Extended battery price? Another clue... "less than SUV kit"

[danielt1263]

Saw this on Reddit:
Pyroburner:
I asked this directly and they emailed me back saying [the extended battery] would be less then the SUV kit. They didn't say how much cheaper, just that it would be cheaper.

Hinagea:
Can you share exactly what they said?

Pyroburner:
"Our extended battery that gets up to 240 miles will not be as costly as an SUV kit. Batteries will not be upgradable beyond the factory floor. You will be able to make a selection upon placing an official order."

 

[GaRailroader]

I’m gonna guess $4k for the extended range battery. Telo is charging $3980 for their longer range IIRC.

Recall that one of the forum members said that there was an announcement coming in June that will make standard range much more attractive. The conclusion that I jumped to was that they were announcing a chemistry change like LFP. Member subsequently reported they didn’t discuss chemistry. What would make the standard range more appealing excluding chemistry? Perhaps range. What if the standard range is 200 and extended range is 300. That could be the surprise that would certainly make the standard range a lot more appealing.

 

[danielt1263]

Google is telling me that an extra 31.6 kWh would increase manufacturing cost by $2500 to $3500 because the packs cost $80-$110 per kWh.

 

[ScooterAsheville]

Well some pack costs are fixed. So adding more modules to the pack would be at a lower rate than that. Not a lot, but lower.

A weird thing, and probably not true for Slate. Tesla in the early days sold low and high capacity packs. Except that they were the same pack. Just software limited. If you bought the smaller pack, you could get it upgraded later by software.

I don't that will be true for Slate because Slate designs with replaceable modules, whereas Tesla uses cell-to-pack.

Any Tesla owner - please correct me if I botched that badly.

 

[kvermeer]

"Our extended battery that gets up to 240 miles will not be as costly as an SUV kit. Batteries will not be upgradable beyond the factory floor. You will be able to make a selection upon placing an official order."

That's either good news about the low cost of extended range, bad news about the high cost of the SUV kit, or Reddit making stuff up again.

Source:

 

[clofan]

So extended battery + SUV (and presumably fastback) kits will increase price somewhere between ~$6-9k. Darn, I was hoping the 4-seater kit would be more affordable.

 

[atx_ev]

I’m gonna guess $4k for the extended range battery. Telo is charging $3980 for their longer range IIRC.

Recall that one of the forum members said that there was an announcement coming in June that will make standard range much more attractive. The conclusion that I jumped to was that they were announcing a chemistry change like LFP. Member subsequently reported they didn’t discuss chemistry. What would make the standard range more appealing excluding chemistry? Perhaps range. What if the standard range is 200 and extended range is 300. That could be the surprise that would certainly make the standard range a lot more appealing.

is telo in production?

 

[GaRailroader]

is telo in production?

Nope

 

[ElectricShitbox]

Recall that one of the forum members said that there was an announcement coming in June that will make standard range much more attractive. The conclusion that I jumped to was that they were announcing a chemistry change like LFP.

I don't remember where this discussion took place, but I thought the phrasing was closer to "it will be much easier to make your battery decision", which I took to mean that the first production run will be 100% 1 battery size, whichever it is.

 

[cadblu]

Well some pack costs are fixed. So adding more modules to the pack would be at a lower rate than that. Not a lot, but lower.

A weird thing, and probably not true for Slate. Tesla in the early days sold low and high capacity packs. Except that they were the same pack. Just software limited. If you bought the smaller pack, you could get it upgraded later by software.

I don't that will be true for Slate because Slate designs with replaceable modules, whereas Tesla uses cell-to-pack.

Any Tesla owner - please correct me if I botched that badly.

Nope, you got it right. I think the 2017 Model S with a 60 kWh battery actually had a 75 kWh battery pack that was software-limited. If you wanted more range you could pay to unlock the extra range via an OTA update. This actually follows Slate’s example, build them all the same on the assembly line, no variation and opportunities for error.

Around the same time Tesla also offered an OTA performance boost called “Ludicrous Plus” which decreased the 0-60 time to about 2.4 seconds. Now if Slate offers something like this, where do I sign up? 😲

 

[tubes]

is telo in production?

Never heard of them. Looked them up. Looks like a Honda Kei. Nope, not for me. Too damn small. I grew up in the 70s gas crisis era when we had Vespa "cars" (scooters with a tent around them) and other weird contraptions. Nope. Not again.

Nope, you got it right. I think the 2017 Model S with a 60 kWh battery actually had a 75 kWh battery pack that was software-limited. If you wanted more range you could pay to unlock the extra range via an OTA update. This actually follows Slate’s example, build them all the same on the assembly line, no variation and opportunities for error.

OK, I hope to God that Slate doesn't do this. In my old job before retirement, we did this crap with software packages. I didn't work for IBM at the time, but my wife used their mainframes and it was the same. You got a mainframe with a bunch of CPUs, but could only use them if you paid.

I do not like this model. This model makes me want to puke. No thank you.

 

[ScooterAsheville]

is telo in production?

Telo is fascinating. They say they're going to be doing an initial 500 handbuilt "bay builds" in H2 2026. So I'm curious if they meet that target. They say if that goes well, they'll set up a low rate production line for the next 1,500.

Telo has a different audience. It's coastal Californians wanting something unique, EV, functional, high performing and manueverable in inner city traffic and parking. The whole Telo proposition won't appeal to your average Slate buyer, but I suspect Telo will do fine with a well-heeled niche audience in CA.

I'm not a Telo fanboy, but I'm cheering them on. Not a Slate fanboy either, but cheering Slate on too. The more the merrier.

 

[ScooterAsheville]

...
I do not like this model. This model makes me want to puke. No thank you.

Scratching my head. Because I can't see how Tesla's optional upgrade would make anyone want to puke.

Tesla would sell a customer a large battery for the cost of the smaller battery. They'd software limit battery capacity to what you paid for. And Tesla granted that customer the OPTION of unlocking the full capacity at a later date for the same differential they would have paid in the first place.

It's a no-brainer. You got what you paid for. If you wanted more, all you had to do was pay for it down the road. Without the hassle of trading your car. Everybody was a winner.

 

[GaRailroader]

Nope, you got it right. I think the 2017 Model S with a 60 kWh battery actually had a 75 kWh battery pack that was software-limited. If you wanted more range you could pay to unlock the extra range via an OTA update. This actually follows Slate’s example, build them all the same on the assembly line, no variation and opportunities for error.

Around the same time Tesla also offered an OTA performance boost called “Ludicrous Plus” which decreased the 0-60 time to about 2.4 seconds. Now if Slate offers something like this, where do I sign up? 😲

I had recalled the Canadian Model 3 that they did something similar with to offer a price low enough to qualify for a rebate and then buyers could unlock for additional $ after the sale.

I find this 75 kWh for the price of a 60 kWh interesting. I wonder if it performs like a 75 kWh battery that has a hard stop at 60 kWh(80%). So you have no ability to charge to 100% but you can charge to full every-time because you are really only charging to 80%. Also, it doesn't slow down as much as a 60 kWh would when you get close to full because it still has 15 kWh of overhead. I would pay more for a car with the 75 kWh battery that only permits me to use 60 kWh then I would pay for a car with a 60 kWh battery that allowed me to use the whole 60 kWh. Said another way, battery capacity that you can't use is not worthless.

 

[blampart]

Scratching my head. Because I can't see how Tesla's optional upgrade would make anyone want to puke.

It didn't make me sick either. But clearly you'd think they priced that in. So the cheaper option customers ordered, paid for the more expensive hardware they didn't want/ordered. Pure margin for Tesla, or at least a weighted balance to make their long range less expensive. I think it is extremly smart if you can pull it off as it keeps things simple. For cars starting at $45k, it is easier to hide $3k in hardware cost than on a barebones 25k truck, so not an option IMO for Slate, am pretty sure they will be physically delivered with what you order.