Tesla Model 3 Performance: The definition of clinical, do-it-all electric performance

There’s something to be said about how a Tesla Model 3 looks very common, even though in the Philippines, it’s something to be seen as a bit of a luxury item and status symbol, much like an iPhone is.

That’s how we’ve described it in our review of the base Model 3 RWD Standard Range, which, by its own merits, is a very good electric car for a starting price of Php 2,109,000. But what if you wanted something that almost falls into sleeper car territory, but still wanted an electric car with the status to match?

A few choices in the performance electric car category, such as the BMW i4 M50 or the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, seem a little ostentatious. Enter the Tesla Model 3 Performance All Wheel Drive, the top-of-the-line variant that starts at Php 3,099,000.

This specific demo unit is fully loaded, topping out at Php 3,747,000 thanks to options like the Quicksilver Paint (Php 146,000), the Black and White Premium Interior (Php 66,000), and the Full Self Driving Capability (Php 394,000). Of course, there are other costs such as the Delivery and Admin Fee (Php 12,000), and the Order Fee (Php 15,000).

So, what does this get you over the standard Model 3? A dual-motor drivetrain capable of 510 horsepower and 610Nm of torque, a 0-100kph time of around 3.1 seconds, and a range of up to 571km from a new 81kWh battery pack.

This also comes with a bespoke chassis that has been tuned for track use, a firmer adaptive suspension with configurable dampers, higher-performance brakes (which are very important), a dedicated Track Mode V3, 20-inch forged wheels, more aggressive, functional aerodynamics with carbon fiber bits, Sport seats, and carbon fiber bits.

How does it drive? It feels very videogame-like. The steering is noticeably heavier than the standard Model 3, yet it lacks the organicness of an ICE-powered vehicle’s steering rack. You can make this lighter or even heavier, but it feels very disconnected from the road, especially with how responsive and instant the feedback can be.

The adaptive suspension and dampers make the car sit noticeably lower, with 128mm of ground clearance. It feels noticeably firmer, considerably less body roll in the corners, yet it still manages to be very comfortable when driving.

It’s well-damped and absorbing any ruts and imperfections, but the skinnier bespoke Pirelli rubber and 20-inch wheels will cushion the ride less, and are the noisiest bits in one of the quietest vehicles you can drive on the road today for under Php 4-million.

As for the power, the focus of the Model 3 Performance is not the explosive, push-you-back-into-the-seat speed off the line, but rather consistency. Yes, it does that part pretty well, even in Standard mode, but the cherry on top is the Insane acceleration mode, eliciting a few screams of terror and startling passengers when done from a dead stop. Don’t want that? Chill mode will smooth it out to make it more like a regular car, at least.

As for the consistency part, Tesla says that its Track Mode V3 allows the car to stay fast for longer on the track. There is a new menu option that will allow you to configure options such as the handling balance, the amount of stability control, the powertrain endurance, and the amount of regenerative braking.

The first option is particularly interesting, allowing you to shift the power split to induce either understeer or oversteer, with lots of increments in between that’ll allow you to dial the exact type of handling you want. The amount of regenerative braking can now be adjusted or even turned off entirely if you want to drive this like a regular car on the racetrack, where its large performance brakes will come in handy, especially considering how heavy this EV is.

And when you do enable Track Mode, the first thing you’ll notice is a new screen option that lets you monitor tire pressures, motor, brake, and battery temperature. The cooling system ramps up, where you’ll hear the fans and pumps go full blast, all in the name of keeping the components cool.

Obviously, this means that your range will take a big hit if you decide to track the vehicle. In realistic driving conditions, you should be hitting around 500 to 530km from a full charge, but I wasn’t able to fully test out the claimed 571km of range, nor experience the Tesla Supercharger (which ramps up to 250kW), due to being trapped within the city thanks to the holiday rush. Just know that when it’s time for you to charge, any CCS2/Type 2-equipped charger will be able to juice it up.

As for the changed aero bits of the vehicle, they’re quite subtle. The front bumper gets functional side bumper vents to redirect air to cool the brakes, and there is a more pronounced front lip. The rear end also gets a bumper with a functional rear diffuser and a carbon ducktail spoiler, and apart from the obvious 20-inch Warp Wheels, there’s a very, very tiny “Performance” badge found on the trunk. That’s it.

The interior still carries over the same singular 15.4-inch touchscreen that controls every aspect of the car, down to the steering wheel and mirror adjustments, the drive selector (with a redundant gear selector by the roof-mounted hazard button), the air vent directions, and even the glove box.

It’s accompanied by a great-sounding 17-speaker sound system (15 speakers, 2 subwoofers), too. This has the optional black-and-white leather interior, and this contrasts with the carbon trim on the dashboard that can only be found on this variant.

Tesla software is great, being very responsive and almost smartphone-like, including a few benefits such as built-in navigation with music and media streaming (when parked), video games, and even oddities that are befitting of the founder’s, er, unusual personality. You can use most of these features assuming you pay for the premium connectivity package, which comes free for the first 30 days of ownership, and which then is an optional Php 799/month.

Other amenities include heated and cooled front Sport seats that really hug you in place and feel like semi-bucket seats, dual wireless chargers, an incredibly deep center console storage, a rear eight-inch infotainment for the passengers to control the air vents, and a large panoramic glass roof that gets quite hot in the Philippine weather despite having reflective coatings and all.

Being a mid-sized sport sedan, the seat position gets quite low, and you have great visibility all around. Bonus points for Tesla revamping the Model 3 to now have a proper turn signal stalk, though leaving the high beam button within the steering wheel, as a race car-esque style quirk.

The rear seats (which are heated) offer good amounts of bolstering and a center armrest that folds down, but headroom can get a bit compromised as this is a sedan with a tapering roofline. Tesla missed the opportunity to turn this into a proper liftback as the Model 3 features a massive boot area of around 594L with hidden under-floor storage plus an 88L front trunk, which makes it a very practical, but the aperture of the boot makes it hard to load wider items.

Finally, there’s the Full Self Driving, which is a Php 394,000 option that comes with a catch. Arguably the best vision-based advanced driver assistance system on the market today, Tesla promises that this car will be able to drive itself autonomously with software updates to make it even better.

However, that’s only in supported countries, and for now, the feature set is limited to traffic-aware cruise control with autosteer and auto lane change, auto park, and your usual blind-spot monitoring, rear-cross traffic alert, and lane departure prevention, plus a very clear 360-degree camera. Eventually, more features will be unlocked once they pass regulations locally, but you always have the option to just get basic features and upgrade later via the Tesla app.

And that’s the beauty of a software-defined vehicle (SDV): being able to add features and functionality after the vehicle’s purchase. Software updates can make an EV drive further and better, but you can’t add the hardware needed to make an EV go even faster.

Hence, these “hot” versions of these cars exist. The amount of punch and value that the Model 3 Performance delivers for its base price is undeniable, which can quickly balloon with options added.

It can be said that Tesla’s execution of performance is sterile and clinical, and that’s what the Model 3 Performance feels like. If you want a track weapon with soul, it’s best to look elsewhere, but this is the best “do-it-all” option for an electric vehicle.

2025 Tesla Model 3 Performance | Key Information

Powertrain	Dual electric motors
Output	510 horsepower, 610 Nm of torque
Transmission	Single-speed fixed ratio
Drivetrain	AWD
Seating Capacity	5 (including driver)
Driver Assistance	Tesla Full Self Driving
Price	Php 3,099,000 (starting price, as of December 2025)Php 3,747,000 (as tested)
Pros	An electric pocket rocket that manages to do it all without looking very flashy or ostentatious (unless you paint it Ultra Red).
Cons	Other than the head-smacking acceleration, the car feels too clinical for a performance car.

^{Photos by Sam Surla}