Tesla Model 3 RWD Displays Impressive Efficiency In European Testing

The green spinoff of Euro NCAP says it “is a reason for Tesla engineers to be proud of their achievement.”

Model 3 Green NCAP

Photo by: Green NCAP

Andrei Nedelea

By: Andrei Nedelea

Dec 16, 2024 at 10:00am ET

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Green NCAP praised the Tesla Model 3 RWD, giving it the maximum five-star rating due to its remarkable efficiency.
The Model 3 got an almost perfect score of 98%, but it wasn't the highest out of all the vehicles tested this year.

Tesla makes some of the most efficient electric cars on the market, and the most frugal is the Model 3. The pre-facelift Model 3 performed exceedingly well when Green NCAP tested it in 2022. The revised Highland model further improves upon its predecessor and earns the maximum five-star rating.

Green NCAP is run by the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP), and it rates vehicles not for safety but for harmful pollutants emitted and energy efficiency. It puts vehicles through three sets of tests: clean air, efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions.

The Tesla Model 3 RWD was given a maximum Clean Air Index of 10.0 and 9.8 for its Greenhouse Gas Index. The Efficiency Index comprises four laboratory tests and four real-world road tests; the Model 3 scored the maximum in all of them, stretching its electrons further than most EVs.

They confirmed the base Model 3 (which, for the European market, where these tests are conducted, is made in China) with the LFP battery has a usable capacity of 60 kilowatt-hours. That’s more than most other estimates, which usually suggest that it has a 60 kW gross capacity with around 57.5 kWh usable.

The highway efficiency test, which is done at the typical European speed limit of 80.7 mph (130 km/h), yielded an impressive 2.98 miles/kWh (20.8 kWh/100 km), allowing it to cover up to 201 miles (324 km) of “dynamic high speed highway driving,” which Green NCAP says is “a new record value.” In mixed driving conditions, it achieved 4.37 miles/kWh (14.2 kWh/100 km), giving it a theoretical maximum range of 295 miles (475 km).

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Its lowest consumption figure was achieved in the short urban trip test, where the vehicle averaged 5 miles/kWh (12.4 kWh/100 km), allowing it to cover 340 miles (547 km) on a full charge. The car was also praised for its thermal management in the cold weather test, which was able to bring the temperature inside the cabin (specifically around the front headrests) to 64.4°F (18°C) in just 3 minutes after starting from cold with an outside temperature of 19.4°F (-7°C).

The Model 3 RWD got a final score of 98%, which is exactly the same as the recently tested 2024 Hyundai Kona EV, more than the BYD Atto 3 (which also has impressive safety credentials) with 96%, and less than the 2024 Opel/Vauxhall Corsa, whose rating was 99%. The latter is the greenest car tested this year by Green NCAP, followed by the electric Kona in second place and the Model 3 in third.