Typically, just after filming - Tesla released an update for the car which finally included waypoints. However, this news came to me a bit too late!

“Reasonably unremarkable saloon-hatch cross-type-thing” I think Elon will be in touch to use that phrase in their marketing 😂

I think this is the only honest Tesla review I’ve ever seen over the years. You presented the marmite arguments so simply with actual details and research about the company through the years. Very refreshing and shows up the top gear(both new and old) anti-electric push as well as the toxic Tesla fanboys.

Shoddy build quality persists: panel fit, paint quality, door handles, tail lights. The biggest issue is the Apple-like aggressive stance against third party repair.

The emissions you don’t get from the back of the car are generally outweighed by the emissions coming from the front of the owners.

I'd like to applaud you, James, on the way you're comfortable with your body image and can shrug off the trolls. Oh, and your dedication to supporting the baking industry in these uncertain times. ;)

12:35 I consider myself a tech-savvy person as I've been into computers since the mid 80's. I've also been into cars since about the same time. With that said, I absolutely hate touch controls in cars. I think they are detrimental to road safety and there should be legislation in place to make sure certain things have physical buttons/knobs, ie. windscreen wipers, heating and cooling controls etc.

Say what you like about Tesla, whether they're amazing or leave a lot to desire, we can all agree Tesla fanboys are the worst people in the car world.

I hate Tesla for being anti right to repair and unless they change their attitude towards it, they'll still be the next Apple and John Deere... I believe Louis Rossman even mentioned this issue in one of his RTR videos.

The reason for not being able to use the "E" was in fact that Ford objected to them using it.

My S did the same thing with that door rubber. Sometimes if I got out at the wrong angle and brushed it the wrong way it would dislodge it and prevent the door from closing. Of course my friends found this hilarious. Me not so much on a car which cost £88k.

I've an 8-year old Renault Twizy (adore it!) and the battery has barely degraded at all... they last really well!

Great review, unbiased summary. Yes, Tesla fanboys can be crazy! A note of caution: not all Teslas with free supercharging have it transferred to new owners.

4:59 Jay doing his best to tell us about the improved build quality and cuts to a shot of poorly aligned window glass

Tried the model 3. I need a few basic buttons. It felt half finished so I order the Ionic 5. Much nicer inside. Btw, Matt, they may have released all their copyrights, but if you buy a fully ‘loaded’ Tesla second hand, Tesla remove all the extras when you register the car. You never own their software when you buy the car second hand. You have to pay for the upgrades yourself. It’s legal but IMO a horrible tactic. How much money does Musk need? Greed. If you buy an optioned Audi, you keep the options. A bloke from Audi doesn’t come round your house and delete the sat nav and unscrew the reversing camera. And if you try to keep your upgrades against Tesla’s will, they send an over the air update stopping you charging your car. The fact is, even when you buy a Tesla, you don’t really own it. They do.

Fair review in my opinion, having driven quite a few myself the biggest issue I had with Teslas is they just feel like white "domestic" goods to me, no soul or character, serves a purpose like the most basic ikea furniture. Not the only modern cars to suffer with this though.

Good review, and as a Model 3 owner, I would have had no issue hearing more complaints. Tesla's are faulted, my car struggles to hold corners as well as my friend's '08 C300 when we head out for a weekend drive. Plus, it loses range extremely quickly when being romped on. Still, all Tesla's are quiet, comfortable cars with lots of technology. Another note, if you can afford to go for a new S, the long range variant is nearly identical through the quarter mile as the old P85D and P90D. For most people, saving that 60k over the Plaid and getting that kind of performance is worth it. Especially considering the substantial interior upgrades and fit/finish upgrades over the older ones.

I consider tesla drivers to be the BMW drivers of the electric car world.

As the owner of a P85D for the last 4.5 years I have to say this was one of the most fair and accurate reports on the car that I have seen. I am a performance driver with a lot of track experience and a history a very fast cars, the last of which was an E39 supercharged (after market) M5, and, with that in mind, the only thing I take exception to is how you describe the way the car performs on the twisty bits. I have done Targa Tasmania in an E36 M3R (10th outright), which was staggeringly good in the handling department, and, after driving my P85D through some very challenging twisty roads, I was thoroughly impressed and exhilarated with the performance. I am 67 years old and have never owned a new car that I was excited to drive after the first 6 months or so. Sure, I still had some exhilarating times in them, but they eventually just became the daily driver. I can honestly say that I still get a buzz EVERY time I drive the P85D out of the garage and onto the street, it is simply that good. There are many things that Tesla can improve, but keep in mind that the company is still only around 13 years old and they will continue to improve as the years go by. The only other thing you failed to mention was the over the air updates, which have improved the car significantly over the 4.5 years I have owned it, including the way points update you mention at the top of the comments. There have been heaps of incremental improvements, the first of which for me was the introduction of easy entry for improved entry and exiting of the vehicle. I am also a little fond of cake and this was very appreciated as it was not there when I purchased the car. How many other cars actually improve with age? I forgot to mention that I have ordered a new PLAID but it will not be available in Australia until near the end of 2022.

Is there a petition anywhere to stop the ban of petrol and diesel cars

You are so fair James. This is is another one of your bread and butter reviews. TOP QUALITY

A big problem I have with EVs are the subsidies. They're substantial in the UK yet EVs are only bought by people who frankly don't need the subsidy.

How do you find out someone drives a Tesla? Don’t worry, they’ll tell you.

The worst thing about Tesla drivers, collectively, is they aren't car people....and there you have it✅️

Talk to someone about how your smartphone battery life isn't as good as it used to be one or two years later. Everybody will say, yes, that's what old batteries do. Talk to an EV owner about that: No no, it cannot happen, in ten years it will have the same range and do another 10 years. Why don't they realize that both are Li-Ion batteries, of the same chemical kind and same technology.

Great review as always. Very objective. I had a Model S for 5 years. When you're buying those cars, you're buying the technology and not the luxury.

Tesla owners are worse than Macintosh users in the 1990s

Im a Tesla model S owner since 6 years and have free supercharger that will follow the car for the rest of its ”life”, even if I sell it. The owner know if the free supercharger follows the car to the new owner or not, so just ask the owner and he will tell you. You are doing a great job, and I agree with you on 99% of all you said in the video :-) Thank you!

Great balanced review. As a life long petrol head having owned maybe 80+ cars over the years. 6 in the last 2.5 years. I recently got a Tesla Model 3 Performance. The Long Range the obvious sensible purchase and even the RWD with new LiFE battery has incredible efficiency. Personally I love the performance and would have always wondered if I had bought the other. Either way went full appliance mode. White on white. The car is a marvel, not missing the sound either. Loving the quiet. Has actually taken me back to my youth somewhat. Have enjoyed shopping for accessories, simple things that yes should or could have come with it like the silicon cup insert. Done over 1000 miles in 4 weeks. Cost for electricity has been hardly anything on my house bill. Have used the superchargers twice. £10 on first occasion and £8.50 on the second. Charged fast and flawlessly. No messing about with 6 different apps to find they don’t work. Just grab the cable and plug in. Cannot be simpler. For me was a key reason for a Tesla. That along with Autopilot for Motorways and many A roads. Didn’t upgrade to any Autopilot extras or FSD. Journeys are just so relaxing and never feels like you’ve done the journey. Starting to think FSD when it’s ready in a couple of years could be worth it eventually. Basically loving the car.

Subtracting the 1ft roll out (more like 4-60mph) is one of those frustrating marketing fudges of the numbers so they look better than they really are. Either way, the new plaids doing sub 2.5s 0-62mph is nonetheless still phenomenal! Great review as always. Thanks James!

Imagine if the government decided to ban football and insist everyone one watch American football instead - as a football and petrol car fan that’s how I feel about electric cars and Tesla in particular.

Correction: first country to have a pilot program to allow non Teslas to charge at Tesla superchargers is the Netherlands not Norway

My neighbour has one and he absolutely loves it. However he has discovered one potentially massive problem, if he has a crash in it, part prices are huge and parts hard to get, so he could be without his car for months.

Probably the biggest number of manchild i've seen on the internet were Elon's fanboys (idk how many of them are Tesla owners)

“E” was actually a name reserved by ford many years before. Hence the reason for MachE

Fuck the haters James. If they don't like the way you look, they don't have to watch your videos! Please don't take any notice whatsoever and carry on doing what you're doing

The worst thing about them is that buying one is akin to joining a cult. I’m not a fan of the way they look inside or out, but your average Tesla driver puts me off far more! 😂

One of the main reason I hate Tesla as a brand is because of the toxic owners and supporters of the brand, they are just the worst people.

Tesla owners: all the arrogance of an Audi owner, the self righteousness of a cyclist and the messianic fervour of an Apple product owner.

1 foot of rollout results in 0.3 second reduction in the 0 to 60. A lot more than I had realised. However it is the norm in the USA, but not outside of USA. That is why manufacturers quote different 0 to 60 times for the same model on their country specific websites.

Tesla fanboys aren't car-guys, they're tech-guys. To them, Teslas are mobile iPads. If you like cars, you like driving. If you like driving, you'd want to drive your car yourself.

I agree, subtracting the first foot is as honest as dry weights.

I have a 6 year old P85D with over 100,000 miles. I would compare it to an S Class AMG. It's very expensive and very fast. The S-Class might be more plush, but I have Auto-pilot. Auto Pilot makes the Tesla very luxurious. I would imagine the a 6 year-old AMG S-Class with over 100,000 miles would be pretty expensive to maintain. The Tesla really isn't. My P85D is far from perfect, but overall, it has been one of the most reliable cars I've ever owned. It has never left me stranded. It always warns me if something needs service before it stops working. I did the first brake job at 90,000 miles, and it was just the front brakes. The cost was not too high for the brake job. The rears still had 50% left. I'm about to sell it for a new Plaid model. Here's what's great about my old P85D for the next owner: 1. free supercharging 2. it has a sun roof 3. it has a Sirius/XM antenna, so you can have music in the middle of nowhere 4. The Interior is nicer than many newer models - real leather, and overall nicer materials. 5. Still faster than most cars on the road 6. The new owner will get it for less than a new Chevy Bolt. 7. Battery still has 220 miles of range when fully charged 8. purely subjective - the white pearl paint with the big dark wheels looks amazing. 9. the second generation seats are really comfortable. 10. Like every other Model S, there is tons of storage space. It really is a practical car. By the way, thanks for the click bait title... you made me watch. There's over a million Tesla owners, we are not al the same. Just be honest, KZfaq commenters are THE WORST.

Great video James about Model S. The review that would be interesting is there a fellow in the UK who took his model S to a coach builder and had them it modified to an Estate some years ago. As always I love you videos, please continue to drive these fantastic cars we see every week!

It's Ford that have dibs on "E". It's not about the letter it's about the whole name "Model E"

Good review. I have a 2016 P90D that has been upgraded to a P100D, in itself quite remarkable. It is a family car, a sports car and with so much space in the back that I lug furniture in it. So it does everything pretty well and is also safe. The Superchargers make it and other Teslas much, much less hassle than other EVs. The continuous upgrades mean that I have no reason to change and after about 5 years it has 5% battery degradation, which has now flattened out for the last 2-3 years. So second hand they are a very good buy and especially the 2016/17 ones with free supercharging, an absolute bargain. The product was and remains very good, but service and repairs have always been a problem, so the bet is really on how long Tesla will support the earlier cars - so far it has been fine and I have no reason or desire to upgrade what is still an outstanding vehicle.

This is a fair and balanced review of this car in my opinion.

Norway gives tax breaks to Tesla buyers, and they are very common over there, they are not a rich man's environmental lifestyle statement/toy as in other countries. I met a grizzled trawler captain with a rusty and battered model S ! Norway has abundant hydo-electric power unlike the UK, so it makes a lot more sense..leccy literally falls out of the sky over there..

I drove this on release here in Hong Kong. at the time HK Gov were waiving the 110% car tax, which made this thing a complete bargain. anyway, it is a knockout car. loved it. quick, comfy. and so smooth. it was an eye opener in many ways. a classic. great review sir.

I’d go for the Taycan GTS Sport Turismo over a Plaid any day, looks stunning and I love the sound.

Thanks, very entertaining. Found this video after buying a nine year-old 2012 Signature and you're spot on. Approaching 2,000 miles this car is dealing growing on me.

I have owned 2 Model S’s over the last 7 years (this month), just for context. I think this review is pretty spot on. I think rep for Tesla fanboys come from the amount of vitriol pumped at them by Tesla haters, making a vocal minority on both sides, dominating the internet comment threads. I love EV’s and have wanted one since I was 9 (now 56), Tesla was just the first to make in practical and fun. The supercharger network was what sold them to me and is probably still the thing which would make me choose them again, but frankly I am just happy that there are now loads of EV’s to choose from. I think most people who drive Tesla’s are the same - it’s weird defining yourself by what car you drive.

Hey Jay, that was quite a tidy review and very fair, despite expectations from your title card. :) I sold a 944t and my wife's Prius to buy a Model 3LR and for family duty here in Canada, it has been pretty perfect. The thing I really miss is being able to turn a corner fast and driving fun, and I regard the car as overpriced, but on the whole, an excellent choice. The reason I'd avoid Tesla is not owners - we're no more or less oblivious or hateful than any other owner out there - but the company's position against right to repair, and the cult of Elon the Sod. Technical service has been very good but the many issues we have had have not been fully addressed by customer service, that kind of thing. If I were in the market now I would wait or got for a major manufacturer e.g. Hyundai or Kia atm.

Great review. Nice to see someone giving an honest opinion of a model S Tesla. Without fearing the inevitable fan club backlash over the smallest criticism.. It's an ok, expensive, poor build, not that practicable, fast saloon car... However, it was also a huge wake up call for the OEM's to get their act together.

I’m glad you pulled all the stops out with my favourite shirt to jazz it up a bit! As let’s be honest the Tesla is just a boring Tupperware on wheels with a large battery and uneccessary iPad. AKA a Dutch taxi 🚕 However .. my mate at RR loved all of it! 🤷🏻

Thanks James! One thing I didn't hear was issues getting service and repairs which I've heard can be a major problem.

If I lived in a super sunny place (Cali) and had an extra.....$20k? To install solar panels and power packs to my house on top of the $40k for the model 3 then yes, this is the only way I would own an electric car.

I have a 2019 US model after having had a 2014 and can say that the build quality is much, much improved in what is sort of known as the second generation model S. The plastics are better and the interior is better executed overall with more storage bins. Why do I have second one? In a crash these cars are about as safe as an iron clad sphere: a semi trailer slid across a road in front of me when I was doing just under 50mph. I suffered a bruised left hand.

Norwegian Tesla owner here - slight error in intro. It is not norway where Tesla have opened its chargers to other cars it is the Netherlands.

I'm a petrol head and a Tesla owner (P100D) as well. So glad you gave it a fair shake, loved the video!

James, a bit of fact correction: I believe Tesla are trialling use of their charging network by other manufactuer's EVs in the Netherlands, not Norway.

I hate the thought of going electric, and would shy away from watching anything linked to them. But I decided to give this a whirl. I found it most enjoyable. Still wouldn't want one, but I did enjoy your review. Honest and interesting. Thanks. Happy new year.

My BIL recently got a Tesla Model 3 LR. His windows screech when they go down, bits of trim occasionally creek, there’s a lot of road noise for a £40k+ car and there’s quite a lot of ‘quirk’ to the software. In other words, glitches and bugs. Even to the point where the screen straight up goes blank/black and you can’t interact with the car which is quite frankly horrifying to me. I was a fan of Tesla but these consistent build quality, software quality and straight up impractical issues driven by an increasingly rigid and unhelpful attitude by Tesla have driven me away from the brand and I would prefer many more buttons. I HATE using touchscreens in a car especially a moving car and quite frankly it’s hypocritical from the law on UK roads. What makes this all the more worse is that this build comes after so many issues from the early model 3 builds. At this point all reviewers are selling an image that the model 3 issues are resolved. Absolutely shocking. Tesla must do much better in this regard. I’m sure they’ll get there in the end but it’s very disappointing for a car so expensive, few if any can afford to buy outright. Authorities need to stamp out this touchscreen bs. It’s not acceptable to use phones whilst driving and rightfully so. The same should apply to built in units from manufacturers. It’s awkward and dangerous.

One thing to note : Cold weather. Same situation with some phones too, but basically you leave it in the cold for too long and the batteries die.

I've got a 2015 Model S. I thought the review was fair. I wish there were more buttons rather than having to go through the touch screen for most functions. Even though I'm in the 6th year of ownership I still have to wait until I'm stopped before I can take my eyes of the road to use that touch screen. Something I love that never seems to get mentioned is the way the cruise control keeps the speed as set even going downhill (probably most EV would do the same, my mates old Japanese spec Leaf does not). I also love the lack of drama i.e. flooring the accelerator pedal does not result in wheel spin i.e. the traction control is amazingly good.

This is the first review of an EV I have ever watched, mainly because we will all have to start thinking about electric cars soon, and far too soon for me. I am a certified petrolhead, with a near mint condition 2002 BMW Z3, a Porsche 987.1, a 1977 Escort Ghia, and a 1969, Landrover SIIA. As such I still found this interesting, but admittedly started thinking what a Porsche Cayman with an electric engine, 0-60 in three seconds might be like. At least it should corner well. Thanks for this it was very interesting.

Damn, you changed my viewpoint! I won’t rush out and buy one. I had a loan of a Taycan for a few days; impressive! Not even from an EV standpoint; it’s just a great car! It sort of made me want to rush out and try an Audi A8!

Ehh it's a good thing Tesla don't advertise EVs as eco friendly, because they really aren't. Not until your country's power generation grid is running almost entirely off nuclear and renewables. I think it was one of your own videos that talked about how little cars pollute the air compared to coal fired thermal power plants. Reality is simply buying an EV does not do anything for the planet and in fact naked things worse for the rest of us since the person who bought an EV as a "green choice" is likely to become complacent and say they've done their part in saving our environment when there's actually lots more to do.

If I could afford it, I'd get the Tycan GTS Sport Tourismo. It's a sexy and sleek electric wagon that's fast and has Porsche's advanced handling system. Plus its still built like a Porsche inside and out

After 8 to 10 years there are junk. With costly batteries and the lack of ability to repair it

Look at that build quality.... how the window gaps arent consistent up and down the whole door B pillar. Or are even flush with the pillar, like theyre supposed to be.

Shame it doesn't have physical buttons for HVAC. Always enjoyed that you have different shirts for car reviews. Terrible to hear that the company disables things on the car when they sell it again. Nice video. Keep up the good work.

from my experience of Tesla owners, their fandom and obsession with the brand is more simply connected to them lacking any interesting identity and so latch onto a community that only requires financial means of entry

As and American Model 3P owner I have to say great review James! I have a few explanations for you. First, If you want to enjoy your cakes, you do you. With respect to the 1 foot rollout thing, I understand your puzzlement, but there is an explanation. It goes to sanctioned drag racing here in the states. At an official drag race there are sensors which the cars trip to start the actual timing of each car, and they are typically ~1 foot in front of the vehicle. Over time, most manufacturers and car magazines defaulted to using this methodology when it came to listing the 0-60 times of cars because of the popularity of drag racing here. Tesla does it as well with their PERFORMANCE (they do NOT with their non-performance models) models today as a marketing thing. Not defending it, merely explaining it. You are far from the only person to take issue with the practice.

These sound soooo good! Said no one ever.

They don't call them "fanboys" for nothing...😂

I’ll probably get crucified by all the Tesla fans for saying this, but I don’t really like Tesla in any regard. The cars, Elon, the owner’s as a whole, all of it. It’s all very unappealing.

Someone parked a tesla next to my car last week. I had time to see the panel gaps stories for myself. Nothing lines up, including the chrome trim bits, shocking build quality for that sort of price. Also just saw the video of that guy who blown up his Tesla, otherwise it would cost the price of a new car to replace the batteries.

Hot off the press today, US recall according to the FT "The recall was caused by rear-view cameras and trunk latches, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Thursday, though it added that the problems have not led to any accidents reported by Tesla. Tesla is recalling about 356,309 Model 3 cars made in 2017 through 2020 as well as about 119,009 Model S cars from 2014 to 2021, the NHTSA said in documents released on Thursday."

I know what you mean about Tesla fans....I've owned one for 9 months and love it. It's hard not to get sucked in and become a disciple but I'm trying to govern my Tesla proselytizing etc.

I respect Tesla for making EV a serious product rather than what the milkman trundles around on at 5am, but I can't replace my current car with a full EV until they achieve 350+ per charge in all weathers at all times of the year. I do about 1,500 miles a week and often find myself with no where to charge (Industrial and commercial construction environments). The closest to being able to do what I need is a Honda Insight or Toyota Prius, which whilst nice, are a bit pricey for a halfway step. I also baulk at such poor quality fit and finish for such a large chuck of cash. I'm not taken in by this odd borderline cultish obsession with the South African fellow, and fail to see why it has a "premium" tag associated with it. Because of that, I suspect i'll find myself either in a Kia e-Niro or a Honda Insight much sooner than I will a tesla.

Congratulations! Tesla rated LAST in Quality and very low in reliability! Enjoy your cars!

Own a 2018 Model 3 Performance. About 30k miles on it now and it's been flawless. Like digital cameras these cars are going to get better and better. The next 10 - 20 years will be fun.

This is the go to car for YT "INFLUENCERS". Says it all really.

Reliability - Do these things break down, and if so, what goes wrong? As I've gotten a bit older, I've come around from enjoying the ultimate driving machine to valuing the luxury of reliability.

The anonymous styling, comparatively low rent interior & poor build quality whilst they have the audacity to charge what they do for them are the major stumbling points for me.

900,000W cars, while 40W incandescent light bulbs are illegal for creating a CO2 nightmare.

Thanks for a very good review (and I'm a Tesla fan due to their safety, clean air mission and groundbreaking vehicles). BTW, if you really want to see rudeness, read one of the diesel car forums.

Someone paid £120k for this and sold it for £40k with 40k on the clock. At £6.81/gallon and even assuming 30 mpg this car has depreciated the equivalent of 352,000 miles worth of fuel. Fast to sixty...but that’s it.

Judging by this comment section, I'm not sure which is worse; obnoxious Tesla owners or rabid Tesla (and EV) haters.

I believe the foot roll out is an historic drag racing thing. The origins of drag racing was measuring speed through the 1/4 mile and the winner crossed the line first. So timing lights were designed for the front wheel to block the light " is staged) and start the clocks when the beam was made again (is your front wheel had cleared it. This gives you a roll out ,were you are moving but the clocks haven't started.

If you're buying a used electric car check how much battery replacements are before committing to buying it.

They are a good item. Good at what they are meant to do but with no style. A bit like apple. If your iPhone breaks and you get another, within 30 mins it’s your iPhone again. No real soul, just an object. Not a bad thing but the opposite of days gone by where there was an emotional connection with things.

The reason charge times go up and range goes down after a while, is the degradation of the lithium batteries, these batteries really aren’t made to work 10+ years, under these conditions. Tesla does it’s best to keep the batteries in as best of a state as possible therefore you can’t charge it as fast as a new one and it loses somewhat of it’s capacity.

the reason for the removal of a foot of time is because the light beams across the front of the tyre at teh beginning so when it moves off, the light is blocked by about a foot of tyre before shining again.

Totally with you on the one foot roll out. This means the measure is about 7-60mph.

I wonder how these things will hold once they reach the sub 5K second hand market value. I am pretty sure those batteries will be toast at that value. And I can get A LOT of great reliable normal cars for sub 5K. Also, (at least in my country) every single Tesla (or any EV for that matter) Is partially owned by me, even though I can't afford one for myself.

"They're still very much an American company at heart" Almost every single Tesla sold in Europe comes from China. China built the factory for Tesla, they arranged the Chinese supply chain for the factory (I read that the parts in the cars made there are >95% Chinese made), China financed all of it with a massive loan, the batteries in the cars are "Tesla's" newest battery design which is a battery developed by the Chinese, made by the Chinese and Tesla just buys them. China now very much controls Tesla too, since it is constantly teetering at the very edge of bankruptcy and will in fact go bankrupt almost instantly if there is any trouble at all with their Chinese production or sales, as they will run out of cash almost instantly. So China can really blackmail Tesla into doing whatever they want. Tesla is at the mercy of China. A very clever plan from the Chinese: With ICE cars and using their own companies alone they didn't manage to break into the western car markets at all. Their attempts to sell cars in Europe were basically a total no-go. But with this clever EV scheme (bribing European and US politicians to force their nations into adopting the Chinese EV plan) and their scheme to use Tesla to supply their "western" brand name for free to sell Chinese cars to Europe, they've suddenly managed massive sales volumes for Chinese cars in Europe.

The running 100 yards comment is fruckn hilarious..🤣🤣🤣..Great Review as usual

I just discovered the channel and it has quickly become my favorite. I watched 3 videos in a row. Happy new year :D