Rashomon
Member
That, and most important of all -to enable decent Supercharger charging times. I don't believe Tesla will settle for "good enough" when it comes to key features like that.
The base M3 will be the 'good enough' model, like the S60 was. It will have the smallest acceptable pack, because even at $125 to $150/kWh, 5 or 10 kWh is a huge cost adder. When you're trying to hit an aggressive price target, 'good enough' takes over unless the feature has immense marketing benefit. In the case of the M3, 215 mile range (which will probably be 220-225 when they're done) is 'good enough' -- and actually superb by the standards of near-term EV competition. If Tesla can save $625 to $1500 on OEM cost with the minimal pack that meets that range, they will. Remember, the bigger pack will be available at a price that will increase Tesla's margins while satisfying customer's wants and relieving pressure to make the base model better. I would bet with any one individual on this forum who wants to take the wager that the pack comes in at under 55kWh.