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Blog Report: Million-Mile Model 3 Planned for China Production

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Tesla’s Model 3 is set to receive a battery pack that will last more than a million miles, according to a report from Bloomberg.

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL), which makes batteries for Tesla, told Bloomberg that the company is ready to produce a battery that lasts 16 years and 1.24 million miles. The report points out that warranties on batteries for EVs is currently about 150,000 miles or eight years.

A million-mile vehicle is certainly a compelling offer, particularly when the car is affordable and packed with unique tech and performance features.   CATL has not said that it has a contract to supply the new battery to Tesla, but the technology development was reportedly a collaboration between the two companies. Bloomberg reported that new Shanghai-built Model 3 sedans will be the first to receive the battery.

CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun told Bloomberg that the new battery costs 10 percent more than the batteries it already supplies.

 
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Well that's not really good news... It costs more...

It was supposed to be cheaper.


I think people had some crazy expectations that the million mile battery would simultaneously be
  1. Better longevity
  2. Lower cost
  3. Better energy density/range
It's not surprising to me that the million mile battery only has the first attribute, better longevity. I'm interested to see how they package and price this, because I don't Tesla can eat a 10% battery cost increase without passing it on to their customers. Also from all indications this battery will have lower range than the existing cells. Probably this will be a good option for fleet operators or other high mileage users that want to trade range for durability.
 
So- I think the problem is this is all based on CATLs million mile battery.

Which they claim is not exclusive to tesla- and for which they currently have 0 actual orders.


That doesn't mean this is Teslas million mile battery that they've talked about since long before they had any partnership of any kind with CATL.
 
I think people had some crazy expectations that the million mile battery would simultaneously be
  1. Better longevity
  2. Lower cost
  3. Better energy density/range
It's not surprising to me that the million mile battery only has the first attribute, better longevity. I'm interested to see how they package and price this, because I don't Tesla can eat a 10% battery cost increase without passing it on to their customers. Also from all indications this battery will have lower range than the existing cells. Probably this will be a good option for fleet operators or other high mileage users that want to trade range for durability.
article is saying "CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun told Bloomberg that the new battery costs 10 percent more than the batteries it already supplies." it's 10 percent more than the batteries it already supplies. Not sure if that means the current batteries supplied to Tesla.
 
If this battery works out in China’s M3’s I believe Tesla, who has a history of vertical integration, will produce the battery in one of the upcoming GigaFactories and easily realize a 10% cost savings.
 
The million mile battery should be able to provide off-grid storage revolutionizing electricity delivery. All home electricity could be purchased at the lowest tier rat, charging the battery, and the battery could provide power during the more expensive tiers.

The resulting leveling of demand for the utilities should eliminate the need for more expensive generating plants and make the existing level-loaded ones more efficient.
 
article is saying "CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun told Bloomberg that the new battery costs 10 percent more than the batteries it already supplies." it's 10 percent more than the batteries it already supplies. Not sure if that means the current batteries supplied to Tesla.
Good point. The more I read, the more this sounds like a sales pitch for CATL than a true "leak" with real information about a Tesla product.
 
Tesla’s Model 3 is set to receive a battery pack that will last more than a million miles, according to a report from Bloomberg. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL), which makes batteries for Tesla, told Bloomberg that the company is ready to produce a battery that lasts 16 years and 1.24 million miles. The...
[WPURI="https://teslamotorsclub.com/blog/2020/06/08/report-million-mile-model-3-planned-for-china-production/"]READ FULL ARTICLE[/WPURI]

I am going to give this a quick rather than accurate response, but when it first discussed that Tesla was funding research With a famous north east coast battery scientist. and had major Breakthroughs, this was the first time I heard about “the million mile battery”. That same article (and I am going to dig it up) wasn’t more than 18 mos ago and I believe talked about improvements in energy density, cobalt issues, and ability to charge quickly. If this turns out to be the same battery, I would t expect it to require any major trade offs. On the other hand, why would CATL have left out any other improvements if he took the trouble to talk to Bloomberg? I expect we should expect to hear from Elon soon. Many people who buy M-3’s expect to have it a long time and the purchase was the largest they ever spent on a car. People in that group I would expect to wait for the longer life battery provided there are no serious trade offs in range and charging rate. This group is less likely to lease. Elon has already stated that he considers the M-3 car body itself to be engineered to last a million miles. This delay in purchasing should drastically affect sales now. Since the price was just lowered a bit, I think Elon will come out soon with clarification unless there is another Tesla battery in the mill??
 
I am going to give this a quick rather than accurate response, but when it first discussed that Tesla was funding research With a famous north east coast battery scientist. and had major Breakthroughs, this was the first time I heard about “the million mile battery”. That same article (and I am going to dig it up) wasn’t more than 18 mos ago and I believe talked about improvements in energy density, cobalt issues, and ability to charge quickly. If this turns out to be the same battery, I would t expect it to require any major trade offs. On the other hand, why would CATL have left out any other improvements if he took the trouble to talk to Bloomberg? I expect we should expect to hear from Elon soon. Many people who buy M-3’s expect to have it a long time and the purchase was the largest they ever spent on a car. People in that group I would expect to wait for the longer life battery provided there are no serious trade offs in range and charging rate. This group is less likely to lease. Elon has already stated that he considers the M-3 car body itself to be engineered to last a million miles. This delay in purchasing should drastically affect sales now. Since the price was just lowered a bit, I think Elon will come out soon with clarification unless there is another Tesla battery in the mill??
I think that's 2 batteries. one made for model 3 which make it a million miles com car. Another one with better energy density going into roadster 2 and other higher trim teslas. (possible tesla make their own battery)