Our 280 Mile Trip in the New Model 3 Performance Was a Disaster (or WAS it?)

We challenged the 2026 Model 3 Performance to a 280-mile round-trip on a single charge. The actual journey stretched past 360 miles, necessitating a Supercharger stop—technically a failure, except Tesla's FSD nailed the whole drive without us touching the wheel.

Between the range reality check, the inevitable charging pit stop, and full-self-driving handling highway and back roads equally well, we got a genuine picture of what long-distance EV travel looks like right now. Spoiler: it's not as simple as the marketing suggests, but it works.