Tesla Slashes EV Range Estimates After Owners Complain
The changes come after Tesla has been called out for overestimating driving range.
Battery range is arguably one of the biggest factors in an EV purchase decision among car buyers. While range anxiety is continuously being assuaged with longer-range EVs and quicker, more widely available charging, it's still a very real thing. It's also one of the many reasons why Tesla remains king of the mountain when it comes to EV sales—the automaker was early to delivering both long, useful driving range in its vehicles and the nationwide charging network to support their long-distance travel. Others have caught up, at least on the first part, but in consumers' minds, Tesla remains out front.
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It turns out, however, that those range figures that helped Tesla sell so many cars might not have been accurate. Tesla has been called out byReutersfor exaggerating the range of its vehicles. While Tesla has remained mostly silent against those allegations, the automaker just quietly adjusted the expected range for several vehicles on its website. The estimated range numbers for the Model X, Model Y, and Model S have all been reduced. The change was quickly picked up on by Electrek via The Verge.
The Model Y Performance now shows a 285 mile range, which is down from its previous estimate of 303 miles. The Model Y Long Range now shows a 310 mile range which is 20 miles down from its previous 330 mile estimate. The Model X Plaid range sees a marginal drop from 333 miles of range to 326 miles. Tesla's reduction of the Model S Plaid's range (with the 19-inch wheel option) by 37 miles marks the biggest cut, with its estimated range dropping from 396 miles to 359 miles.
No prices have been changed to reflect the lower range estimates, and frankly we don't expect Tesla to make any MSRP adjustments. It should also be noted that the range estimates for Cybertruck and Model 3 sedan remain the same. Since Tesla did not release a statement regarding these changes, there's no way to know if it was done to address the accusations of overestimating range or if there is another reason.
Will the reductions have any impact on Tesla sales, or shoppers' views of the company generally? Maybe not. Even with the reduced figures,on paperTesla still offers generous range, supported by the Supercharger network, and no changes hit its most affordable model, the Model 3. Still, competitors are getting much closer and, in some cases, catching up or passing Tesla—we're looking at you, Lucid and Hyundai.
Andrew Beckford’s passion for cars started as a middle schooler when his friend Richie explained how an internal combustion engine works. He was bitten by the bug and the rest, as they say, is history. He dug deep into the tuner scene and eventually wrote for Turbo Magazine, Import Tuner, Super Street. He covered car shows, feature builds, and reviewed racing games for those magazines in addition to covering motorsports including Formula Drift, Indy Car, and F1 for his personal blog. Eventually Beckford joined MotorTrend to cover the daily automotive news beat. Besides being a gearhead, Beckford has been a gamer since the ’80s and is a huge fan of the arcade racing games of the ’90s like Daytona USA, SEGA Rally, and Ridge Racer. Beckford’s a movie buff as well, especially comic book films from DC and Marvel. When car culture crosses over with gaming and entertainment, rest assured Beckford is aware of it. In addition to serving as a consultant on a “triple A” racing titles, he’s reviewed major racing games such as Forza Motorsport, Need for Speed, Gran Turismo, F1, and more. He’s also interviewed blockbuster directors including Steven Caple Jr. (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts) and Neill Blomkamp (Gran Turismo). His biggest profile to date was with Robert Downey Jr. on his love affair with cars and his show Downey’s Dream Cars on MAX. Beckford’s profile of Downey Jr. was the first print cover story written by an African American in MotorTrend’s history. Along with KJ Jones, Andrew Beckford also heads up MotorTrend’s celebration of Black History Month by spotlighting diverse voices in the automotive industry and motorsports. Beckford’s first car was a 1982 Nissan Stanza affectionately named “Stanley” by his late mother.
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