Tesla Model 3 Test: Chinese Made Tesla - MotorTrend In China - video Dailymotion

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MotorTrend Testing Director

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00:00I'm about to test a Tesla Model 3 long range dual motor.

00:14It's a car we know well, a car that probably needs no introduction.

00:17This version is made in China, and of course we're testing it here so that we're comparing

00:22apples to apples.

00:26And let's give it a launch.

00:28Here we go.

00:29Three, two, one.

00:32Smooth and seamless.

00:33Torque builds right around 30, 40 miles an hour.

00:36Four seconds to 60.

00:38Woo.

00:39Noisy.

00:40Those brakes feel like they've gotten some use out of them.

00:42Let's do a couple brake stops from 60.

00:49Let's do one or two from 100.

00:58Brakes are too hot.

01:00Braking performance reduced.

01:01The brakes are really Tesla's Achilles when it comes to driving dynamics.

01:05I did two stops from 60 miles per hour and then one stop from 100 miles per hour and

01:10I'm getting this warning that braking performance is reduced.

01:13And now I'm supposed to go do a figure eight.

01:15How am I supposed to do a figure eight when the brakes are too hot?

01:17We'll cool them down a little bit here.

01:19You know, I can tell you already I'm going to get one lap.

01:23Why Tesla?

01:24Why?

01:25There's a problem that needs to be solved.

01:26All right, here we go.

01:27All right, there it is.

01:28Brake warning.

01:29Did I get my brake warning?

01:30Yeah.

01:31Brake's too hot.

01:32We got two figure eights in before the brakes got too hot.

01:43I suspect they're also trying to get the car to rotate using those brakes.

01:47It's not very convincing as a sports sedan.

01:51Model 3 has a lot in it that makes it feel sporty initially and on the street.

01:56Really quick steering, very immediate reactions.

02:00Sometimes that's to the detriment.

02:01They can feel a little nervous or busy on the highway.

02:04And then you drive them kind of at the limit and they start to fall apart a little bit.

02:09They're just not very balanced dynamically.

02:12There's not a lot of substance behind that initial feel.

02:14All right, let's try one more.

02:16A lot of understeer.

02:18Brake warning again.

02:20So we'll finish that lap.

02:22Okay.

02:23Well, that's what a Tesla does.

02:24About 25.7 second figure eight lap.

02:27It's okay.

02:28It's not great.

02:29Wish they could do a little more development.

02:30This is the updated Model 3 that came out for 2024, sometimes called Model 3 Highland.

02:36It's quite a big improvement over the car that came before it.

02:38That doesn't mean that they're done here.

02:40I just wish they would make the brakes do what they're supposed to do, which is stand

02:44up to repeated stops.

02:45Whether that's on the highway, whether that's around a track, whether that's in an autocross,

02:49it's a major weak point for a car that's supposed to have some sporty dynamics in its DNA.

Tesla Model 3 Test: Chinese Made Tesla - MotorTrend In China

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