Type approval for the Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] Model S and Model X in Europe reveal that the next step up in performance for the popular electric sedan and SUV will be in the form of a 100-kilowatt-hour battery.
As first discovered by enthusiast website Kenteken, the Dutch government’s automotive authority, the RDW, lists on its website type approval for P100D versions of the Model S and Model X. This type approval is required for registering a vehicle for road use.
The news isn’t a huge surprise as hacker Jason Hughes discovered as early as March that Tesla was planning a P100D option for the cars. While Tesla itself has remained silent on the subject, the company has traditionally badged its vehicles according to their battery capacity, suggesting a 100-kwh capacity. The “P” stands for Tesla’s more powerful Performance electric motors while the “D” refers to the automaker’s Dual-motor all-wheel-drive system.
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2016 Tesla Model X
It’s not clear yet whether the P100D will serve as a replacement for the current range-topping P90D option, though Tesla has made similar moves in the past. The P90D option originally replaced a P85D option.
P90D versions of the Model S and Model X are priced from $110,700 and $116,700, respectively, including destination. It’s likely the P100D versions will see a slight increase in pricing from these levels.
What we do know, once again looking at the RDW website, is that the P100D option on the Model S and Model X boosts range to 613 kilometers (approximately 381 miles) based on European cycle testing. EPA-rated figures tend to be more conservative though we should still see the stated range in the United States exceed the P90D’s 270 miles.
