SUMMARY:
Tesla is planning to charge some Model Y owners to unlock more range in their vehicles. The Standard Range rear-wheel drive Model Y cars that have been built and sold over the past few months have more range than the 260 miles they were sold with. Tesla will unlock another 40-60 miles of total range, depending on the battery Model Y owners have, for $1,500 to $2,000.
FULL STORY:
Tesla is planning to charge some Model Y owners to unlock more range in their vehicles. According to a tweet by Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday, the Standard Range rear-wheel drive Model Y cars that have been built and sold over the past few months actually have more range than the 260 miles they were sold with.
Musk wrote that the company will unlock another 40-60 miles of total range, depending on the battery Model Y owners have, “for $1,500 to $2,000” pending regulatory approval. This isn’t the first time Tesla has software-locked its cars’ range. The company revealed back in 2016 that the 70kWh battery in the Model S 70 actually had 75kWh of capacity that customers could pay more than $3,000 to access.
The auto industry, in general, has been trending toward controlling access to cars’ existing features with pay-to-remove software locks. Polestar started selling a $1,200 over-the-air update to boost the Polestar 2’s performance in 2022. Mercedes-Benz charged the same amount, but annually, to improve the horsepower and torque of the EQE and EQS. BMW once paywalled software-locked CarPlay and, later, heated seats.
CITATIONS:
Davis, W. (2024, May 5). TESLA PLANS TO CHARGE SOME MODEL Y OWNERS TO UNLOCK MORE RANGE. The Verge. <https://www.theverge.com/2024/5/5/24148928/tesla-model-y-range-unlock-cost-elon-musk-tweet>
Musk, E. (2024, May 5). Model Y standard range now has 279 mile range! All cars made over the last several months have the 279 mile software already, but to unlock it, you need to purchase the upgrade for $1500 or $2000, depending on battery type. [Tweet]. Twitter. <https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1786586974108909815>
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