Tesla Model 3 – Supercharger usage may cost extra

Tesla Model 3 1

The Tesla Model 3 is proving to be commercial success, notching up around 115,000 pre-orders in the first 24 hours of its reveal. However, the most affordable Tesla, which has a starting price of US$35,000 (RM145,566), may require owners to pay more to use the company’s network of Supercharger stations, according to a report by Automotive News.

The privilege is free to owners of select variants of the Model S and Model X, but Model 3 buyers will need to purchase a special package. “Free supercharging fundamentally has a cost,” said Tesla CEO Elon Musk. “The obvious thing to do is decouple that from the cost of the Model 3. So it will still be very cheap, and far cheaper than gasoline, to drive long-distance with the Model 3, but it will not be free long distance for life unless you purchase that package.”

Musk did not reveal how much a Supercharger package will cost. The stations are typically found at malls and on highways between major cities in the United States. They serve to quell “range anxiety” among buyers, as well as facilitate coast-to-coast driving.

Superchargers can also be found in the United Kingdom, which has a network of 20 units. Europe meanwhile, has a total of 129 stations spanning from Norway to Slovenia. Tesla claims that the Superchargers provide 273 km of range when plugged in for just 30 minutes, more than 10 times the range provided by other chargers.

As impressive as the technology may be, Musk hopes that Tesla’s customers can reduce the habit of “supercharging” their car. “The best thing to do is to charge your car where you charge your phone: at home and at work,” he said.

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Gerard Lye

Originating from the corporate world with a background in finance and economics, Gerard’s strong love for cars led him to take the plunge into the automotive media industry. It was only then did he realise that there are more things to a car than just horsepower count.

 

Comments

  • Pluto on Jun 03, 2016 at 1:22 am

    This is not a new concept, and no supercharging isn’t free to all Model S and X owners. It’s included in the price of the car, but prior to last year it was an upgrade (especially for the Model S 60). You can see the price for the upgrade here (which has existed for some time): http://shop.teslamotors.com/products/enable-supercharging

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • Cukurlah ada BN, harga minyak tak ubah

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 19 Thumb down 18
    • Kunta Kinte on Jun 03, 2016 at 8:34 am

      If Ford Mustang is US24,645 and it can be priced at RM490k, please expect this car, priced at US$35k to be at least RM800k.

      Yes, we all can cukur.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 6
      • B-Unggul on Jun 03, 2016 at 11:46 am

        If the price is tripled/quadrupled, we should be ‘cukur’ with SDAC instead.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Cukurlah Anw… aik… Wan Az… bukan… err… (isi ruang kosong).. akan jadik MB baru

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 17 Thumb down 14
    • AutoFrenz (the original) on Jun 03, 2016 at 9:02 am

      Agree unless you supercharge under market value…then its cheap…somebody is good at that…

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 12
  • Brado Pitto on Jun 17, 2016 at 5:55 pm

    Jibby already bought 100+ model S to drive government officials and VIP around, cant we just use their supercharger network? Got digital biometric lock is it?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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