Tesla to Increase Range and Power by OTA Update

Tesla owners love OTA updates, and for good reason. The car just keeps getting better. I think we were all pretty amazed when Tesla was able to improve braking performance OTA but this latest improvement is a real treat. Apparently the algorithm for the SRPM 6 pole motor in the Model 3* has been tweaked to improve range and power. Tesla says 5% but also notes that each of the model 3 variants will be different. So far the SR+ has increased its range from 240 to 250, a 4.16% improvement.

Current expectations are that all the variants will be updated in the next 2-3 weeks. I'm looking forward to having more range in my EV 18 months after purchase than when it was brand new. More power too, but that is just bragging rights. As it is, my Model 3 LR has more power than 99% of the cars on the road (excluding the faster Teslas of course.)

*I've only heard the Model 3 mentioned but the latest Model S and Model X also have an SRPM motor.

More range AND more power. Amazing!!! Literally incredible. (Fine print: if you use the extra power you get less range. If you use the extra range you'll have less power.) Can they maybe add a heated steering wheel with an OTAU?

LeftieBiker said:

Literally incredible.

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Not totally. If you can increase efficiency, then you get more range. If you do it really well, you can even get more power as well as more range (but not as much range as you would get if you just increased the efficiency by itself, and left the power constant). It seems it's a tweak to the motor control algorithm.

I don't think the tech set would let Tesla get away with BS on something like this, but I could be wrong.

Can they maybe add a heated steering wheel with an OTAU?

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Of course, hardware is a lot harder to deliver Over The Air. Maybe Amazon could do it with their delivery drones, but then there is "some assembly required"

If they can increase efficiency with an OTA update to the point where it provides both noticeable increased power and increased range, then they programmed the motor controllers badly in the first place.

LeftieBiker said:

If they can increase efficiency with an OTA update to the point where it provides both noticeable increased power and increased range, then they programmed the motor controllers badly in the first place.

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Your experience is colored by driving around in a slightly re-warmed 2011 LEAF. The pace of Tesla innovation is something else.

However ... it is true that a 5% improvement in overall fuel economy is crazy, since the motor was very efficient to begin with. It suggests something in the range of 90% -> 95%

We'll see. If I were Musk I'd be sending out an update to tell Model 3s to slightly lower their power window on one door in frigid weather...

LeftieBiker said:

If they can increase efficiency with an OTA update to the point where it provides both noticeable increased power and increased range, then they programmed the motor controllers badly in the first place.

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Or they programmed them good enough to ship, but later work revealed there was some improvement possible.

I like the approach of continuous improvement.

LeftieBiker said:

We'll see. If I were Musk I'd be sending out an update to tell Model 3s to slightly lower their power window on one door in frigid weather...

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Lucky for us, you are not.

Your sad, uniformed trolling aside, it is true that as drivetrain efficiency improves there is less 'waste' heat for other purposes like heating up the battery in the winter. Overall, efficiency improvement is a great thing but it never pans out to 100% savings over 4 seasons.