Nice that you did get a call back on that suggestion. If we keep your premise alive... then perhaps we shall see the end of the 85KWh battery pack when the cells used in the 90KWh pack are readily available and those used in the 85KWh pack become less available.
I can also see some of the wood interior trim choices of the X come over to the S. Again small items that are in the pipeline and from suppliers whom have a good record of supply.
I can see how cloth Next Gens would be attractive in the hotter climates.... or for those who desire cloth over leather.
It would be a simplification of production to switch over to the partial silicon chemistry and offer just one battery chemistry. They would also probably bump the base pack up to 75 KWh too. I don't know how much wood trim from the Model X would make it over because there would be differences in shape to some pieces, though I believe the X and S share the same front of the cabin where most of the wood goes, so it's possible some of the trim options might make it.
I know many vegans have a problem with leather seats and caused a bit of an uprising at a Tesla shareholders meeting about it. I don't have any major philosophical problems with leather, but we have other seating materials that are at least as good now. Leather originally was used because it was the most durable material for seats, but the cloth seats in my Buick still look new after 23 years. We have other materials that are as good if not better. Here in Portland there has been an ad on the radio for a leather furniture store that has been around a long time. The owner talks about her father who founded the store and leather was once the poor person's fabric for couches because it lasted longer than cloth, but now it's the fashionable material for couches and it more expensive. She pitches her store as a fashionable place to shop, but I took away a different message from the ad.
Leather has become a prestige thing in cars and personally I find it about as comfortable as vinyl. Leather is hot in the summer and cold in the winter and it's slick so you slide around on it rather than stay in place. My father had a 1998 Cadillac with leather and even when belted in you could feel your backslide slip a bit going around corners, even rather slowly. Why is leather such a thing with cars? It makes no sense to me.
As I said above, I don't have a strong objection to leather in principle. It is a good material for things like shoes and belts. Automotive use has increased and beef consumption has decreased so much of it that we're outstripping the supply of byproduct and a lot of cows are being killed (especially in Asia) just for their hides for what is IMO an inferior material. All for something that is just fashionable.
I'm willing to agree to disagree with others if they really want leather in their car. To each their own and if some people truly prefer it to other materials, that's your choice, I respect decisions based on some thought. Leather might have more pluses than minuses for some people, different people are going to have different lists. The only thing that bugs me is people going for something out of fashion alone without thinking it through.
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I am not sure Tesla is holdig back on changing the S, because they also think the Xes nose is ugly. If it were so, why did the make the X nose like it is?
The mockup I posted above isn't mine. Credit goes to someone, Im sure. It might not be exactly how the updated S might look like, but it would be easily realizable and makes the car look more than just a bit different. And, unlike some of you, I believe that Teslas focus group for the S isn't infinitely expandable and keeping the already customers interested is important. I don't say there is anything wrong with the S, but thats how the car business works. And Tesla is even more extreme, they changed and upgraded their car multiple times over the last years and I don't think the exterior is something they won't touch. And it wouldn't even be a major change. Changing the front isn't really a big deal.
Tesla always pegged the Model S market to be about 50K cars a year and that's pretty close to where they are now. They also pegged the Model X around 50K cars. I think a major barrier to entry is the price. There are lots of people out there who want an S or X, but can't afford one. For every $10K they would be able to shave off the price, they would see a major increase in sales. I think the average Model S costs around $100K when the options are added in, if that was $70k - $80K instead, Tesla would be taking sales away from cars selling in the $50k-$60K range which is a significantly bigger market than the $80K-$100K market.
At current costs, Tesla would make no profit at $80K for a standard equipped Model S, but if they could get costs down, they would be able to make money at that price. The biggest potential cost saver is the batteries which will come down with time.
I don't expect prices on the Model S and X to come down until the Model 3 is out there. With the Model 3, they will have enough volume to squeeze their suppliers for better prices and have enough profit from the mass market car to take a smaller profit on the high end cars without losing any money. Right now they make on average $20K a car. If they cut that to $10K and found another $10K in savings, they could sell the average Model S for $80K and probably sell 100,000 - 200,000 a year.
