New Body Style

Just a guess but not anytime soon. Maybe 2017-2018.

Well no one will be complaining if they are told a style update is coming. Every car I have bought I have basically known to the month when the next facelift or model was coming.

Except if you happen to close your deal the day before they announce a new body style. That seems to piss a lot of people off.

Seesaw said:

Well no one will be complaining if they are told a style update is coming. Every car I have bought I have basically known to the month when the next facelift or model was coming.

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sitter_k said:

When do you think a new body style might come? Has there been any mention of this yet? Most car models go through with a mid model refresh rather then a redesign around year 3 or 4 then a redesign around year 5, with some it's even greater at 7 years.

Any speculation as to when some might be able to start complaining that they got the old style and they should have the new body retrofitted to their car, or that they should have been told there was a new style, or that tesla should buy their car back and give them a new one?

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The mainstream automotive industry does this to improve sales, to keep the new car different and special. I think you just saw Tesla's version of a mid-cycle refresh in the form of the Autopilot upgrade and D release - they just chose not to change the sheet metal while doing it.

Despite the outside being the same it clearly has had the same effect for sales, possibly more of one since there's now suddenly a real used Model S market for the first time.

Elon has commented on various occasions that the demand for the Model S hasn't been truly tested yet - that there's still an order backlog and they presell every car months ahead. I can't see Tesla doing a more traditional refresh/redesign until they start to see demand fall off. I certainly wouldn't expect to see it before the Model 3 release - likely not before the Model 3 CUV (model Y?) release.

Even then, my guess is you'll see them keep more or less the same sheet metal and add new features (full self driving?) instead of changing the expensive stamping process in search of sales from pure aesthetics.
Walter

sitter_k said:

When do you think a new body style might come? Has there been any mention of this yet? Most car models go through with a mid model refresh rather then a redesign around year 3 or 4 then a redesign around year 5, with some it's even greater at 7 years.

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I have heard Elon state that he expects an appearance refresh on the S around 2017. I'm sorry but I can't recall which interview video I saw him make that statement or if it was at the 2014 shareholders meeting. But I clearly recall him making that statement.

Car companies traditionally make style changes annually. In my opinion they do that to generate market interest in part because they don't have anything fundamentally new to offer the consumer other than a new "look". Underneath the mechanicals are usually essentially unchanged.

Tesla is different, and with demand outstripping supply there is no reason for them to invest resources into reshaping the body. Some have complained about the interior style being too minimalist: I love it, as it fits my personal aesthetic preferences so I hope that Tesla resists the urge to redesign it to be more like an S class Mercedes!

I'd very much like to see a revision that gave a bit more rear seat room/comfort. I don't think the current version is really in keeping with a car costing $80k-$100k.

Do people think that any body style revision should be a free retrofit for current owners?

Last quarter Tesla spent an extra $100 million on R&D, and on things Elon Musk said we don't know about. We've known about AWD for a while. Tesla didn't spend $100M on autopilot. I think there is a Model S redesign in there somewhere. I have nothing to back this up, just my gut feeling, but I think Tesla announced the D to stimulate sales because Model X is going to be delayed. They just haven't announced the delay yet. That's also why they invited Model X reservation holders to the D announcement. Why would Tesla want to shift buyers away from X and onto the D if the X were not farther away than anticipated?

Anyway... I think a total redesign is coming in 2 years. The mid-cycle refresh came 2 years in, the redesign will be 2 years hence. It will also give Tesla something to market ahead of the Model 3 shipping, and if there are any delays with Model 3 - which is very likely - that will speed up a Model S redesign to keep the momentum going. This is also why I'm not in line to trade-in/sell my car and upgrade to the new stuff. This new stuff is going to be put to shame by what we will see in just 2 years.

@AmpedRealtor, you may be right, but it is also possible that the additional R&D costs were a combination of finalizing the Dual Motor design, developing Auto Pilot, finalizing the Falcon Door hardware and seals, AND pushing forward with the Model 3 design.

Now that Tesla has successfully created and produced one pure EV "skateboard" platform it seems to me that making a second iteration that is smaller and cheaper should take far less time than the first version (the S). For that reason I am optimistic that the Model 3 will go into production in the timeframe Elon has targeted, 2017, because the long term success of the company depends on it. This assumes that the Gigafactory will be producing Model 3 battery packs in less than 3 years. That may not happen, and I really have no idea what the likelihood is.

I do not think that Tesla should invest in a "total redesign" of the S in 2 years. It's simply not necessary. I think Tesla can continue incrementally improving the functionality of the car as they have been doing, and maybe in a year or two do some minor style changes. The S and the X will not have any serious competition for at least 3 years, in my opinion, and maybe not for 4 to 5 years or longer because Tesla has such a huge lead on the competition already and Tesla continues to move forward and achieve economies of scale and battery pack price reductions that will be extremely difficult for other manufacturers to replicate.

Common Guys and Girls,

the Model S has a classic body design. It is in no way outdated. Why change something good without making it better?

Maybe I am getting a bit conservative, but I like the S and see no need for any redesign.

Tesla is doing a good job of updating 'under the hood'. The body should just stay as it is for many years to come.

Maybe more options would make sense: a coupé based on the S, a drophead coupé or other variants. Here in Germany a wagon would be well received, but sales in Germany don't justify any developement for the German market just yet.

^^^^^ Well said!

GSP

Johann Koeber said:

Common Guys and Girls,

the Model S has a classic body design. It is in no way outdated. Why change something good without making it better?

Maybe I am getting a bit conservative, but I like the S and see no need for any redesign.

Tesla is doing a good job of updating 'under the hood'. The body should just stay as it is for many years to come.

Maybe more options would make sense: a coupé based on the S, a drophead coupé or other variants. Here in Germany a wagon would be well received, but sales in Germany don't justify any developement for the German market just yet.

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I agree with this. Continuing to improve the powertrain, electronics, and software are far more important than making changes to sheet metal that already looks good.

Some convenience features for the rear bench seats, like real cup holders and storage for items, would be nice, especially for those who cart children around.

IMHO They should have updated some smaller things to freshen the car a bit at the unveiling of the D.... All they really did is give a better seat option. The D model should have something more distinctive about them to appear next gen.

-m

The D is a patch for Tesla to help with the back log of Model X AWD customers whose orders are getting pushed back more and more each day. Many of the X pre-orders have switched to the awd D. I love my P85+ but I know that we are now on year 3+ for that body and I would be shocked if they do not do a change within the next 24 months. In the $100K plus market for cars, customers are not wanting a dated body or one that looks very similar to several others on the road ( Ford Fusion,Maserati, Aston, etc)

I think the X will have the midcycle aesthetic changes that would have gone to the S. Then they'll slowly start incorporating the X changes to the S while working on a whole new design in the background.

sitter_k said:

Not saying you're wrong but elon has constaintly compared the model S to the Benz S class, which changed recently only after 7 or 8 years

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I think Tesla has shown a propensity for iterating much more quickly.

It is certainly not a put down to be mistaken for an Aston Martin or Maserati.
Now a Ford Fusion.....that's a different matter.

Elon said in an interview that the Model S would possibly have a minor facelift after the econo car was rolled out.

AmpedRealtor said:

I think Tesla has shown a propensity for iterating much more quickly.

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Tech not fashion.