Earlier this month, Tesla reduced the price of its entire lineup to help compensate for reduced federal tax credits, then dropped the base 75D versions of the Model S and Model X Now, less than a month later, Tesla has again revamped the lineup and pricing structure of both the Model S and the Model X.
Gone are the familiar 75D, 100D, and P100D names, which each offered increasing levels of performance and driving range. Instead, the company is moving forward with a two-trim lineup for both the Model S and the Model X and is offering each with available upgrade packages that either further range or increase acceleration.
The base Model S starts at $86,200 and the base Model X will cost $89,200 before any incentives or tax credits. These prices are higher than the now-dead 75D variants but less than the 100D models which briefly served as the base models after the 75D disappeared. Buyers can add $8000 to the bottom line of either car by selecting the Extended Range option; Tesla claims doing so increases driving range of the Model S from 310 miles to 335 miles and boosts the Model X’s range from 270 to 295 miles. A Tesla spokesperson explained that the Extended Range and Ludicrous Mode options can be added at the time of purchase or unlocked later in the ownership of the vehicle via an over-the-air update if the consumer so desires.
The Performance trim is the next-rung up for both the S and the X and costs a heady $103,950 and $118,200 respectively. Speed demons with well-padded wallets can opt for the $20,000 Ludicrous Mode option on either model which Tesla says improves acceleration by 20-percent to a claimed zero-to-60 mph time of 2.4 seconds for the Model S and 2.8-seconds for the Model X. The Model S Performance has an estimated range of 315 miles and the Model X Performance has an estimated range of 289 miles.
Nowhere on Tesla’s consumer website does the company detail the size of the battery packs for any of these variants, but Tesla explained that the battery in the Extended Range versions offer the same capacity as the now-defunct 100D models and the Performance models sync up with the previous P100D models. The base version, which surpasses the old 75D model’s estimated 259 miles of range, likely has the same 100-kWh battery pack as the Extended Range model, but with an electronic limiter to reduce its output that is removed once the Extended Range option has been purchased.
Delivery dates for these updated versions of the Model S and Model X are currently estimated for late February on Tesla’s website. Tesla has not yet announced any plans to alter the pricing or restructure the lineup of the smaller and cheaper Model 3 sedan.
