Tesla Model 3 vs Toyota Urban Cruiser

The Tesla Model 3 costs £9,495 more than the Toyota Urban Cruiser. For that premium it adds 119 miles more WLTP range, 122 kW faster peak rapid charging and 372 litres more boot space. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Tesla Model 3 comes out ahead overall.

The Toyota Urban Cruiser is £9,495 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £144 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Toyota Urban Cruiser comes out roughly £9,415 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 229 miles for the Tesla Model 3 and 178 miles for the Toyota Urban Cruiser - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Tesla Model 3 goes roughly 52 miles further between charging stops.

The Toyota Urban Cruiser is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 133 mm narrower than the Tesla Model 3. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 600 mm of total clearance for the Toyota Urban Cruiser and about 467 mm of total clearance for the Tesla Model 3. The Toyota Urban Cruiser also turns in a 1.2 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 92% battery health for the Tesla Model 3 and 90% for the Toyota Urban Cruiser. That gives the Tesla Model 3 a modest edge in retained real-world range. Both use LFP-type cells, which are happy charged to 100% every day. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.