Tesla Bumps up Pricing on Most Models
Tesla quietly increased pricing on several models via its website this week, with the new Model S Plaid Plus representing the largest jump. The performance variant is said to be capable of 200 mph and breezing through 60 mph in under 2 seconds. It also boasts the brand’s updated interior and an alleged range of 520 miles, which really opens it up to becoming the kind of vehicle you might actually want to take on an extended road trip.
But it’s going to set you back $151,190 (including the $1,200 destination charge), which is exactly $10,000 more than Tesla said it would cost just a few months ago. While that increase has not been extended to other Plaid models, none of which offer a massive bump in range, forthcoming Plaid Plus models are likely to see loftier price tags than originally expected.
Though, before we make any final assessments about Tesla, it should be said that the company constantly fiddles with its pricing. Just a few weeks ago, the electric brand dropped pricing on the Standard and Long Range versions of the Model 3 by $1,000 (presumably to counter the updated Chevrolet Bolt). It also axed the base-level Model Y from the lineup and increased costs of performance variants by about a grand.
Tesla no longer has a public relations department and never issues statements to the media, meaning we’ll be stuck speculating on why it’s rejiggering pricing once again. Perhaps it thinks the new administration will greenlight new subsidies on EVs, needs to account for production costs associated with updates, or believes customers leaning toward specific products will be more/less capable of spending money.
If we’re lucky, we might be able to glean something during the next earnings report. No date for that has been decided, but history suggests early May.
[Image: JL IMAGES/Shutterstock]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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Does the S and X go down the same paint line as the 3 and Y? Some of those two year old Model 3s are starting to look like a Vega in Cleveland after two years winter exposure. The S models had good paint in the early low production rate years.
Explain what? On some models it doesn't even cover inflation for the year.