BYD Seal hunter: Here’s what we’ve learnt about the new ‘Project Highland’ Tesla Model 3 ahead of its Australian arrival
First deliveries of the updated Tesla Model 3 are still a couple of months away in Australia, but more details are coming out about the new electric car codenamed Project Highland.
Access to the digital owner’s manual for the important new model – which has single-handedly breathed life into the flailing four-door sedan category – shows that the Model 3 will have more tech and features that owners will have to get used to.
Given the competition coming from the new BYD Seal, the Model 3 will need all the artillery it can muster.
READ MORE: Tesla Model 3 update: Has the electric car maker done enough to keep EV competitors at bay?
READ MORE: Updated Tesla Model 3 now on sale in Australia
READ MORE: Electric car sales growth slows as Tesla share shrinks
Teslas already challenge some with their unconventional thinking; they don’t have keys, for example, nor a traditional instrument cluster.
But with the new features for the updated Model 3 – many elements of which look set to flow through to the Model Y – there will also be new things to adapt to.
Different start-up
The card reader for starting the car when you have not set up your phone as a key is behind the wireless phone charger on the updated Model 3. So rather than holding the credit card-sized ‘key’ against the centre console you now hold it against the dual wireless phone chargers.
Netflix in the back
Teslas have long allowed drivers to stream video-on-demand services such Netflix to the large central screen when the car is parked.
But the addition of a 8.0-inch rear screen for the first time means those in the back can now stream Netflix while on the move.
Tesla says the rear screen will be used to adjust the fan speed and air flow direction as well activating the rear seat heaters.
Plus those in the rear will be able to slide the front passenger seat forward and back and play and pause songs.
Front to rear control
That rear screen will also be able to be controlled from the screen up front. It means those up front are ultimately in control – even having the ability to lock the rear screen to keep the little people from running amok.
Changing gears
The new Model 3 will do without any stalks on the steering column, taking away the drive selector that allowed owners to shuffle between forward and reverse.
That is now controlled from the screen, with a Drive Mode Strip on the driver’s side allowing the driver to scroll between forward and reverse.
As well as that Drive Mode Strip there are also Park, Reverse, Neutral and Drive buttons in the overhead roof console.
Smile for the camera…
The Model 3 gets a cabin camera facing the occupants for the first time. It’s similar to the one used in the Model Y – sort of.
We say sort of because according to the Chinese owner’s manual it’s not currently active but may be “used in a future safety feature”.
The manual continues: “Tesla will notify you of its availability through a software update.”
We’d imagine the functionality would be similar to the Model Y, which can be used when Sentry is operational (allowing remote viewing via the app) or to record images in the event of a crash or critical incident. It could also be used to monitor driver attentiveness.
Sounding sharp
The Model 3 looks set to get the Boombox feature that allows songs and sounds to be played externally (although possibly not while the car is moving due to regulatory issues).
It also likely means there will not be a traditional horn, with the M3 instead utilising that under-bonnet speaker to create a warning sound.
Centre airbags
The new Model 3 gets centre front airbags. To be fair, they first appeared from mid-2022 production, but they’re still a relatively new thing.
From the diagram it appears there is an airbag in each of the inner sides of the front seats.
Blind spot warning
Teslas have long warned of vehicles in their blind spots. But until now it’s been done via the central screen.
With the updated Model 3 there is a new warning light housed on the pillar on either side of the dashboard. It illuminates red when a car is in the blind spot and stars flashing if things are getting close or the driver is edging towards the nearby vehicle.
Going with the flow
There’s no manually twiddling the air vents to adjust the flow. In a Model 3 or Y the screen has long been used to adjust the direction of air flow. But that thinking now flows through to the rear, where you can swipe to adjust the flow from the vents that are stylish fixed slim slits externally.
New steering wheel
One of the biggest changes to the cabin of the updated Tesla Model 3is the new steering wheel.
Its arrival signals the end of the stalks on either side of the wheel (previously used for the indicators and Drive/Reverse/Park selector).
It means the steering wheel has a whole lot more functionality.
There are additional buttons and touchpads that control the high beam headlights and windscreen wipers.
As with Ferrari and Lamborghini there are also buttons to activate the indicators, which could provide some challenges when trying to activate them with some steering lock on.
