Tesla’s least expensive vehicle is now the Model S 75 at $69,500 after overnight price drop & newly included options [Updated]

Update/editor’s note: the article was updated to correct information on previous pricing and to include a statement from Tesla about the changes made today – read at the end of the article.

Tesla has updated their design studio overnight and made significant changes to pricing and options for the Model S and X, seemingly streamlining them in anticipation of the upcoming Model 3 release. The 75kWh Model S, now Tesla’s cheapest vehicle, has received a $7,500 $5,000 price drop to $69,500 – just $1,500 more than the 60kWh version which was discontinued yesterday. They’ve also added the all glass roof (formerly $1,500) and automatic rear power liftgate as standard equipment on the Model S, so the base model has become a significantly better value with these updates.  The 90D also received a $2,000 price cut.

A few other changes were made to option availability – the smart air suspension can no longer be added to the 75kWh Model S (still available on all other models), and the high amperage (72 amp) charger is now included with 100kWh models but unavailable on all other battery sizes. The high amperage charger is separate from the DC Supercharging system, and allows faster AC charging if paired with a Tesla wall connector ($550) and attached to a circuit capable of delivering 72 amps.

Tesla also released a few new Model X features overnight, which you can read about over here in Fred’s post.

The large price drop seems at first like it could irk buyers who ordered the 60 just before its discontinuation, but to keep them happy Tesla has also dropped battery upgrade prices to stay relatively in sync with this price drop. The price of upgrading a 60kWh Model S battery to a 75kWh is now $2,000, down from the previous $9,000 $7,000.  So an owner who doesn’t mind the smaller battery still saves a little as compared to the new 75kWh price.

For those owners of an upgradeable 70kWh Model S (that is, the “facelifted” version – previous 70kWh cars did not come with a software-limited battery and thus cannot be upgraded), the upgrade from 70 -> 75kWh is now just $500, down from $3,500 prior. The Model X received a similar but smaller price drop, with the 60-> 75kWh upgrade price being lowered from $9,500 to $6,500.  Owners who are tempted to upgrade can access the new upgrade pricing by logging into their My Tesla accounts.

This should be a nice little revenue bump for Tesla if owners are tempted into upgrading, and will ensure that most Model Ss will end up with larger battery capacities than the coming Model 3s. Keep in mind, though, that the Model 3, which will be approximately 20% smaller in size than the S, will be a more efficient car – so a top-end 75kWh Model 3 will be able to go further than a base-model 75kWh S.

These changes seem to represent a streamlining of Tesla’s offerings before the release of the Model 3. Now that the Model S is available with a minimum 75kWh pack, that matches up nicely with the maximum potential pack size of the Model 3, which Elon Musk recently told us would be 75kWh. And the base price of $69,500 is just about double what the Model 3’s $35,000 base price is expected to be, and probably close to what a maxed-out Model 3 will end up costing.

The inclusion of the glass roof seems like another effort to streamline Tesla’s product line, since the Model 3 is also expected to come with an all-glass roof.  This means that it is currently not possible to order any Tesla with a “normal” opaque metal roof. The sunroof option is still available on the Model S, at $2,000.

Update: A Tesla spokesperson sent us the following statement about the changes today and upcoming changes next week

“Periodically we have adjusted pricing and available options to best reflect the value of our products and our customers’ preferences. Today’s updates include slight price decreases to our 75, 75D and 90D models to account for the discontinuation of our 60 kWh models, and next week we will be implementing slight price increases to our higher end 100D and P100D models. We expect our total average selling price to remain almost exactly the same.

Price increases for our 100D and P100D models will take effect on April 24, 2017 to best accommodate customers already in the order process, while price decreases for 75, 75D and 90D models will take effect today.”

You can get all the details about the upcoming price increases for 100D and P100D models here.

If these new price drops entice you to order a Model S, you can use our referral code to save another $1,000 – bringing the base price of the Model S to $68,500.