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It’s the year 2025, and my teenager doesn’t know the difference between a telephone call and a FaceTime call, because it’s all the same to her. Every day we rely on technology that, at some point, sounded surreal to our parents, and our grandparents would’ve written off as a Hollywood fantasy back in their day. Yet, Tesla, which considers itself a tech company above a car company, just rolled out a brand-new car with manually adjustable mirrors.
The base model of the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y, also known as the “Standard” trim, does away with several features in exchange for a lower starting price. But while some of those can be considered positive changes, like a manually adjustable steering column via a lever versus a touchscreen, others leave you wondering who at the tech-forward company thought some of these were a good idea. Was it you, Elon?
I personally can’t think of a single new car currently sold in the United States that has manually adjustable mirrors. As others in the office highlighted, even the Mitsubishi Mirage—which is no longer in production but still available new in dealerships across the country for $17,000—has power mirrors. The standard Model 3 starts at $38,630. The Model Y, which starts at $41,630, retains the power-adjustable mirrors but eliminates the power-folding feature.
The Model 3 also does away with leather and switches to cloth seats and a combination of plastic and cloth inserts for cabin trim. The small rear screen used to adjust the rear air vents has been scrapped, and instead, it employs manually adjustable vents, like most cars on the road today. Ventilation for the front seats is now gone, as is heating for the rear bench. Ambient lighting is out the window, and surprisingly, so is AM/FM radio.
Changes that will have a bigger impact on the ownership experience include a lower battery capacity of 69.5 kWh, lower charging speeds limited to 225 kW, a slower zero-to-60 mph time by one full second, and less driving range. The Standard trim is rated at 321 miles versus the Premium’s 363. Autosteer is also gone.
Another thing that the new Standard trim has less of is… price. By foregoing all of the above, Tesla is able to price the new trim $5,500 cheaper than the next trim up.
It’s worth highlighting that Tesla’s approach to its Standard trim is no different than what the rest of the industry already does. The base of an entry-level model is typically pretty barebones, and if you want more features, a cooler look, and better performance, you have to move up the lineup and pay more. In that respect, Tesla isn’t doing anything outrageous or wrong, per se. And for what it’s worth, I’m all here for cheaper cars—especially in today’s economy.
This is all about irony. That a company that considers itself cutting-edge, tech-forward, and self-proclaims to be lightyears ahead of other legacy automakers is rolling out an EV with manual mirrors.
Indeed, you can still find new cars with manual mirrors on sale today, but you’ll have to go over to Europe. The Fiat Panda I rented in Portugal earlier this year had those, and so did a Fiat 500 in Italy. Those cars cost between $18,000 and $20,000, are as basic as can be, and run on gas engines that have been around for decades. It’s funny to think that those cars and the newest Tesla Model 3 have something in common.
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As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
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