What_Car_UK_-_August_2020

whatcar.com^ August 2020 73

THINKOFELECTRICvehicles(EVs)

andTeslatendstobethebrand

thatfirstspringstomind.The

Americancompanyhasbeenat

thevanguardofEVdevelopment

forwelloveradecadeandnow

hasarangeofthree(soontobe

four)pureelectricmodelsto

temptwell-heeledbuyers.

But,withabudgetof£55,000

orthereabouts,whichoneshould

youchoose?Well,theModel 3

executivesaloonistheonlyTesla

you’llbeabletoaffordbrandnew,

butthatsortofmoneywillbuy

youaseatbehindthewheelof

therange-toppingPerformance

version.Notonlyisitfaster

thancheaperversionsofthe

Model3,butit’salsomorefun

todriveinotherways.

Alternatively,youcouldspend

similarmoneyonan18-month-

oldModelS,aluxurycarthat’s

significantlybiggerthanthe

Model 3 andhasamorepractical

hatchbackboot.Abudgetof

around£55kwillgetyoua75D,

whichwastheentry-levelmodel

beforeTeslarestructuredits

line-upacoupleofyearsago.

Althoughit’snolongeravailable,

the75Dwasourpickoftherange

whenitwasnew.

DRIVING

Performance,ride,

handling,renement

PartofTesla’smystiquewas

bornfromthesupercar-beating

accelerationthatmanyofits

carsarecapableof.Indeed,the

75Dwillstillseeoffmostsports

carsbyhitting60mphfroma

standstillinjust4.3sec,andthere

areversionsthatarequickerstill.

The75Dhastwoelectricmotors–

onedrivingthefrontwheels

andtheothertherears–that

combinetoproduce362bhp.

That’senoughtopositively

slingshotyoudowntheroad.

Oratleastitfeelsthatwayuntil

you’veexperiencedtheeven

moresavageaccelerationthatthe

Model 3 canachieve.It,too,has

anelectricmotordrivingeach

axle,andthesemotorspump

outacombined444bhptopower

whatisasmaller,lightercar.We

managed0-60mphinajaw-

dropping3.7seconasoakingwet

testtrack;onawarm,dryday,it

wouldbequickerstill.

Ifyou’relookingatthebraking

distancesonp77andwondering

whythelighterModel 3 useda

muchlongerstretchofroadwhen

makinganemergencystop,wet

weatherisonceagaintheanswer.

Thefactisthatifbothcarswere

testedindryconditions,the

ModelSwouldhavetravelled

slightlyfartherbeforepullingup.

Butthere’salotmoreto

eitherofthesetwothansheer

straight-lineperformance.The

sportssuspensiontheModel 3

Performancecomesfittedwith

helpsittostayincrediblyflat

throughcorners,withhardly

anybodylean.Additssuper-

grippyMichelintyresandthis

Tesla Model 3 vs Tesla Model S

USED

TESLAMODEL 3 TESLA MODEL S

Both cars suffer tyre roar at 70mph, but the electric motors are quiet when accelerating Model S is slightly quieter at low speeds, generating less road and wind noise

Tesla Model S

75D

Used price

£56,000

(68-plate)

An 18-month-

old entry-

level Model

S costs the

same money,

yet it’s bigger,

with similar

performance,

a long range

and lots of

clever tech.