Tesla has pinned a lot of hopes on the Model S, the all-electric sedan due out next year. The first 1,000 cars off the assembly line will be the “Signature Series” Model S, with 300 miles of range…and more.
Car companies often launch a new vehicle with a limited edition first series. The most recent example I can think of was the launch of the Dodge Challenger, which was available at first with only the biggest, meanest engine. The Tesla Model S will feature a different sort of special edition. The Signature Series will come with a 300 mile-per-charge battery, giving the Model S of any proposed production electric vehicle coming to market. Tesla expects to make the first deliveries of the Model S in the middle of next year, and is taking a whopping $40,000 reservation on the first models. Knowing Tesla, these sedans won’t come cheap.
So what about the rest of us? Well Tesla will also be offering 160 mile and 230 mile battery options in the Tesla, the 160 mile battery should set the Model S’s price at around $49,900. The 230 mile option adds a $10,000 price premium, while the 300 mile option adds a whooping $20,000.
Is this the future? Paying for electric cars based on how far they can travel? It could be. Tesla expects to sell 5,000 Model S sedans in 2012, and 20,000 in 2013, and they already have an Alpha build of the electric sedan on the roads. Lofty goals for what is still a very expensive vehicle, gas or no gas. Still interested?
Source: Tesla
Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to HEMIs. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.