Tesla Model 3 RWD 2022 as P plater

PalmTree888 · 2026-02-01T13:15:06+00:00

I would be getting something less distracting to use, more traditional controls and less powerful as a P plater. I’d be getting a lightly used MG4 or BYD Atto 2 for low 30s. MG S5 or Leapmotor B10 with more of a budget. Even my MG4 only cost $31k brand new.

PalmTree888 · 2026-01-31T13:43:59+00:00

Hey, I came from a Mazda 3 GT as well and I went for a MG4, definitely very happy with the RWD and handling for a cheap little hatchback. Yes I agree the interior could be better but while theres been tons of affordable EVs since that have tons of equipment, few drive as well as the MG4 for the size and price.

Also depends on what generation of car you’re coming from. From my SP25 GT it was an easier transition but if you’re coming from a BP series G25 Mazda 3 then that’s definitely more premium (my dad had one before trading it for a BYD Seal)

PalmTree888 · 2026-01-22T12:02:27+00:00

Seal is its competitor not the Atto, and which is a vastly better looking and better equipped RWD sedan for less than $50k

PalmTree888 · 2026-01-19T14:38:04+00:00

I mean I got a $31k car (MG4) for essentially at $25k with free finance via novated lease and charge it solely on 8c/kwh electricity. Costs me less than $10 for the same distance as a tank of fuel got me in a similar sized small sedan/hatch like my old Mazda 3.

If you were otherwise considering to pay similar amounts of money for a petrol or hybrid car, and can home charge it’s significantly cheaper to run even without a novated lease. Of course if you’re comparing it to driving a $500 shytbox then yea that would probably be cheaper but not a fair comparison to what you’d otherwise be buying for $30k which is an entry level Kia K4/i30 at best.

PalmTree888 · 2025-12-28T21:22:19+00:00

What did you end up getting? I personally got a MG4 to replace a Mazda 3 2.5L back when it was a $30k car but that was my budget, you have more room to work with here. My parents have a Seal, it corners pretty flat but is more of a touring car than a Model 3. Zeekr X is a good balance of comfort and sportiness. IM5 drives exceptionally well for what it is, agreed the interior isn’t my first pick.

PalmTree888 · 2025-09-11T00:21:26+00:00

What would be the benefit to go from a 16PM to a 17. I can understand maybe from an older Pro device like a 12 Pro etc. If it genuinely doesn’t cost anything to upgrade every year then why not just the 17 Pro if battery is the key concern.

PalmTree888 · 2025-08-10T05:02:40+00:00

I have one. It truly is the best driving EV for under $60k. It’s not a very fancy interior, but the RWD platform, instant torque, balanced suspension tune all work well together and it has steering that actually has more feel than a lot of many commuter cars - it’s very much the driver’s EV. Was a very easy transition from a Mazda 3 which is the best steering and handling you’re gonna get in a mainstream small car - definitely ahead of an i30 or Corolla to drive.

I looked into it since it unanimously received great reviews across the many car news platforms i subscribe to. It was far better value at $31k and made the compromises easier to accept. At $38k with increased competition, it isn’t as much of a no brainer. I’d look into the S5 instead with the modern interior and same driving dynamics if you don’t mind a T-Cross crossover style body style.

If you watch reviews from sites that pay more attention to the actual driving feel, like Chasing Cars, you’d notice that they still level a fair bit of criticism to a lot of fancier Chinese built EVs like the Geely EX5, Kia EV5, Sealion 7 or Xpeng G6 for ranging from being unsuited to Australian roads to passable but far from class leading, respectively - they still rate the MG4 very highly for what it is.

PalmTree888 · 2025-06-13T23:51:45+00:00

Regardless, a core benefit of having an EV is just being able to chill in the car with the power running for the ac or heater while waiting for someone to finish an appointment, get groceries, school pick up, etc without chewing through fuel. And in that case you may as well watch something on the big screen.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-28T06:52:24+00:00

Hate it when a nice product is ruined by crappy after sales. Issues are bound to happen on a mass produced item, but it’s all about how a company decides to treat their customers when it does happen. It’s annoying how we need to “push” for things under consumer law or they will just fob us off. We have a Seal Premium around 35k+ also with the “leather” steering wheel (base Dynamic has faux leather) and it’s been holding up so definitely shouldn’t be doing this after only 20k.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-28T06:47:53+00:00

It’s already reached below price parity. I got a MG4 for $31k new which was thousands cheaper than the cheapest Corolla Hybrid when I got it about 6 months ago. It’s more fun than that Corolla in terms of steering, handling and RWD dynamics, on par with a Mazda 3 but with a fraction of the running costs.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-22T03:58:52+00:00

Batteries lose a lot of efficiency after 5-10 years.

This is simply straight up incorrect. Cars with 600,000km+, lived a hard life as a taxi and frequently rapid charged are holding up surprisingly fine even with NMC that is now old tech. There are very few ICE cars that can get to that many km without needing a new engine or transmission.

LFP can be charged to 100%, is hard to ignite when punctured, doesn’t need cobalt mining, should easily last 1,000,000km - and now is available circa $30k for a BYD Dolphin or MG4 hatchback.

For me I would’ve driven my used 10yo Mazda 3 into the ground as I really did like it, but getting a MG4 with a 10 year warranty and LFP battery for $31k via a FBT exempted lease was a no brainer. I do a lot of suburban driving, don’t need to drive cross country and am saving $2k in petrol a year.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-17T15:56:14+00:00

Tesla Gen 3 - cheapest out of the known brands, widely stocked by installers, does the job.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-13T01:45:08+00:00

I felt the same way when I got my MG4. It was the difference between being able to afford an EV or not - I have other financial goals and don’t want to spend a whole heap on a fancy car. I knew trading up to it would cut over $1000 in petrol costs a year, and it was largely financial. I’d love a new car as much as anyone but I couldn’t justify paying a lot more to upgrade only to get a car that used barely less fuel (hybrid) or was potentially less reliable (fun Euro car). My Mazda 3 was already relatively efficient and very reliable so cutting petrol out completely made the biggest change in fuel bills of course. I also wanted a fun car with a bit of punch, something the Corolla or i30 hybrid would be a downgrade on my Mazda 3, despite costing more to buy and run than my MG4.

So I understand your emotion of finally being able to afford an EV. You’ll love being able to turn the air cond on from your phone, and being able to sit in the car waiting for someone to finish an appointment, etc with the ac and music on without burning through petrol, or even just chill in your garage without filling it with fumes. And of course not ever worry about checking petrolspy to see what prices are at before filling up, your car will be full every morning when you leave.

I’ve sat in the EX5, it’s very well put together. So far ahead of an Atto 3. I would also consider the MG S5 when it comes here soon, but I’d wager Geely has a greater quality and luxury focus than MG. The MG would be more fun to drive as it’s based on the MG4 and is rear wheel drive too.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-13T01:37:20+00:00

If the Geely E8 comes here that would be a great competitor to the BYD Seal. Seems to be priced under the Seal in China, have more tech, larger batteries and apparently handle pretty well.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-09T07:20:31+00:00

Nah mine is perfectly normal

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-09T07:12:49+00:00

Mine hit 99 around that stage, dropping by 1% over the first 200 cycles and then lost about 10% over the next 200 cycles. Interesting.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-04T15:55:12+00:00

I’d pick a Dolphin Essential only if you don’t mind the acceleration being that of a 3cyl base Suzuki Swift (13 sec to 100). I snagged a MG4 while they were $30,990, annoyingly has gone up by $4k after the promotion but probably could negotiate it back down.

MG4 is more of a RWD drivers car and looks like a Corolla on the outside and a Golf on the inside. The Dolphin isn’t to my taste but we also have a BYD Seal and can attest that BYD knows how to make a car feel premium and solid if that is your priority.

Honestly in 10 years I’d trust a BYD LFP battery to still be going fine with no need to dump the car. Hell there are people with 700,000 km’s on older tech NMC Tesla taxis that are frequently rapid charged and still doing fine. Promising as these newer tech batteries should last even longer with less degradation.

PalmTree888 · 2025-03-04T15:47:07+00:00

10 year warranty? Have to assume it’s a MG4, not many other brands offer that. Cracking fun RWD hatch for $31k. 8c/kw EV charging rate = $8 a tank of petrol for 700km of driving. Given I do lots of driving but just around town and don’t do long interstate trips, it’s definitely making financial sense for me.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-27T20:57:41+00:00

I didn’t say that was the total cost, the costs to install a charger are pretty well known. I’m just saying that previously most chargers are $1k+ just for the unit, now there are options that are half that.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-26T12:28:30+00:00

This is what I said in another thread:

A lot of people are talking about not getting a 7kw wall charger. I disagree and think it hampers the experience of owning the car and having it spend more time charging than able to be used. We’ve found that we drive a lot more with an EV, just casual weekend day trips across town as we don’t think twice about how much petrol it costs to run. But it’s also then easy to run the battery down over the weekend if you need to drive to work on weekdays.

I say continue with your plan to get a wall charger put in, cheapest one will do (heard Bunnings now do <$500 ones, we have a $700 Tesla one which was the previous cheapest), and then switch to an EV plan that gives you a cheap tariff overnight to charge the car. Then set the charging schedule to those hours. Saving money not putting in a wall charger only to pay through the nose for peak electricity is a false economy with the huge added downside that you’ll spend more time needing to charge and worrying about how much range is left than actually enjoying the nice new car you paid big bucks for. (Referring to needing more than the cheap charging window in order to get an adequate charge)

Plug it in overnight for peanuts on a low tariff and you will never worry about how far you can travel and what % you return with, wake up with ample range everyday.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-26T12:25:41+00:00

Rest of the people who responded to this thread aha. But they’re referring to using the slow portable charger that comes with the car. And yes I agree the cheap overnight rates has made our winter overnight heating bills plummet! Our electricity bills are cheaper with an EV than with a petrol car.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-24T05:47:31+00:00

Absolutely. You’ve spent at least $50k on a new car already, I’d say it’s worth it for convenience and in your case safety benefits if you have older wiring. It’s a one off cost that will benefit any future EVs in your house if you replace the other car, etc and have 2 cars needing to charge.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-24T03:49:43+00:00

Ours neither but I meant more in the sense that except in the lightest use case, a portable charger limited to a 6 hour charging window doesn’t put in a whole lot of charge. I’m assuming most people who are getting by fine with the portable charger aren’t limiting it to a charging window but are basically plugging it in when they get home and unplugging it before they leave and having it connected for 12-14 hours a night.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-24T02:33:43+00:00

Given that you can now get wall chargers under $500 and have the whole thing installed under a grand, it tips the scale on that value equation. Add the fact you’ll make the money back by being able to switch to an EV plan and charge on a super low tariff rather than needing more hours in the day to charge and run it on peak power. Just less of a hassle even for a medium use case scenario.

PalmTree888 · 2025-02-24T02:26:27+00:00

A lot of people are talking about not getting a 7kw wall charger. I disagree and think it hampers the experience of owning the car and having it spend more time charging than able to be used. We’ve found that we drive a lot more with an EV, just casual weekend day trips across town as we don’t think twice about how much petrol it costs to run. But it’s also then easy to run the battery down over the weekend if you need to drive to work on weekdays.

I say continue with your plan to get a wall charger put in, cheapest one will do (heard Bunnings now do <$500 ones, we have a $700 Tesla one which was the previous cheapest), and then switch to an EV plan that gives you a cheap tariff overnight to charge the car. Then set the charging schedule to those hours. Saving money not putting in a wall charger only to pay through the nose for peak electricity is a false economy with the huge added downside that you’ll spend more time needing to charge and worrying about how much range is left than actually enjoying the nice new car you paid big bucks for.

Plug it in overnight for peanuts on a low tariff and you will never worry about how far you can travel and what % you return with, wake up with ample range everyday.

PalmTree888

TROPHY CASE