Model S range and interior update imminent?

[emmz0r]

I had the same view regarding Model 3 single screen and speedo in the center until I got a Model 3. Now I absolutely love the setup with one screen and prefer it over current S/X with two screens. It just easier and more logic with everything in one location (when you have adapted to it).

Many who doesn't like the Model 3 setup just have decided beforehand that it is a bad solution and probably haven't tested it in real life for a period of time. Everything takes a bit to get used to even if it is better.

It's like rebuilding the local grocery store. The old customers who have shopped there for 10 years initially complain because they can't find the milk or the tooth paste. But for a new customer it makes more sense and is more logic with the new store setup. After some time when even the old customers adapt, the new store layout turn out to be much better.

I really hope they copy the Model 3 setup into Model S/X update with the horizontal screen which I find better from a ergonomic point of view and I don't understand why I want to look through my steering wheel to find information? And to be honest I don't see the point of a HUD either. It's just a distracting light cluster in the windscreen that 99% of the time render useless info that I don't want to have in my line of sight when driving.

To those who is negative about the one screen setup in Model 3. If you was forced to use it for a couple of weeks I'm sure you would change your mind and realize that it is a great solution. This was the way for me at least to convert and now i prefer it and it feels strange each time I jump into a car with redundant info in HUD, behind the wheel and a third (or forth) screen in the middle console

Tried it multiple times over the course of several weeks. Still don't dig it.
I mean one will get used to anything eventually, that's how things are in general

 

[sandpiper]

It is finally out
Breaking — Tesla Model S & X Refresh Production Test Run Is About To Start | CleanTechnica

Interesting! My guess is that it's an early production test run, and we're still a few months away from seeing the production cars hit the road.

 

[wdolson]

They may be building a fleet of test mules to test out the new hardware. Now that the Model 3 production has somewhat stabilized, most of the new capacity being brought online at GF 1 may be destined for other projects like the refresh S/X. It just isn't there yet.

 

[croman]

They may be building a fleet of test mules to test out the new hardware. Now that the Model 3 production has somewhat stabilized, most of the new capacity being brought online at GF 1 may be destined for other projects like the refresh S/X. It just isn't there yet.

New capacity? I am unsure they are doing much more other than trying to get to 35GWh (I think they said they are only at 20-25GWh at present). There is not enough for Energy, why would they add S/X to that bottleneck?

I'm skeptical 2170s are actually destined for S/X given Elon has been telling everyone supply will go to Powerwalls. Perhaps Panasonic is converting their Japanese 18650 factory to 2170 but their additional investment in GF1 has been terminated.

 

[sorka]

A single horizontal screen would be a deal killer for me. I'll never own a 3 for the same reason.

 

[wdolson]

New capacity? I am unsure they are doing much more other than trying to get to 35GWh (I think they said they are only at 20-25GWh at present). There is not enough for Energy, why would they add S/X to that bottleneck?

I'm skeptical 2170s are actually destined for S/X given Elon has been telling everyone supply will go to Powerwalls. Perhaps Panasonic is converting their Japanese 18650 factory to 2170 but their additional investment in GF1 has been terminated.

I looked it up and all the EV sites are reporting on GF1, though Electrek points out that the stories are not well sourced. Tesla did make this comment to Electrek:

“We will of course continue to make new investments in Gigafactory 1, as needed. However, we think there is far more output to be gained from improving existing production equipment than was previously estimated.”

It sounds like they could be switching the S/X to 2170s because they can meet the need with existing equipment. Or maybe they don't plan to switch. What we do know is ambiguous.

 

[ucmndd]

They may be building a fleet of test mules to test out the new hardware.

Don’t they usually call those “founders series”?

 

[henderrj]

they are better off converting the S and X lines to Model 3 and Y production and dropping the bigger cars from their line up.

It's economic reality, you need to sell what's going to bring in money. Making $40K a car and selling 10,000 of them nets $400 million in profit. Selling 100,000 cars and only making $10K per car nets $1 billion profit. Even making only $5K profit on 100,000 cars is $500 million profit.

Numbers don't tell all the story. Having Halo cars, multiple different styles, will do a tremendous amount to sell lower price cars, 3s and Ys. As well as pickups, solar, powerwalls, Etc. Even commercial sales of powerpacks will be enhanced by the existence of the model S and the model X. I h ave used my Model S to get into all sorts of doors that I would not otherwise have gotten into.

It's just the truth that people want that which is scarce and seems unattainable. Small runs of more exclusive cars will always sell many more cars in the middle and lower end ranges. There's a reason that Mercedes has an S-Class, Audi, all of the luxury brands. There is significant wisdom in keeping these upper end vehicles. And updating them. I think there's still enough wisdom hanging around Tesla that they'll get it done. But, who knows?

 

[IchDochNicht]

A single horizontal screen would be a deal killer for me. I'll never own a 3 for the same reason.

I think it would be for many buyers. Despite the advances in self driving tech, we will drive our cars manually for a long time, in many situations. And even when we don't, we still have to monitor them, as we don't have the level of autonomy that won't ever require driver input.

 

[wdolson]

Numbers don't tell all the story. Having Halo cars, multiple different styles, will do a tremendous amount to sell lower price cars, 3s and Ys. As well as pickups, solar, powerwalls, Etc. Even commercial sales of powerpacks will be enhanced by the existence of the model S and the model X. I h ave used my Model S to get into all sorts of doors that I would not otherwise have gotten into.

It's just the truth that people want that which is scarce and seems unattainable. Small runs of more exclusive cars will always sell many more cars in the middle and lower end ranges. There's a reason that Mercedes has an S-Class, Audi, all of the luxury brands. There is significant wisdom in keeping these upper end vehicles. And updating them. I think there's still enough wisdom hanging around Tesla that they'll get it done. But, who knows?

Doesn't opening doors with your car scratch the paint?

I understand about the halo cars, but if it boils down to a choice between selling limited numbers of halo cars and the survival of the company, I think the smart choice is survival.

 

[evster]

A single horizontal screen would be a deal killer for me. I'll never own a 3 for the same reason.

Why? In general it is easier for the human eye to see wide than vertical.
Do you also wish your TV at home had a vertical layout?

Question: All of you who don't like the Model 3 setup, have you tried for some time or just decided beforehand without giving it a chance?

I'm in the camp that will probably get a Model S refresh, but I will be very disappointed if they stick with a vertical screen. The wide variant in Model 3 is much better and more ergonomic.

 

[whitex]

Why? In general it is easier for the human eye to see wide than vertical.
Do you also wish your TV at home had a vertical layout?

It's not the screen orientation, it's the instrument screen location and fact that you have to look to the side to see the information typically right in front of you, plus the fact that it's a single point of failure, so when it hangs, you can't even tell how fast you're going. My big screen gets slow or apps hang on it requiring a reboot often enough, but by instrument cluster is always responsive. How does your Model 3 tell you how fast you're going when you're rebooting the main screen?

I totally agree that when the car drives itself while I'm watching a movie on the main screen, the landscape screen in the middle is the better solution (possibly with steering wheel and pedals removed too). As long as I have to pay attention and be ready to take over any time, I want a reliable instrument cluster directly in my line of sight.

Question: All of you who don't like the Model 3 setup, have you tried for some time or just decided beforehand without giving it a chance?

Never drove a Model 3, but I have tried a Prius with a speedometer in the middle of the dash instead of in front of the driver. Drove it for a week, got used to it, but still didn't like it at the end of the week. Mayube people get used to it because they love other things about the car. On the other hand, once MCU2 reaches end of life like MCU1 and the screen starts glitching running MCU3 software, requiring reboots in the middle of the drive, I bet people will complain more - unable to see how fast I'm going for however long it takes to reboot! Got a ticket because didn't realize I was going 60 in a 40 speed zone!

I'm in the camp that will probably get a Model S refresh, but I will be very disappointed if they stick with a vertical screen. The wide variant in Model 3 is much better and more ergonomic.

I'm in a camp of wanting some physical controls and indicators for things like headlights or suspension level. Over the 4 years of owing the current Model S, my screen got less responsive, buttons got smaller and moved farther away from line of sight, and stuff got buried deeper and deeper with more clicks requiring to do things like switch suspension levels. Also, having to reboot my MCU1 often (sometimes multiple times a day to try to get the browser to load anything) makes me thankful that Tesla put an independent IC screen in my car.

I'm also in a camp of having a car which doesn't take a month to make a service appointment or months to get parts in.

 

[FreqFlyer]

Its rumored the reason against using the 2170s is that would not fit without some expensive modifcations. Now we have rumors surfacing again of using 2170s in the S&X. Maybe they found a way to do it at a "reasonable" cost. Have to think in the long term it would bring down the costs of the S&X.

 

[MP3Mike]

Now we have rumors surfacing again of using 2170s in the S&X.

Actually the rumor said that they were going to use the 2170 architecture. It didn't say that they were going to use 2170s. (I.e. maybe they are going to use the same kind of module that the Model 3 has, just with 18650s.)

 

[LCR1]

You really had me listening until your last sentence... who in their right mind would ever look at a Panamera voluntarily?

She wants the ability to takes clients around, kind of hard to do in a 718 or 911

 

[LCR1]

What's going to happen to the prices of S and X? I personally think that Tesla is going to increase the prices and profit margins when all these updates (new interior, V2 => V3 SC and new motors) are introduced, even if they would continue to offer 100 kWh size battery pack.

That's what every other manufacturer does when something new comes out. But they do it on a model year basis so it's much easier to know what you're buying and when.

I had the same view regarding Model 3 single screen and speedo in the center until I got a Model 3. Now I absolutely love the setup with one screen and prefer it over current S/X with two screens. It just easier and more logic with everything in one location (when you have adapted to it).

Many who doesn't like the Model 3 setup just have decided beforehand that it is a bad solution and probably haven't tested it in real life for a period of time. Everything takes a bit to get used to even if it is better.

It's like rebuilding the local grocery store. The old customers who have shopped there for 10 years initially complain because they can't find the milk or the tooth paste. But for a new customer it makes more sense and is more logic with the new store setup. After some time when even the old customers adapt, the new store layout turn out to be much better.

I really hope they copy the Model 3 setup into Model S/X update with the horizontal screen which I find better from a ergonomic point of view and I don't understand why I want to look through my steering wheel to find information? And to be honest I don't see the point of a HUD either. It's just a distracting light cluster in the windscreen that 99% of the time render useless info that I don't want to have in my line of sight when driving.

To those who is negative about the one screen setup in Model 3. If you was forced to use it for a couple of weeks I'm sure you would change your mind and realize that it is a great solution. This was the way for me at least to convert and now i prefer it and it feels strange each time I jump into a car with redundant info in HUD, behind the wheel and a third (or forth) screen in the middle console

I've driven the M3 and I hate the screen. Just like I hate V9 software, I've gotten used to it, but I still hate it. In order to turn on the seat heater I have to hit the climate button, scroll to the seats, then turn the climate off because no matter what, when you hit the climate button to get to the menu it turns it on. I'm used to it but I hate it.

Why? In general it is easier for the human eye to see wide than vertical.
Do you also wish your TV at home had a vertical layout?

Question: All of you who don't like the Model 3 setup, have you tried for some time or just decided beforehand without giving it a chance?

I'm in the camp that will probably get a Model S refresh, but I will be very disappointed if they stick with a vertical screen. The wide variant in Model 3 is much better and more ergonomic.

Again I've driven them but don't like them. If I were forced to have only a screen in the middle I'd still hate it. All of my motorcycles that can be have been converted to GP shift have been. I still have a cruiser or two that requires standard shift and I jump between them flawlessly but that doesn't mean I like standard shift. Getting used to something doesn't mean you like it.

 

[Tummy]

I had the same view regarding Model 3 single screen and speedo in the center until I got a Model 3. Now I absolutely love the setup with one screen and prefer it over current S/X with two screens. It just easier and more logic with everything in one location (when you have adapted to it).

Many who doesn't like the Model 3 setup just have decided beforehand that it is a bad solution and probably haven't tested it in real life for a period of time. Everything takes a bit to get used to even if it is better.

I thought I would like it until we got a Model 3, then I hated it and got another Model S. You can't have many things open at the same time. When you have music up, the map becomes very small. The type size is much smaller on the 3 and the album art is very small.

 

[Alset4S]

I thought I would like it until we got a Model 3, then I hated it and got another Model S. You can't have many things open at the same time. When you have music up, the map becomes very small. The type size is much smaller on the 3 and the album art is very small.

All of which are problems for my tired old eyes and just some of the reasons I drive a model S

 

[DukeofURL]

I know that some people have never tried it, just don't think they'd like it. I'm one of the ones who DID try it, and didn't like it, so I coughed up even more cash to Tesla to get something I did like. Everyone wins. Tesla makes more money off of me, and I get what I like.

The Model S is no longer Tesla's only sedan, they don't have to continuously lower production price to get more buyers, that purpose is now served by the 3. They're finally a "real car company" and can offer different product lines to appeal to different tastes now instead of trying to make a single car that everyone likes. I agree that developing for two different screen layouts adds complexity, and that's the last thing Tesla needs when it comes to software, but it's also apparent the vertical screen orientation isn't going anywhere as it's part of the Roadster 2020 design, which came out *after* the 3 hit production. As I'd mentioned before in this thread, this doesn't necessarily mean the S/X will retain it and not switch to a horizontal screen, but it does mean that Tesla as a whole will continue to write software for two different screen geometries and converting the S to widescreen won't necessarily save Tesla any money.

 

[AmpedRealtor]

It would be rather stupid of Tesla not to use 2170 cells and to consolidate all vehicles to a single energy platform.

Tesla has sitting inventory of Model 3 vehicles ready for purchase. 2170 cell production is not a bottleneck for Model 3. There is no bottleneck when there are cars sitting on lots.