New Tesla Model Y Battery Tech Might Slash Price
Tesla's working on new battery cell technology. It could pay off for customers.
Is it possible that a price cut on the Tesla Model Y is coming in the future? It looks like it could happen thanks to new battery technology in the works that would allow the automaker to cut costs significantly—if Tesla can figure out the manufacturing process.
According to a report fromAutomotive News, Tesla is poised to reduce costs by increasing battery cell size and utilizing a new process to "dry-coat" electrodes. This process could allow Tesla to reduce the price of the Model Y 4680 battery byhalf,which would shave approximately 8 percent off the total retail price, according to the report. Unfortunately, it will be a while before this new technology is ready for prime time. According to 12 experts close to Tesla thatANspoke to, the dry-coat batteries are only about halfway through development.
The dry-coat technology that Tesla is working on came from its acquisition of Maxwell Technologies, a San Diego company that produced supercapacitors, which store energy for things that need quick, strong bursts of electricity, such as camera flashes. The tech Maxwell used to produce its supercapacitors became the basis for what Tesla is doing with its dry-cell 4680 batteries, which it began producing this year at its plants in California and Texas.
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Apparently, because the dry-coat technique is so new and "unproven," Tesla is having issues scaling up the process, with production estimated at sometime in 2023, according toAN. While that is not great news for those looking for lower prices on Teslas right now, it could mean great news in the not so distant future. Unless something has changed, Tesla is still pushing towards its goal of producinga $25,000 EV (however realistic that may be), and if it can find a way to effectively mass produce dry-coat batteries it has a better chance than it would otherwise.
We will continue to follow this news as things develop, as a breakthrough in battery tech (and, more importantly, significant downward pressure on prices) for these popular electric SUVs could give a boost to EV sales overall. Considering California's upcoming ban on fossil fuel vehicles and rumors that other states may follow suit, affordable EVs are going to be more important than ever within the next decade.
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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