, and that, I think, is the other big keyword when we're talking about Model 3, it's refinement.
18:37 And that is shown at every level and in every department. The exterior is refined.
18:44 You put it next to an old one, and all of a sudden, you can see clearly how all of the little incremental differences,
18:51 not all of which have been made purely for aesthetic reasons, let's not forget.
18:54 A lot of them have been to do with range, but how they've all come together to create a very, very cohesive design.
19:01 I would almost say that the Model 3 never had a cohesive design.
19:06 It didn't have its own design language because it always felt like a slightly shrunk and warped Model S.
19:13 Now, though, I think the Model 3 stands alone, not only with its own unique design,
19:20 its own unique perspective on Tesla's design, DNA, and language, it's also a very refined and grown-up-looking Tesla.
19:30 Not to say that it's less playful, but it just looks a bit more purposeful on the roads.
19:36 For a lot of people driving an electric car, the Tesla, it's the first time they will have experienced one-pedal driving.
19:43 It's real nice here, and the chassis feels good. It feels pretty balanced in these corners.
19:50 You feel like you can drive this car fast.
19:52 You know, there's that nice, low center of gravity that kind of keeps you planted through the corner,
19:56 makes you feel good about doing these things.
19:59 The last Model 3 was very obviously steel-sprung.
20:03 This one still is, but it's less in-your-face about it.
20:07 It rides way better now. It doesn't bump as much over uneven pavement.
20:13 Yeah, this thing holds corners nice.
20:17 It's good.
20:19 Man, you cannot underestimate the power of low center of gravity.
20:27 This also has some of the nicer steering out of all the electric cars I've driven.
20:33 Usually, steering feels kind of dead or numb off-center.
20:37 Here, it feels very linear, so the steering is calibrated well.
20:42 So much of what Tesla has done to this new Model 3 has not only been about the driver, but it's been about the passenger.
20:49 It's improved vastly.
20:51 This acoustic glass, they've done great work to try and make this a quieter, more comfortable, more relaxing place to be.
20:58 Because of the way that hood is newly tapered and it kind of shoots the wind over the windshield, it's not as loud in here.
21:04 So whatever they did worked.
21:06 It feels like not a new car. It feels like an improved car.
21:12 And I think that's exactly what they were going towards, because the Model 3, objectively, pretty good car on its own.
21:18 There were a few points that needed some refinements, a little sanding here and there, you know.
21:23 But that's exactly what they did.
21:25 They left the core thing alone and they made some of the pain points better.
21:29 So, color me impressed.
21:31 Speaking of improvements, earlier we told you that the Motor Trend testing team had gotten their hands on the new Model 3 Highlands to put them through their paces.
21:39 Well, the results are in, and it makes for fascinating reading.
21:43 The AWD dual motor Highland did a 0-60 in 4 seconds, and the RWD single motor did it in 5.6.
21:52 In braking from 60 mph to a dead stop, the AWD car took 114 feet, and the RWD took 115.
22:01 But range, that's the crucial one.
22:04 We subjected both cars to the Motor Trend Real World Range Test, driving them at 95% of their batteries charged and at a constant 70 mph.
22:13 The results? The standard range Model 3 put down 211 miles.
22:18 The long range returned 250.
22:20 And just for fun, we tested the old Model 3 long range, and it did 258 miles.
22:25 However, we'll also note the old car was using smaller wheels than the new car.
22:30 So, it was a bit like comparing Gala apples to Honeycrisp apples.
22:34 There is a very noticeable improvement in NVH.
22:40 Now, I really want to test just how much better the new Model 3 Highland is than the previous one.
22:48 And for that, I'm going to need Kristen.
22:50 So, let's pull over, let's find Kristen, and let's conduct ourselves a little experiment.
22:55 NVH stands for noise, vibration, and harshness.
22:59 It's an industry term used to talk about how loud or quiet, rough or refined, the car's ride is from the inside.
23:05 This was one of the main points of customer feedback on the old Model 3 that Tesla was keen to improve on the Highland.
23:12 So, the test that we have set up today is a varied surfaces test, and we're going to go at it on 40 mph first pass, just to evaluate comfort and everything like that.
23:23 We're going to do it a second time with a dB meter, just to see how much noise things are making.
23:29 And then we're going to hop out of this old Model 3 and into the new one and compare them back to back.
23:34 Science.
23:35 So, with that in mind, let's establish our baseline.
23:38 This is the old Tesla Model 3.
23:40 Let's get up to 40 mph on this special surface here and see what our decibel readings are.
23:46 Here come some bumps.
23:53 Oh, my goodness.
23:56 How are you feeling back there?
23:57 It's noticeable, right?
23:59 Yes. As a driver, even though I'm braced more because I have the steering wheel in my hand,
24:04 I'm still caught unawares by some of the steering and suspension fluctuations down to these bumps.
24:10 Railroad crossing.
24:11 That was a railroad crossing, yes.
24:12 And we have a highway metal sheet.
24:15 And this is a big one. Brace yourself.
24:17 No.
24:19 [Screams]
24:20 [Laughter]
24:22 That was 40 mph.
24:23 No, I caught air. Okay.
24:25 That last one was big.
24:28 And on that point, it's worth mentioning that this surface we're on is extreme.
24:32 It's a collection of all of the road imperfections you come across on a daily basis,
24:36 from small cracks and expansion joints right up to railway crossings and even storm drains.
24:41 And we just hit one at 40 mph.
24:44 All in the name of science.
24:47 Next, we flipped around and ran the course again with the decibel meter app open so it could give us a reading.
24:53 The average is 77 and 100.
24:55 77 and 100.
24:56 We'll note that this is not, you know, the scientific standard.
25:01 However, we will be holding this constant between this car and the other car,
25:06 so we'll be able to see some differences from theirs.
25:08 Copy that. So, with that in mind, let's jump out of this car.
25:10 Let's get the new Model 3 Highland.
25:12 Let's keep the vehicle models the same.
25:14 We'll get in the all-wheel drive one and we'll see how these two compare.
25:17 So, here we are. Let's get up to speed. 40 mph.
25:21 Let's see how it is.
25:22 Okay, wow.
25:23 Acceleration.
25:24 Wow.
25:27 Wow.
25:28 It's a different car.
25:30 It's different.
25:31 That's so amazing.
25:32 Wow.
25:33 That was still kind of rough.
25:36 Sure, but this course is meant to really test suspension almost to its limits.
25:40 So, audibly…
25:41 There's more cohesion, I feel, between front and rear.
25:45 The steering wheel is giving me far more feedback.
25:49 A little chattery.
25:50 It was.
25:51 A little chitter-chatter.
25:52 Yeah, that's right.
25:53 When you get to back-to-back cars like this, it makes all the difference.
25:56 All right, let's see.
25:57 Here's the big one.
25:58 Yeah, it still bounced.
26:00 That's a big one.
26:01 Did we bottom out?
26:02 We may have done.
26:03 We may have bottomed out a little bit.
26:04 Again, I want to reiterate, this is a handling course that's meant to really punish cars.
26:10 I will say, I still caught air a little bit, but it wasn't as of a mule kick as the first one.
26:18 Okay, so now we're going to go reset.
26:20 We're going to turn on our dB meter.
26:22 As a reminder, the average was 77, and the peak was 100.
26:27 100 decibels.
26:28 Ran the route in the Highland again, this time with the dB meter, and the results were mixed.
26:33 The average actually increased to 78, but the peak was less at 97.
26:39 We want to stress a few things here.
26:41 Firstly, this suspension testing course is intense and is meant to test cars to their limit.
26:47 We both agreed that despite the inconclusive numbers, the Highland felt and sounded way better from both the driver and passenger seats.
26:54 Also, the decibel meter was a free app from the App Store, so who knows how reliable that is.
27:02 So, low-to-trend verdict time.
27:06 Well, we set out trying to answer two questions.
27:09 The first one was, is the new Model 3 Highland a marked improvement over the last one?
27:15 And the second one is, should people buy one?
27:18 That's right.
27:19 So, to the first point, is this car an improvement over the old Model 3?
27:24 I think it's a resounding yes.
27:26 And in true Tesla fashion, this victory is actually the sum of lots of little victories.
27:30 Everything from specifically designing a tire with Michelin to give the Tesla Model 3 more range and less NVH through the road surface,
27:40 to the way that they've modified the acoustics on the inside, and even down to seat comfort.
27:44 Everything, all of those little changes, incremental things that they've done, have added up, I think, to a big win for Tesla.
27:51 Yes, because you drove it all day, I drove it all day, various Motor Trend editors have been driving it,
27:55 and the resounding opinion is that, yeah, it sounds better, it rides better.
27:59 Also, I think it looks better too.
28:01 Much, much better.
28:02 You know, from close up, from a distance, it just looks crisper, fresher, looks like a new product, and that's nice.
28:07 It's stepped out from behind all of the other Tesla models, and it's sort of become its own thing.
28:13 So, the last piece here is price, and Tesla has not officially announced price for the new Model 3 yet,
28:20 but it did assure us it's going to be a little more expensive than the current generation Model 3.
28:25 So, that's up to you to decide, once the price comes out, if it's worth it.
28:28 However, I will say, this is still the most affordable Tesla that you can buy.
28:32 That's obviously not going to change, but it doesn't really feel like a sacrifice anymore.
28:37 That's right. It feels a little bit more luxurious than before.
28:40 A little more upmarket.
28:41 Right?
28:42 Yeah.
28:43 It's cheap, doesn't feel cheap.
28:44 Exactly, which I think is the best thing that you can say about something.
28:46 That's right.
28:47 [Music]