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Model 3 won't look like other cars

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Reddit AMA:
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Does anyone else believe that this could be HUGE? As in, they are designing something totally new without blindly respecting any existing car design conventions?

I may be overthinking this but it could gel with Elon's "First Principles Thinking": Elon Musk's First Principles - Business Insider

Remember that this is in reply to "share anything... that we don't already know"

Thoughts?
 
Reddit AMA:
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Does anyone else believe that this could be HUGE? As in, they are designing something totally new without blindly respecting any existing car design conventions?

I may be overthinking this but it could gel with Elon's "First Principles Thinking": Elon Musk's First Principles - Business Insider

Remember that this is in reply to "share anything... that we don't already know"

Thoughts?

While I believe the sentiment, in reality to the most extent cars form follows function. It must be easy to get in and out and have enough room for the humans inside and all their stuff. So with that logic I believe that the car will be progressive and pioneering but not necessarily too much in the outside form. I love cool stuff so I am hoping I might be wrong here but that is my guess. I think the real answer will be revealed when the Model X is revealed. Not because I think the Model X will be radical but because Elon has said several times that it will be VERY different from the prototype. If it is VERY different then it is likely the the Model 3 will follow in being more radical in design. OTOH Model 3 is going to be critical to TM going mainstream and changing the world. Straying too much off the norm may diminish that goal. There is a fine balance to be struck. I am sure they can do it and am anxious to see the results too.
 
Very interesting comment by Elon although he can hype things up a bit :)

It'd be very brave of Tesla to go completely unconventional for their "mass (premium) market" car. But, basic aerodynamic reasons still require a traditional car shape, I'd think. It may be the bells and whistles - autopilot, gizmos inside, etc. - that Elon may be referring to.
 
So with that logic I believe that the car will be progressive and pioneering but not necessarily too much in the outside form.

In that same line of thought, I am imagining something that has basic car features like 4 wheels, general car shape, etc. but there is so much more to work with and re-think:

The doors could be radical like X but not falcon wing..something that makes sense in that form factor
The motors could be tiny enough to fit next to the wheel thereby increasing available interior space resulting in a different car shape
Merging of all front and back lights to one continuous strip that changes colors, etc. based on intention
So many possibilities.

Look at this latest concept from Mercedes:
The Mercedes-Benz F 015: this is what tomorrows self-driving cars look like | The Verge

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And this is both the wonderful and painful part about communicating through that type of medium. Quick message fired off between meetings or emails that could be quite clear to Elon (or deliberately vague to create PR mystique) but missing a pronoun or modifier that provides clarity to the user. Is it "our other cars?" What about "all other cars?" or "other Tesla cars?" or ...

Let the speculation continue!
 
I for one do not want the Model 3 to look anything like that Mercedes concept in post #8 above.

Full disclosure: On my current career arch I will be able to buy a Model 3 with cash.


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Caveat:

Forgot to add that I kind of like the wheels though. I want a set of aesthetically pleasing Aero wheels on my Model 3 in order to maximize range. However: The concave element on the wheels of that Mercedes concept evidently isn't a good thing from an aero efficiency point of view...
 
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That is an aesthetic nightmare. IMO.
+1

They both are.

It's quite intriguing how some people who apparently want to work (?) in automotive design seemingly have zero sense for aesthetics... :scared:


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But an aerodynamic dream?
The white one with the covered rear wheel arches isn't one for sure. Don't know enough to judge the one with the blue 'canopy'. But does it really matter? At that aesthetic penalty... Nothing is worth that sacrifice IMO.
 
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I'm not sure we need to read all that much into his statement. In fact, every car on the road doesn't look like any other car model. Of course, certain models look similar to other models but none look like other car models. I am quite certain that once the Model 3 is out, however, people will draw similarities with other vehicle models, just like you can with the Model S, but the Model S does not look like any other car.

Definition - like: 1. having the same characteristics or qualities
 
+1

They both are.

It's quite intriguing how some people who apparently want to work (?) in automotive design seemingly have zero sense for aesthetics... :scared:


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The white one with the covered rear wheel arches isn't one for sure. Don't know enough to judge the one with the blue 'canopy'. But does it really matter? At that aesthetic penalty... Nothing is worth that sacrifice IMO.

Elon insists on good esthetics so while I would expect Tesla to be willing to go against convention, they would still want to make a beautiful car.

Personally, I'd go for the Model U(gly) if it's more efficient. You can't see it when you're using it, and you can rarely see it when you're not using it, so why care so much about how it looks?
 
The white one with the covered rear wheel arches isn't one for sure. Don't know enough to judge the one with the blue 'canopy'.

If it is not a brick it is hard to know until it is put in a wind tunnel.

Anyways, aesthetic expectations need to evolve naturally.

Each Tesla generation getting a bit better while the public adjust to what a car should look like.

Powertrains should see revolutionary change. Aerodynamic design should be evolutionary.

Can't offend the bourgeoisie and hope to become a mass market success.
 
I think we can take his statement quite literally. Franz and others repeatedly referred to wanting to design something more "traditional" with the Model S, specifically with a nose-hood-cabin-trunk, since the novelty of electric vehicles, the user interface, etc was already so advanced - so as not to shock the consumer. This was usually followed by some statement referring to the Model III, stating that it would push boundaries of design and take more full advantage of the skateboard design. I would bet that this car will truly look like nothing like anything we have seen to a significant degree