Mercedes EQE
I knew going in that this is a large car but EV sedan pickings are slim. I liked the fact that I can adjust the braking regeneration level independently of the drive mode, using the paddle shifters. Weirdly for a sedan, it has a very poor view out the back window, as if it was a hatchback.
Tesla Model 3
No stalks or buttons. A screen that looks like I mounted an iPad myself. Marketing material that says “S3XY” as if Tesla is targeting hormonal teenage boys. Everything seemed wrong here. On the other hand, they gave me the car for 30min to drive it myself. I disliked Ioniq 6 and Model 3 showing a camera view of the blind spot when I used the turn signal (BTW I had to find that turn signal every time). One, I want to know if anyone is in the blind spot before I turn on the signal. Two, I want to be looking out in the correct direction rather than at the center screen (Tesla) or instrument panel (Hyundai) when changing lanes.
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Elon’s dream was to spell “sexy” but it was spoiled by Ford when Ford trademarked “Model E”. So had to settle for second best. 
Don’t both the Ioniq 6 and (2024) Model 3 have blind spot indicator lights on or near the mirrors, in addition to the camera display that pops up with the turn signal?
Model 3, No, not near the mirrors. (I love Audi’s system.)
The screen will show animations of cars surrounding you on all sides. But I never use it since I still can;t look right (to the screen) to see what’s going on to my left.
Not for 2023 and earlier. But the 2024 Model 3 has small red lights on the speakers near the mirrors that light up.
https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/model3/en_us/GUID-ADA05DFF-963D-477D-9A51-FA8C8F6429F1.html
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thanks for the update. (I missed that tweak for the '24s.)
Interesting. Not as intuitive as being on the mirror, like most cars. Either it was not prominent enough for me to notice or it was turned off.
Polestar 2
A small EV in the US market, though not actually small. I couldn’t get over the cognitive dissonance of looking at a hatchback and seeing a crossover. I think it shares the platform of Volvo’s c40 or xc40. As a hatchback, bad rear visibility. Drove well and was pretty nice except for looking like a crossover. The issue with Polestar right now are the tariffs on Chinese EVs as these are manufactured in China. The only Polestar 2 they had in my state is the one I test drove with every package under the sun. Due to the tariff issue I think their future is uncertain.
The blind spot video can be either moved around on the screen (move its location on the screen) or turned off altogether. I don’t like it either (and find it distracting) so I dragged it over to the right side of the screen .
If you have mirrors, why would you need a blind spot indicator light? If you set your mirrors correctly there is no blind spot.
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When I was taking my driving test, right before my turn, the instructor flunked an immigrant who allegedly was a taxi driver back in the Soviet Union. The guy was furious! He set the mirrors so he did not have to turn his head checking the blind spots… that was an automatic fail! All teens waiting to take their driving tests were terrified watching the guy cursing the DMV and the United States! His English was not great, but he had a tremendous vocabulary of some choice words! I still check the blind spot the old fashioned way despite having mirrors and the animation on the dashboard showing my car and all surrounding vehicles and bikes.
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I saw a recent Nissan Sentra with a similarly located blind spot light, but it was yellow (like most other cars) and a large vertical line.
Agree that you can set the mirrors to avoid having a blind spot overlapping your car. See
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15131074/how-to-adjust-your-mirrors-to-avoid-blind-spots/ . But most drivers seem to adjust the side mirrors to have blind spots overlapping the car.
However, some cars (not just EVs) have such limited rear and rear side visibility that mirror adjustments can merely move the blind spots to where they do not overlap your car.
If small is important there’s always the Fiat 500e. Wouldn’t be my first choice but it is small.
It’s not clear if your preference for a coupe or sedan is driven by aesthetics or driving feel. If the latter, you might want to stay open to cars that you’re probably categorizing as crossover or suv. With the low enter of gravity from the battery being low to the ground, these taller EVs do not share many of the disadvantages of ICE SUVs.
The Mach-e is a bit longer than you’d probably like but that might be worth a look too. The ID.4 is relatively short for crossover/suv I think (yes, in terms of US not European market).
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When I drive my husband’s car (rare), there is a blind spot indicator light on the side mirror. I still check my blind spot before switching lanes. But the light enables me to not even bother checking when the light is on.
I am seriously considering it. It’s nice and small. Looks and drives better than I thought it would. Range is not great but will work for me most of the time. I will need to find a bike rack for it.
Not having a lot of luck with the level of basic customer service with the dealerships unfortunately.
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I thought it was the driving feel but when I test drove the Polestar 2, it became clear that i cared about the esthetics as well. I just didn’t like the looks of that car.
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Maybe take a look at the Kia EV6? It’s a crossover but veers more toward sedan looks than SUV. Longer than you’d prefer I think.
Another option would be to go with a leaf, Bolt, I3, E-Golf (some of those would only available used, and each is a bit quirky in terms of looks). None of those are in the same category really as the $50k|ish+ vehicles you’re looking at. But a few of them are smaller and quite practical and functional as around town cars, esp if you charge at home. Not ideal for longer trips as fast charging isn’t great (for different reasons, and the Bolt is much better than the others for that).
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I don’t know if anyone here owns one, but be careful.
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