Range Extender Battery will require install by service center (to be structurally mounted)

[ModelAZ]

Cybertruck lead engineer Wes Morrill confirmed that "any range extender offered by Tesla will be structurally mounted so it's safe in a crash."

 

[Cf400ex]

Was hoping for rental option ?

 

[Texarado]

“Any” range extender. Interesting verbiage. Definitely different than “the” range extender. Signaling hesitation in whether a range extender will be produced?

 

[Cf400ex]

Or maybe a smaller slim version

 

[Texarado]

Or maybe a smaller slim version

Can’t imagine they’d complicate it more. Obviously I could be wrong.

 

[TickTock]

The thing I picked up on was the qualifier "made by Tesla." Suggests there might be a path to after-market pack (which would be awesome - so many possibilities).

 

[HaulingAss]

“Any” range extender. Interesting verbiage. Definitely different than “the” range extender. Signaling hesitation in whether a range extender will be produced?

I've long been of the belief that the range extender will never make it to market due to low demand. It's only on-line that it seems a lot of people need more range, in the real world most Cybertruck owners have a lot more range than they need. Extended range is more of an edge case for people who travel in remote areas, away from the Supercharger Network. Even those who tow tend to have enough range because most towing trips are local in nature. And people in the most rural areas of the country are often very reluctant to spring for a $16K accessory.

It will be difficult to make it worth Tesla's development time if any range extender only has a 1 or 2% take rate. If they do it, it will mostly be for bragging rights.

 

[carsly]

I’d consider a range extender lite if I could fit it in the same area with the spare tire. If I’m forced to choose one, as it seems now. I’ll take the spare 10 times out of 10.

 

[mongo]

I've long been of the belief that the range extender will never make it to market due to low demand. It's only on-line that it seems a lot of people need more range, in the real world most Cybertruck owners have a lot more range than they need. Extended range is more of an edge case for people who travel in remote areas, away from the Supercharger Network. Even those who tow tend to have enough range because most towing trips are local in nature. And people in the most rural areas of the country are often very reluctant to spring for a $16K accessory.

It will be difficult to make it worth Tesla's development time if any range extender only has a 1 or 2% take rate. If they do it, it will mostly be for bragging rights.

For those of us planning to tow a travel trailer all over, range extender is a big enabler. (Probably not many though...)

 

[UberNoob]

I don’t like how the range extender is taking up so much bed space, suppose I need to see one in person. I’d be a lot happier if it was more like a few sheets of plywood on the bottom vs a giant tool box near the cab.

 

[Texarado]

I've long been of the belief that the range extender will never make it to market due to low demand. It's only on-line that it seems a lot of people need more range, in the real world most Cybertruck owners have a lot more range than they need. Extended range is more of an edge case for people who travel in remote areas, away from the Supercharger Network. Even those who tow tend to have enough range because most towing trips are local in nature. And people in the most rural areas of the country are often very reluctant to spring for a $16K accessory.

It will be difficult to make it worth Tesla's development time if any range extender only has a 1 or 2% take rate. If they do it, it will mostly be for bragging rights.

Agreed. Some coverage suggests there’s more gap in the battery pack area that isn’t used. Assuming the plan is to fill more completely then that obviates the need for the extender. Very few people need that much battery. It would be nice for towing but as I posted I just got back from a TX to CO towing trip with tons of mountain driving. It took longer but was totally fine. Wouldn’t be fine if I was full timing, but I’m not.

 

[greggertruck]

So, I think people are kind of overthinking this.

The extender simply bolts into the bed. The bed wall panel removes, the cable plugs into the HV penthouse... it's done.

It's quite heavy though, so definitely a more "permanent" install, but it can be removed again.

 

[Sjohnson20]

Do not want. I’ll spend 10 mins at a supercharger instead.

 

[EmmA]

When I saw the $15k price tag for an extender my first thought was that's the price of replacement on a 100kwh pack on a model S. If CT carries a 123kwh battery and we add an extender it better be close to a 100kwh of additional juice, making the range easily in the 500 mile range.
However I had another thought that perhaps $15k may buy a whole new battery *if* the production costs to them were significantly reduced. If Tesla has indeed perfected the dry cathode process for the 4680, I wonder if a whole new battery pack--using the vacant space to expand capacity--couldn't replace the whole existing pack while still making a profit with the 15k price tag. If they are able to drop battery costs by 50% with a dry cathode then perhaps they are buying time until dry cathode is ready for production.

 

[Frank_Castle]

When I saw the $15k price tag for an extender my first thought was that's the price of replacement on a 100kwh pack on a model S. If CT carries a 123kwh battery and we add an extender it better be close to a 100kwh of additional juice, making the range easily in the 500 mile range.
However I had another thought that perhaps $15k may buy a whole new battery *if* the production costs to them were significantly reduced. If Tesla has indeed perfected the dry cathode process for the 4680, I wonder if a whole new battery pack--using the vacant space to expand capacity--couldn't replace the whole existing pack while still making a profit with the 15k price tag. If they are able to drop battery costs by 50% with a dry cathode then perhaps they are buying time until dry cathode is ready for production.

I hear ya. I forget the exact wording on the upgrade, but the battery extender was not guaranteed for 15k. For the large non-refundable deposit, I was hesitant. Need more details on actual range, actual concrete price, etc. Ditto to your comment too. Maybe the existing battery can be replaced for the extra range. That would be awesome.

The last "dream" would be to have an under the bed full sized spare tire.