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Tesla Model 3 gets Japanese car critic’s approval: ‘The excitement alone must be worth getting this car’
Since its release, the Tesla Model 3 has generally received positive reviews from both professional critics and enthusiasts alike. These reviews greatly help the vehicle, especially since Tesla relies on word of mouth due to the company’s stance against traditional advertisements. This means that one of the Model 3’s best chances of being successful relies on how well it is received by reviewers and owners alike.
With the Model 3 about to enter the Japanese market, the vehicle recently subjected to an evaluation by car critic Hitoshi Sezai from local motoring publication Motor-Fan.jp. Over the course of his time with the vehicle, the auto veteran found the Model 3 to be a completely different car than anything currently available on the market today. Sezai’s test unit was a Long Range Model 3 RWD, the first iteration of the vehicle released in the United States. In his review, the car critic took particular notice of the Model 3’s infotainment screen, which holds the vast majority of the vehicle’s functions.
モデル３はまるで別物。この感動だけでもこのクルマを手に入れる価値があるに違いない⚡️@MotorFanweb https://t.co/yZHR9mffqB
— Tesla Japan (@teslajapan) August 20, 2019
Sezai likened the experience of using the Model 3’s display to his first impressions of the Apple iPad. According to the critic, when he first used an iPad, there was something immediately familiar and exciting about the system and how it freed users from the “mess of Windows.” This experience, Sezai noted, is echoed in the Model 3, as the vehicle gives drivers the impression that they are “in touch with a next-generation car.”
The critic also pointed out how different the Model 3 is compared to other EVs on the market. Using the best-selling Nissan Leaf as an example, Sezai stated that EVs are usually vehicles in “familiar packaging.” That is, they look like regular cars whose engines were replaced by electric motors. This was not the case with the Model 3, making the sedan very exciting to operate. “The Model 3 is a different thing. This excitement alone must be worth getting this car,” the critic wrote.
The critic admitted that he took some time before he got comfortable with the vehicle’s regenerative braking system (he was far more comfortable with a Standard setting), though he noted that the Model 3’s response and acceleration are impeccable. According to Sezai, the Model 3’s acceleration almost gives the impression that one is driving a ride from an amusement park: silent and very, very quick.
Most of the car critic’s observations about the Model 3 mirror that of reviews from enthusiasts who have recently experienced the vehicle. Earlier this month, Japanese EV enthusiasts who were able to take the Model 3 for a test drive praised the vehicle for its novel automated features and its all-electric performance, which some reviewers noted was superior to petrol-powered automobiles. Tesla, for its part, has started its promotional efforts in Japan, displaying the vehicle in several key cities.
The Tesla Model 3 is a best-selling vehicle in the United States, outselling rivals in the premium sedan segment such as the BMW M3. Considering the excitement surrounding the vehicle in nations such as Japan and South Korea, it appears that the Model 3 has a good shot at making an impact in the Asian region as well. In South Korea, for example, the Model 3 has started attracting large groups of people after it was made available in the country, especially after its starting price was lowered to just around $26,500 when national and select local subsidies are included.
The in-car Tesla Theater is among the most unique features available within the cars. When charging, parked, camping, or just hanging out, vehicle occupants can access a variety of streaming platforms on the large center screen, helping keep them entertained during downtime.
However, the Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms, something that owners have requested for some time.
Tesla owners recently discovered that visiting Apple TV in the vehicle browser can launch a fullscreen interface that looks and behaves like a dedicated application rather than an ordinary webpage:
Today I learned that if you go to Apple TV in the Tesla browser, it will open up an actual Apple TV app, fully functional. Not just the site.
Apparently there are more apps than just the few that show on the apps page. pic.twitter.com/os1Ypfm4JR
— Jason W (@jmwilt21) August 20, 2026
The experience drops the usual address bar and browser chrome, presenting catalogs, continue watching rows, and playback controls in the same window Tesla Theater already uses for its listed services. Independent testers soon found similar treatment for HBO Max, Paramount+, Peacock, Disney+, and Prime Video when those sites are opened from the car browser.
This shift is a plausible early signal that Tesla is widening Theater support without a formal software note. Theater has long been a set of web views rather than native applications, so recognizing extra domains and stripping the browser frame is a small server-side change that can expand the catalog quickly.
Owners still lack permanent Theater icons for the newly recognized services, and video remains limited to Park, yet the smoother launch is a meaningful step toward a broader lounge while charging.
Tesla Theater arrived with software version 10 in September 2019. The first video services were Netflix, YouTube, and Hulu, available only while parked and originally tied to WiFi. Spotify arrived in the same era as music rather than Theater video. Disney+ joined officially in July 2021 with the 2021.24 update, giving owners another major catalog on the center screen. Twitch and TikTok later appeared among the default Theater tiles, and Tesla Tutorials remained a persistent educational tile.
Not every addition stayed put. In December 2023, a Holiday software build removed the Disney+ tile for many United States owners after a public dispute involving advertising on X. Hulu stayed visible even though Disney owned it. Visiting disneyplus.com in the browser often restored the tile, which suggested the removal was a recognition list change rather than a complete block. Owners have also reported occasional blank Theater grids after updates, usually fixed by language toggles, resets, or later firmware.
Tesla axes Disney+ from vehicles with Musk-Iger rivalry, but there’s a workaround
Code archives from 2024 listed many unused source names, including Apple TV and Prime Video, that never became official icons, which now looks like groundwork for the current fullscreen browser behavior.
Now that this hint toward an expanded Theater experience has been recognized, Tesla could follow through with these additional shortcuts as a sign that more streaming platforms are available in Teslas than ever before.
Tesla recently received its largest order for the all-electric Semi from Einride, a Swedish transport service, for 500 units, a groundbreaking invoice to receive before the first deliveries begin.
Even more remarkable, Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli said in a recent interview that he expects his company to take delivery of all 500 — the entire order — before the end of 2027. He even expects to have 75 Tesla Semi units in the Einride fleet before the end of this year.
🚨 Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli on the Tesla Semi partnership:
“If we start with the Amazon announcement that we did earlier this year, that was on the back of having gone through a proving period together with them and proving out our technology. Then we took that next step in… pic.twitter.com/oazkXjwoig
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 28, 2026
Charli said the Tesla partnership was part of a broader push, along with its earlier partnership with Amazon. Einride is assisting Amazon with the use of its Saga AI platform, which helps eliminate questions about budgeting and forecasting for logistics companies.
The Semi, as well as Tesla’s production and subsequent delivery of the units to Einride, will help the company “to have a good supply of vehicles that we can deploy on the [Saga AI] platform,” Charli said. “Tesla is also a relationship we’ve had for a while, and as the Tesla Semi deliveries are firming up, we decided to do a larger commitment to that and deploy that on our platform.”
In its initial announcement, Einride said it anticipated taking delivery of the trucks over the next two years, but now it appears the company is expecting all 500 units within the next 16 months.
Built at a dedicated factory in Sparks, Nevada, the Tesla Semi has been perhaps the biggest and most intensive testing process the company has ever had for a single vehicle model. For the past several years, Tesla has been working with many companies, most notably Frito-Lay and PepsiCo, to gain knowledge on the performance on regional routes.
Tesla plans to launch the Semi officially on September 24, five months after production started ramping.
Additionally, drivers have said they are happy about the Semi’s performance and that its numerous safety and productivity features have made their jobs and routes much easier.
Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.
Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.
This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.
TESLARATI Premium Membership
$19.99 USD🚨 Tesla is using different light bar colors to help riders understand which vehicle is theirs
Pretty cool strategy pic.twitter.com/eGMpEMeRpc
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 27, 2026
Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.
Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.
Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.
Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.
Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.
Tesla Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms
Tesla Semi’s biggest adoptee gives an update on production timeline
