2013 Tesla Model S electric luxury sedan to start at $57,400

Consumer Reports News: March 09, 2011 01:16 PM

Find Ratings

Sedans

See Dealer Pricing

Well ahead of its on-sale date, Tesla Motors has released the three-tier pricing strategy for the automaker's second car line, the all-electric Model S luxury sedan. Sticker prices for the three versions will depend on the size of the battery pack. (See our Tesla Model S preview.)

The entry-level Model S will have a 160-mile range and sell for $57,400, not counting the $7,500 federal tax break it will garner. We estimate that the battery pack will hold more than 60 kWh of electric power.

From there, prices will go up in two increments of $10,000, each gaining an additional 70 miles of range: $67,400 for 230 miles and $77,400 for 300 miles. That largest battery pack may hold as much as 120 kWh.

When it comes to choosing a version, it comes down to how much you would be willing to pay for a few extra miles. In addition, the Model S's battery pack is modular and can be swapped for a new one, an arrangement envisioned by the charging infrastructure start-up Better Place.

The seven-passenger Model S is scheduled to go on sale in mid 2012. But only a limited edition "Signature Series" will be available to start, with an unspecified, but doubtlessly higher, price tag. Deposits are already being taken.

Meanwhile, in separate news, the Boston-based lithium-ion battery maker A123 Systems announced to investors that it had signed a contract to supply batteries to a "major North American automaker." It said the resulting electric car would go sale in 2013.

Clearly, the auto industry is charging ahead on the electric front.

— Eric Evarts

See our guide to fuel economy for advice on saving gasoline. Learn about future technologies in our guide to alternative fuels.