TL;DR: I would take the Model 3 any day at that price. I have buyers remorse.

Drive feel:

The Model 3 is an absolute joy to drive and I would take it any day over either of my Audis and over any of the BMWs or Mercedes. Every gas car feels laggy now and they are kind of ruined for me. I drive my wife's car at every opportunity now even though I have a 3 week old Audi in my garage.

Autopilot makes gridlock traffic no longer a big deal. This is pretty huge and I hated driving my Audi long distance to Tahoe over July 4th weekend in traffic. I do NOT trust it with anything beyond gridlock traffic though. Not even for merges.

Interior:

The Model 3 seats are super comfy but the whole interior feels budget and I really hope you like minimalism because its extremely minimal and borderline cheap. BMW/Audi/Mercedes: I hope you like BUTTONS EVERYWHERE FOR EVERYTHING (I certainly don't). The interior feels much more premium than the Model 3 though.

Side note: Why does a tachometer still exist as a massive dial taking up most of your dash? I doubt 98% of people ever look at it.

The interface:

While significantly improved from my 2015 S4, the A4 UI is still an atrocity. Bluetooth is still awful and it auto plays whatever the hell happened to be running on my iPhone last. Lack of a touch screen (except BMW) is surprisingly frustrating now that I've used one.

The central display in the Model 3 is incredible and I love almost everything about it. Who needs bluetooth when you have Google Maps and high quality streaming audio over an incredible sounding sound system? I rarely even WANT to connect my phone.

Random:

The keyless unlock for the Model 3 is amazing as long as it actually works with your phone. My wife's Pixel XL works about 50% of the time and it makes it infuriating. PLEASE GIVE US A KEYFOB, TESLA

I can turn on the AC remotely on a hot day! The Model 3 is cold by the time we get in! There are so many delights with this car and that goes a long way.

That sounds awesome! It means I can do something without having to look away from the road. I don't have to actively context-switch whatever I'm thinking about to navigate on a touch panel. Whatever these guys are doing, it sounds so much better than dealing with glare and non-responsivity issues.

Navigation:

The cognitive load is very high on both vehicles. Using dials and buttons on my Audi is really hard and the maps are loaded with random icons and its a bit harder to parse where I'm supposed to turn next.

The voice directions work really well on the Model 3 since I assume it just pipes it to Google Maps. My Audi is terrible unless it is "home" or something obvious it wont misunderstand.

AC/Heat:

I have to look down for both cars. In my Audi, the physical buttons for the fan have digital displays for the speed and temp. So I have to look and read anyway.

Music:

There are next/previous and volume buttons on the wheel in the Model 3. No different than my Audi. Tapping the giant screen is definitely easier than tapping on my tiny iPhone screen like I currently do in my Audi.

I'm also wondering if the feel of an electrical engine is a personal thing? I have heard from one of my friend owning a Motel 3 that they are not a huge fan of the Electrical feel compared to a Manual gas car.

My S4 was definitely fast and I had a great time driving it, but the feel of the Model 3 is much more satisfying. It feels like a missile. Everyone who we have let drive it or let sit in it has been shocked.

I'm sure there is a personal preference (my coworker will never give up a gas engine) but I think the majority who drive it and slam on the accelerator will probably agree.

If you drive a fully manual car, you are already way closer to a real acceleration.

That being said a smooth acceleration without the downtime needed for a gear shift must be quite an experience. I need to try that.

The Model 3 doesn't have to be everything to everybody though! (Just to most people if they want to succeed)

Give it a shot though, you may be surprised. Hopefully you can actually find one to test drive.

It probably was the poor low-end torque of their Ecoboost engine. Even in manual, I have to rev the engine high to keep 1st gear responsive. But the DCT gearbox doesn't allow that kind of slippage, its too quick for that.

There are definitely warts in DCT, at least in Ford's implementation. I like the idea of an automatic dry clutch, so hopefully Ford improves it. But alas, Ford has stopped selling sedans in the USA so I guess it doesn't matter.

Wait, really? If your phone is broken or out of batteries, are you locked out of the car?

Not true. Save for long-haul drives (> 250-300 mile trips), the daily experience of driving a Tesla is objectively superior in every way to every gas car I've driven. It has nothing to do with image or idol worship and everything to do with the daily experience of driving it.

I also prefer it for long-haul drives, but I have a 4-year-old and taking a 25 minute break every 3 hours works well for us. If you're purely in a hurry, a gas car will refuel much faster (but if I'm in a hurry, I'm flying, not long-haul driving).

That's a tall order.

For example an Audi S4/S5, or for a bit cheaper, a fully jacked up VW Golf R.

The whole value of the model 3, is the brand name and what it projects I think.

While I agree that the "feel" is different between gas and electric, I think you are overestimating what the Model 3 can do.

To come back to my examples, Any of the Audi S4/S5 [1] or Golf R will get 0-60 faster than all the Tesla Model 3, except the performance one [2].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audi_S5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audi_S4

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla_Model_3#Specifications

I own a Model 3, and the perceptually instant throttle response and the lack of gear changes is what makes it 'funner' than the competitors for me to drive.

Come back when you've taken a test drive. They're free.

You dont think the flood of critical acclaim counts for anything?

I fully agree that it is a good car, the whole discussion here is about the price tag, and if it is worth it in comparison of what a traditional ICE car can offer.

I think it is debatable, and as it is very often the case in the car industry, it is a lot about what image you want to project as an owner of the car.

Furthermore journalists do not escape the brand name effect. A lot of the critics were already convinced Tesla fans.