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Tesla Model 3 Dual Motor AWD showcases impressive traction in 4×4 roller test

(Credit: duszaniespokojna - 4x4 tests on rollers/YouTube)

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6 years ago

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A Tesla Model 3 Dual Motor AWD was recently subjected to a series of 4×4 tests on rollers, which are conducted to evaluate the traction of a vehicles. Based on the results of the Model 3’s multiple traction tests, it appears that Tesla’s midsize sedan is an electric car that simply won’t slip. 

The Model 3 Dual Motor AWD’s tests were conducted by duszaniespokojna – 4×4 tests on rollers, a group on YouTube that performs traction tests for various vehicles, including dedicated off-roaders like the Land Rover Discovery and the Suzuki Jimny to city cars like the Audi A6 and the Toyota Rav4. Through a series of tests with the rollers in varying configurations, the team is able to demonstrate how vehicles are able to find their traction in tricky conditions. 

The Model 3 Dual Motor AWD is not designed or marketed as an off-road vehicle by any means, but its results from the group’s roller tests showed that the electric car is capable of finding its traction with such simple proficiency that it can easily breeze through the roller tests, both in its standard and Slip Start settings. Even a tricky test that involved three of the Model 3’s wheels being on rollers was completed without any issue. 

This is particularly impressive considering that the Model 3 is, for all intents and purposes, a city car like the Audi A6, which is equipped with the German automaker’s iconic quattro technology. Audi has made an indelible mark in the auto market with its rally-bred AWD system, but even quattro vehicles like the A6 sedan exhibit some difficulty when tested with rollers on three of its wheels. 

Part of the reason behind the Model 3’s stellar results in the 4×4 tests on rollers lies in the vehicle’s all-electric design. Being equipped with an electric motor both front and back, the Model 3 is able to produce a lot of torque from the get-go. Couple this with the Model 3’s notable weight due to its large, floor-mounted battery pack, as well as the fact that all of the vehicle’s wheels are electronically controlled, and one ends up with an all-electric family sedan that simply does not slip. 

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The Tesla Model 3 is steadily proving that it pays to be a vehicle that is designed from the ground up to be all-electric. The midsize sedan’s stellar safety ratings from both the NHTSA and the Euro NCAP were due in no small part to the car’s all-electric design, which gives the Model 3 large crumple zones in the event of a crash. The floor-mounted battery pack of the Model 3 also provides the vehicle with great stability, allowing the electric car to ace the infamous Moose Test. This time around, it is the vehicle’s electronics and its motors’ instant torque that played a part in acing a test that can put even Audi’s iconic quattro system to shame. 

Here’s how the Tesla Model 3 Dual Motor AWD performed in the 4×4 test on rollers.

And here’s how an Audi A6 TDI quattro performed in a similar test.  

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Elon Musk

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang commends Tesla’s Elon Musk for early belief

“And when I announced DGX-1, nobody in the world wanted it. I had no purchase orders, not one. Nobody wanted to buy it. Nobody wanted to be part of it, except for Elon.”

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18 minutes ago

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December 3, 2025

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Credit: NVIDIA

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Wednesday and commended Tesla CEO Elon Musk for his early belief in what is now the most valuable company in the world.

Huang and Musk are widely regarded as two of the greatest tech entrepreneurs of the modern era, with the two working in conjunction as NVIDIA’s chips are present in Tesla vehicles, particularly utilized for self-driving technology and data collection.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang regrets not investing more in Elon Musk’s xAI

Both CEOs defied all odds and created companies from virtually nothing. Musk joined Tesla in the early 2000s before the company had even established any plans to build a vehicle. Jensen created NVIDIA in the booth of a Denny’s restaurant, which has been memorialized with a plaque.

On the JRE episode, Rogan asked about Jensen’s relationship with Elon, to which the NVIDIA CEO said that Musk was there when nobody else was:

“I was lucky because I had known Elon Musk, and I helped him build the first computer for Model 3, the Model S, and when he wanted to start working on an autonomous vehicle. I helped him build the computer that went into the Model S AV system, his full self-driving system. We were basically the FSD computer version 1, and so we were already working together.

And when I announced DGX-1, nobody in the world wanted it. I had no purchase orders, not one. Nobody wanted to buy it. Nobody wanted to be part of it, except for Elon.

He goes ‘You know what, I have a company that could really use this.’ I said, Wow, my first customer. And he goes, it’s an AI company, and it’s a nonprofit and and we could really use one of these supercomputers. I boxed one up, I drove it up to San Francisco, and I delivered it to the Elon in 2016.”

The first DGX-1 AI supercomputer was delivered personally to Musk when he was with OpenAI, which provided crucial early compute power for AI research, accelerating breakthroughs in machine learning that underpin modern tools like ChatGPT.

Tesla’s Nvidia purchases could reach $4 billion this year: Musk

The long-term alliance between NVIDIA and Tesla has driven over $2 trillion in the company’s market value since 2016.

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GM CEO Mary Barra says she told Biden to give Tesla and Musk EV credit

“He was crediting me, and I said, ‘Actually, I think a lot of that credit goes to Elon and Tesla…You know me, Andrew. I don’t want to take credit for things.”

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11 hours ago

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December 3, 2025

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General Motors CEO Mary Barra said in a new interview on Wednesday that she told President Joe Biden to credit Tesla and its CEO, Elon Musk, for the widespread electric vehicle transition.

She said she told Biden this after the former President credited her and GM for leading EV efforts in the United States.

During an interview at the New York Times Dealbook Summit with Andrew Ross Sorkin, Barra said she told Biden that crediting her was essentially a mistake, and that Musk and Tesla should have been explicitly mentioned (via Business Insider):

“He was crediting me, and I said, ‘Actually, I think a lot of that credit goes to Elon and Tesla…You know me, Andrew. I don’t want to take credit for things.”

Back in 2021, President Biden visited GM’s “Factory Zero” plant in Detroit, which was the centerpiece of the company’s massive transition to EVs. The former President went on to discuss the EV industry, and claimed that GM and Barra were the true leaders who caused the change:

“In the auto industry, Detroit is leading the world in electric vehicles. You know how critical it is? Mary, I remember talking to you way back in January about the need for America to lead in electric vehicles. I can remember your dramatic announcement that by 2035, GM would be 100% electric. You changed the whole story, Mary. You did, Mary. You electrified the entire automotive industry. I’m serious. You led, and it matters.”

People were baffled by the President’s decision to highlight GM and Barra, and not Tesla and Musk, who truly started the transition to EVs. GM, Ford, and many other companies only followed in the footsteps of Tesla after it started to take market share from them.

Elon Musk and Tesla try to save legacy automakers from Déjà vu

Musk would eventually go on to talk about Biden’s words later on:

“They have so much power over the White House that they can exclude Tesla from an EV Summit. And, in case the first thing, in case that wasn’t enough, then you have President Biden with Mary Barra at a subsequent event, congratulating Mary for having led the EV revolution.”

In Q4 2021, which was shortly after Biden’s comments, Tesla delivered 300,000 EVs. GM delivered just 26.

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Tesla Full Self-Driving shows confident navigation in heavy snow

So far, from what we’ve seen, snow has not been a huge issue for the most recent Full Self-Driving release. It seems to be acting confidently and handling even snow-covered roads with relative ease.

Published

14 hours ago

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December 3, 2025

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Credit: Grok

Tesla Full Self-Driving is getting its first taste of Winter weather for late 2025, as snow is starting to fall all across the United States.

The suite has been vastly improved after Tesla released v14 to many owners with capable hardware, and driving performance, along with overall behavior, has really been something to admire. This is by far the best version of FSD Tesla has ever released, and although there are a handful of regressions with each subsequent release, they are usually cleared up within a week or two.

Tesla is releasing a modified version of FSD v14 for Hardware 3 owners: here’s when

However, adverse weather conditions are something that Tesla will have to confront, as heavy rain, snow, and other interesting situations are bound to occur. In order for the vehicles to be fully autonomous, they will have to go through these scenarios safely and accurately.

One big issue I’ve had, especially in heavy rain, is that the camera vision might be obstructed, which will display messages that certain features’ performance might be degraded.

So far, from what we’ve seen, snow has not been a huge issue for the most recent Full Self-Driving release. It seems to be acting confidently and handling even snow-covered roads with relative ease:

Moving into the winter months, it will be very interesting to see how FSD handles even more concerning conditions, especially with black ice, freezing rain and snow mix, and other things that happen during colder conditions.

We are excited to test it ourselves, but I am waiting for heavy snowfall to make it to Pennsylvania so I can truly push it to the limit.

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