I read an article this morning detailing the powertrain updates (and more) to the Model S and X, of course I can't find it now (read it on Apple News which has no history function). Anyway, that same article said that a powertrain update would also be coming to Model 3 in the next few months as well. Has anyone heard about this possible powertrain update Does that article's claim have any merit?
The latest firmware update release notes indicate a "5%" increase in power. I haven't confirmed it pending getting a GPS mouse. Bob Wilson
The article made it sound like it would be a hardware upgrade. The S and X just got the permanent magnet whatever motor upgrade which the Model 3 already has. It sounded like the M3 would be getting something even newer in the next few months. gee I wish I could find that article.
In the conventional auto world (yes, I know Tesla is different, so do not slam me for not saying it), manufacturer have something different each model year (2018 vs 2019 etc.). Sometimes the only change is the model year (no real changes other than possibly price), or some minor and possibly inconsequential changes. In other cases there be more significant changes and there is often a total re-design in say 6 years or more. This is called the facelift vs redesign vs refresh part of the cycle ( https://www.autotrader.com/car-shopping/buying-car-whats-facelift-redesign-and-refresh-244744 ). Even though Tesla is different, it is not totally isolated from having to upgrade the product both due to a combination of economic/consumer and technological forces. In three years time, many consumers want to see something new in a Model 3, that was different from the 2018 version. Manufacturers also want consumers to buy new products and they need to make an old version obsolete (planned obsolescence), for the new version to be attractive. Yes there is another thread where @101101 claims Tesla Model 3 will last a million miles, but most people do not want to drive the same car for a million miles. Also, there are technological advances that consumers want including safety, and so the life of a car is limited. So then the question is "why cannot I just upgrade my car?". There are physical and hardware restrictions. For example, the computer that I used for Windows Vistas for years cannot handle Windows 10 and so I converted that computer to Linux, so that I still can use it but with less features. There is a limitation to how much software can take care of these changes. In other words, some improvements in features and capabilities cannot be done through software updates alone. They may need a combination of software and hardware changes. For example, as new high resolution cameras become available, the software would need to be upgraded to work with those newer cameras but there may be no backward compatibility i.e. that the redesigned new software will not work with the old cameras etc. At that stage, the manufacturer stops supporting the old hardware. The specific nuances may vary but I am sure you get the point. In order to keep up with technology, competition and even to reduce costs, certain hardware improvements need to happen to a Model 3, and there will be a time when current owners of Model 3 will get limited or no updates when the software specifications become incompatible with the say 2018 hardware. May be the hardware can be changed, and may be not. This is nothing to do with Tesla, it is to do with product development life cycle imposed on the software development life cycle (SDLC). So I am not surprised that Tesla is looking to improve the motors and transmission hardware. Model 3 is already more than a year old now, and they are coming up on a facelift cycle pretty quick (they have done a few small refreshes already) and I am sure in a few years they will be looking at a redesign.
I haven't seen/heard that news. The Model 3 very recently got an upgrade to enable faster DC fast charging, so I'm surprised that yet another one is in the works soon. However, Elon did say a few months back that they had figured out an innovation for the Standard Range Model 3 battery pack; new architecture which would allow lower pack-level costs. It seems reasonable to think Tesla would want to introduce that to the Long Range Model 3, too. But frankly, I'm much more interested in the upgrades to the Model S & Model X. They just got an upgrade to the drivetrain; more efficiency, better cooling and faster charging, all while using the same battery pack. But what I'm really hoping to see soon -- I think it's overdue -- is an upgrade to the MS/X battery pack using innovations and new architecture developed for the Model 3! I also am hoping to see Tesla switch the MS/X packs over to the new 2170 cells, altho for some reason I cannot understand, Elon keeps saying that's not part of the plan. Some people commenting to IEVs News articles also claim an interior refit is in the works for the MS/MX, altho I haven't seen any word of that either.
