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Model 3 Highland Performance/Plaid Speculation [Car announced 04.23.2024]
- Thread starter Daniel L
- Start date
How many people think the Model 3 Ludicrous announcement this week will be disappointing? Regardless of what the specs will be do you think you will be pleasantly surprised with them or disappointed with them? Do you think you will buy it or is that not on your list of things to do?
I can't imagine that they are going to announce a car this week that won't grab a lot of attention when their financial announcement is so likely to be a let down at the end of the week. It really seems like the announcement was delayed to coincide with the financial announcement and lessen the blow. Maybe they are also ramping up the production during this time so there won't be so many delays as they have with other Model 3s lately?
I can't imagine that they are going to announce a car this week that won't grab a lot of attention when their financial announcement is so likely to be a let down at the end of the week. It really seems like the announcement was delayed to coincide with the financial announcement and lessen the blow. Maybe they are also ramping up the production during this time so there won't be so many delays as they have with other Model 3s lately?
All the Model 3 Performance ever needed was more supportive seats, more sophisticated suspension, and a little more oomph up top. It sure seems like it's getting all of these things, in addition to the underlying Highland updates. For me, the risk of disappointment lies not in the endless #ick measuring of 0-60 times, but in the price. I am hopeful that Tesla's faltering stock value has them price it aggressively to move units. If it's $60K+, I'll just go buy a RWD Model 3 and a used Miata for the same money.
I wonder how they are going to express the top end acceleration improvements? I doubt they are going to advertise a 60-130 mph time. As much as some people hate 0-60 mph times it is a statistic that is given for every single vehicle out there and it matters so much more for 1/4 mile times with this car than 60-130 mph does.
whoosierdaddy
FSD Supervisor
Probably by showing it racing a bottom spec Porsche, amirite?
cptnslo
Member
It’s going to be a tough sell regardless. Between the current layoffs they just announced plus whatever the financial information shows that they release, they need this to be a solid release that draws people in
If they showed it keeping up with a C8 Corvette Z06 and a C8 Corvette E-Ray in the 1/4 mile that would probably grab a lot of attention considering how much those cars cost.
Pricing history and the higher market cost pressure in 2024 points to being in the pricing range for the tax incentive.
Knightshade
Well-Known Member
Except, assuming they have HAVE spare 2170s from the US to qualify for it, pricing it at 55k would wreck the pricing structure of the lower-trim models that don't qualify and require significant price cuts to both of those.
While pricing it at say 59.9k would still be a good buy compared to alternatives (if the performance is good) without requiring touching pricing on the lower trims.
whoosierdaddy
FSD Supervisor
Tesla gets less money at 59,990 than they do at 54,990. They have to price it more than $7,500 above 54,990 to make up for the lost EV incentives. This puts us in the 65k range, which I don't think they'll do.
oreobbq
Member
If the butt dyno says it’s pretty much the same as the old m3p that would be disappointing. Otherwise I think it’s a nice upgrade:
Brakes improved.
Updated and ventilated seats.
Improved performance with the new motor.
Highland facelift on the outside.
Wheels look okay to me.
No yoke although I wouldn’t mind one.
Customizable suspension mode.
Meatier tires.
Better sound insulation.
Just don’t price it into a dud. The “new” exterior colors are slightly different shades of grey and red. Did someone at the paint factory just not follow the exact recipes? Give us more colors. I digress. My wish list would include more range, a hatchback style trunk, and a HUD.
Brakes improved.
Updated and ventilated seats.
Improved performance with the new motor.
Highland facelift on the outside.
Wheels look okay to me.
No yoke although I wouldn’t mind one.
Customizable suspension mode.
Meatier tires.
Better sound insulation.
Just don’t price it into a dud. The “new” exterior colors are slightly different shades of grey and red. Did someone at the paint factory just not follow the exact recipes? Give us more colors. I digress. My wish list would include more range, a hatchback style trunk, and a HUD.
I'm definitely interested in the M3L, but not as intrigued as I was before the news came out that it wasn't using a plaid motor. I'd rather have a smaller car like the 3, but a lightly used plaid at 65k is increasingly appealing.
Knightshade
Well-Known Member
That's only true if they planned to sell only Performance models.
But now run your math on 59,990 for that one-- but NOT cutting prices on the LR and RWD (which are the bulk of sales).... versus making the top trim 55k, but having to slash the majority of cars you sell by many thousands of dollars based on the top end one being $7500 cheaper to the customer than MSRP.
If your answer is "Oh they'd just replace all LR sales with Ps" - nope-- Tesla doesn't have REMOTELY enough US 2170s to do that. If they did the LR would be using them and get the $7500 rebate already
The Highland updates, bumpers, seats alone make it already not a disappointment in my eyes. I'm not comparing this to the previous M3P where I have huge expectations for the horsepower, 0-60 (60-100), and 1/4 mile times. Small incremental power improvement are just fine.
That said, the only thing that could be disappointing to me is the price. If it's too close to $65K then I wont instantly order and will probably look at 2022 MSP.
If it is at $55K with the tax credit it will be an instant order.
Now could Tesla be get creative with the price? Could they price it at $54K but have a software unlock for performance modes that costs $7.5k? I mean, who would order this but not unlock the full potential of the car's performance? Tesla makes more $ pricing this at $54K than at $60K. Could part of the delay be working on ensuring the tax credit is there? Do they have to wait for govt approval for that?
I don’t know about US, but I highly doubt it will be more than 56K euros, 7K euros more than the LR seems like a reasonable difference..
Ah. Guess yeah I didn't see it until Friday due to timezone differences I guess.
End of week though, fingers crossed.
whoosierdaddy
FSD Supervisor
They wouldn't be slashing a majority of the cars they sell by many thousands of dollars. The 3 is much less popular than the Y. Also, I do wonder how many Tesla buyers actually qualify for the tax credit, that would be some interesting data to see.
A few possibilities:
- They lower the cost of the 3LR to $47,490 ($54,990-$7,500), a $250 price cut from the current price. This would mean any buyer that qualifies for the tax credit can get the Ludicrous 3 for the same cost as a 3LR. If they can't make enough batteries, people will be stuck waiting months on the Ludicrous trim or they'll have to opt for the LR instead.
- If they really need to push people to the LR trim, they can drop the price of the LR by $2-3k.
- They can just ignore the tax credit completely (even though it will technically qualify for it) and price the Ludicrous 3 at $51,240 which is $3,500 higher than the 3LR, the same gap between the YLR and YP. Though, if they're ignoring the tax credit completely, why wouldn't they just take advantage of early adopters and use the Model S LR to Plaid pricing approach and price it 15k higher at $62,740?
I think I just talked myself into believing it's going to be $62,740 at launch, lol.
