Tesla Motors Inc. rose to a 10-month high after the electric-car maker unveiled enhancements to the Model S sedan. Tesla said the next version of its Roadster vehicle will have a “maximum plaid” speed, but that Roadster won’t be available for another four years.
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The new fuse design that allows the performance boost has its own electronics and a small lithium-ion battery.
The upgrade does not come cheap: the Ludicrous Speed option costs $10,000 for new buyers, while the base price of the Model S is $70,000. $5,000 is half the cost of a brand new sedan, but a fraction of the cost of most sports cars offering similar performance.
Elon Musk also announced that later today there will be a discussion about SpaceX rockets, most likely to do with June’s Falcon 9 explosion and future projects.
“Existing owners can also purchase the pack upgrade, but I wouldn’t recommend doing so unless your usage is on the edge of current range”, Musk said in his blog.
While nothing is set in stone yet, the next Roadster is expected to ride on a platform designed in-house by Tesla and launch as a regular-production model. The new battery will give the automobile a range of 300 miles on the highway on a single charge. This means that the auto is now the fastest Tesla Model S in terms of sheer acceleration.
“[The Model] X is on track for first deliveries in two months and Model 3 in just over two years“, Musk said Friday as he announced new options for the Model S. Tesla’s share price has been steadily rising since March 27, when it hit $181. This is basically supercar territory, and it makes “Insane Mode”, introduced last year that was good enough to do the century sprint in 3.2 seconds, seem utterly sedentary. This is about 15 miles more than the standard version.
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Meanwhile, Tesla is rapidly snapping up more land around its gigafactory in the Nevada desert, according to the Wall Street Journal. Investors are wary of Tesla’s big capital spending, including upgrading its Fremont, California, plant and building a large $US5 billion battery factory in Nevada, combined with delays to its important Model X sport-utility vehicle.
