Is the Tesla Model 3 expensive?

UPDATE: The article has been updated with the official Hungarian Tesla price published this morning (14 May 2021).

I often read in electric car groups that Teslas are very expensive and that other cars of similar size are much cheaper.

Dimensions

What makes the comparison difficult is that the car is larger than it looks from the outside. The lack of a petrol engine means that the front overhang is much shorter than what we are used to in conventional cars. The interior size, on the other hand, is determined by the wheelbase, which for the Model 3 is 2,875 mm, the same as the BMW E60 5 Series until 2010, by just under 15 mm. The Model 3 is usually compared to the BMW 3 Series, but even the latest BMW 3 Series has a wheelbase 24 mm shorter, so the comparison is not perfect there either.

Although Model 3 is usually classified in the D segment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-segment), but in fact it has more interior space than any other type.

Current D-segment types	Axis	Difference
Tesla Model 3	2875 mm
BMW 3 (G20)	2851 mm	- 24 mm
VW Passat (B8)	2786 mm	- 89 mm
Mercedes C (W206)	2865 mm	- 10 mm
Audi A4 (8W)	2615 mm	- 260 mm
Skoda Superb (3V)	2841 mm	- 34 mm
Volvo S60 (3rd gen)	2872 mm	- 3 mm

Facilities

We have a Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus in daily use, so I know the car pretty intimately. In my opinion, it is quite difficult to compare Teslas with other cars in terms of price, as Tesla does not produce a "base model", i.e. a version without any extras. In contrast, even the most basic model from the American manufacturer is highly equipped, you can hardly ask for extras because they are already included.

I've compiled a list of what's included in every standard Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus edition:

Indoor space

• Black vegan leather seats
• Black vegan leather handlebar
• 15 inch display
• Wireless phone charging (2pcs)
• USB connectors (4pcs)
• Full fixed panoramic roof
• 6x LED interior lighting
• 6-way power adjustable seats (memory)
• Motorised lumbar support
• Motorised steering adjustment (up and down, up and down)
• Two-zone air conditioning
• 4 cameras for continuous on-board video recording
• Sentry mode, Dog mode
• A stack of built-in toys
• One free software update per month

External

• 18 inch alloy wheel
• Removable aero hubcaps
• Rubber pressure sensor
• Multicoat white pearl finish
• Motorised rear boot opening and closing
• Boot space front and rear (542 litres in total)
• LED matrix front headlamp
• LED tail lights

Security

• Autosteer
• Adaptive cruise control
• Emergency braking assistant
• Lane Departure Warning
• Blank space warning
• Rain sensor with camera
• Automatic high beam headlamp
• Isofix

The dynamics of change

• Acceleration 0-100 km/h: 5.3 seconds
• Power: 325 HP
• Torque: 420 Nm
• Top speed: 225 km/h
• WLTP range: 448 km

I tried to put together a list of D-segment cars with very similar equipment to Tesla, and the following purchase prices came up:

D-segment type	Gross purchase price	Link	Comment
Tesla Model 3 SR+	14 999 900 Ft	https://cutt.ly/JbKsZFr	From 14 May 2021.
BMW 330d Sedan	17 749 600 Ft	https://cutt.ly/TcIEqZt
VW Passat Business 2.0 TDI DSG	17 481 930 Ft	https://cutt.ly/fcIW8a0	2 litre diesel is the most powerful engine
C 200 Mild Hybrid	20 535 389 Ft	https://cutt.ly/rcI4slq	slightly higher equipment
Audi A4 TFSI S tronic Mild Hybrid	16 640 610 Ft	https://cutt.ly/bcOqoUw	lower equipment
Skoda Superb Sportline 4×4 DSG	17 959 081 Ft	https://cutt.ly/8cOeKgs	four-wheel drive with identical performance
Volvo S60 Momentum Pro B4 Mild Hybrid	16 708 377 Ft	https://cutt.ly/tcOtsKY

What I found is that cars with similar equipment and performance cost at least the same, while all competing cars have smaller interiors.