I've been thinking about this since the Dual Motor versions of the Model S were announced in October. Here goes.
I would argue that the realistic range of the Model S D configuration is actually LESS than the non-D.
Here's my reasoning:
For those of us who were around when the Model S was first released in 2012 you can remember that Tesla and Elon first said the car would have a range of 300 miles. Then they got into some heat with that claim when the EPA came out with their 265 "Rated" range. However, the 300 mile range came with assumptions like "ideal" driving conditions. I can't recall what those assumptions are, but I bet they were pretty similar to what Tesla is now assuming when they state the range for the Dual Motor configs as "295 miles at 65 mph". To anyone who recalls the 300 mile claim of the non-D config, this represents a reduction of 5 miles for the S85D and 15 miles for the P85D.
So my question is, are we getting tricked into believing that the D configs have added range when the reality is that they have a decrease? Is Tesla advertising "ideal" range on their website for the D configs? Please discuss.
I would argue that the realistic range of the Model S D configuration is actually LESS than the non-D.
Here's my reasoning:
For those of us who were around when the Model S was first released in 2012 you can remember that Tesla and Elon first said the car would have a range of 300 miles. Then they got into some heat with that claim when the EPA came out with their 265 "Rated" range. However, the 300 mile range came with assumptions like "ideal" driving conditions. I can't recall what those assumptions are, but I bet they were pretty similar to what Tesla is now assuming when they state the range for the Dual Motor configs as "295 miles at 65 mph". To anyone who recalls the 300 mile claim of the non-D config, this represents a reduction of 5 miles for the S85D and 15 miles for the P85D.
So my question is, are we getting tricked into believing that the D configs have added range when the reality is that they have a decrease? Is Tesla advertising "ideal" range on their website for the D configs? Please discuss.