Is the consensus that Tesla is likely to suddenly stop selling the 60's at any moment?

[calisnow]

What's the crowd wisdom here? Do we think the 60 is here 'til the end of December at least - or do we think it is likely to disappear at any moment?

 

[mblakele]

It'll go when the TM3 replaces it.

 

[KJD]

The 60 will be here at least until the 3 is ready to go on sale.

 

[ecarfan]

I see no reason why Tesla would stop selling the 60 when the 3 goes into production. The base S60 is currently $68K in the US, about $31K more than the base 3. I am sure that the base S will offer many features that the base 3 will not have and it is a much bigger car with a very useful hatchback. But I could be wrong...

 

[calisnow]

I see no reason why Tesla would stop selling the 60 when the 3 goes into production.

To extract higher margins from people who really want the larger car? It's an interesting marketing problem - I wonder how consumer behavior is. Once Model 3 is available I would think Tesla would have the market power to force the Model S even more upmarket and into S Class territory (even larger batteries, [I imagine the S will always be the long-range king in Tesla's line-up] new more luxurious interior, sound insulation, luxury suspension options) where the higher margins are, while loaded Model 3's will cover the ground where stripped Model S's used to live.

But I could also be wrong...

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

Didn't they just raise the price of the 60 by $2K.

My interpretation is that was the correction they wanted. It seems to me that the 60 has been a resounding success in translating pre-sales for the Model 3 into actual orders for the Model S.

The Model 3 is still aways away so they need to continue to hit production/sales goals of the Model S.

 

[Vitold]

I think it's here to stay. 60 may be the first one to get 2170 battery pack so in that sense current 60 could disappear next year, once GF1 ramps up production.

 

[Troy]

Yes, I would expect the Model S 60/60D to be discontinued after the Model 3 release or after they switch S&X to 2170 cells (whichever comes first) because:

• The Model S 60 kWh was already discontinued for over a year from April 2015 to June 2016. They brought it back just to reach delivery targets. However, it's not going to be needed in the future when they have the Model 3. The fact that it was discontinued shows that they were not happy with profit margins.
• All 60s have a software limited 75 kWh battery. This implies that they don't really want to bother with the 60s anymore.
• The X60D is already discontinued. Designing a new 60 kWh battery pack with the 2170 cells just for the Model S seems too much work for little gain.

 

[spooky981]

The Model 3 is looking like such a substantial departure from from a standard vehicle, it's hard to say that the S60 really competes with it.

 

[ecarfan]

I imagine the S will always be the long-range king in Tesla's line-up

I would not make that assumption. Yes the S chassis has more room for the battery pack so in that sense it's largest capacity battery option could always be larger than the largest battery capacity option offered for the Model 3. However, the 3 will have less drag and be lighter than the S so its average wH/mi figure will be lower than the S meaning it will be able to go as far as an S with a smaller battery.

I think Tesla will adjust the Model 3 battery options so that the largest Model 3 battery will offer the same or very close to the range that the largest Model S battery option will provide at the time the 3 goes into production. But I could be wrong...

 

[ArtInCT]

I think the 60 is a very VERY popular model. Just take a look at the order tracking spreadsheets here and you will clearly see that the vast majority of Model S ordered are 60's recently.

 

[skip8jj]

@art, agree. On both forums, the MS60 is the subject a significant number of posts. It would be interesting to see a breakdown of MS sales by battery size.

 

[bob_p]

Tesla has usually had an entry model for the Model S in the $60K range - which is currently the S60.

Even if many customers end up buying the larger Model S battery packs, having the entry model in the $60K range may be an important price point to hit - a starting point for people to look at buying the Model S - and then add more range/features from there.

Even after the Model 3 hits the market, there will likely still be a need for a $60+K Model S entry model - especially if Tesla continues to sell it as a software upgradable battery pack.