Changes to Models S and X allow them to travel longer without larger batteries
Compare to the Audi e-Tron, which has a fairly massive 95kWH battery but only scores 204 miles of EPA range. They claim they&#x27;re only using 88% of the battery capacity so that charging is faster and battery longevity is preserved, but thats a really weird engineering decision that belies the fact they have made a terribly inefficient (and perhaps rapidly degrading?) battery pack&#x2F;drivetrain.<p>Meanwhile the base Model S, for $4k more, has 285 miles of EPA range, and charges faster when below 50%, although not as fast as the e-Tron when above 50%.<p>The smaller Kia Niro EV (if you can get one, they aren&#x27;t making many because they can&#x27;t source the batteries) squeezes 258 miles of range from a 65 kWH battery. Much better, but terribly production constrained. It won What Car of the Year in the UK but they can only deliver 900 to the UK for the whole of 2019. Not sure what the global Kia production rate is, but presumably far far less than Tesla which has sustained 4000+ Model 3&#x27;s per week since last October (although not yet delivering to the RHD countries like the UK, alas)<p>Turns out making EVs is harder than everyone thought. We were told the traditional automakers would just wade in and obliterate Tesla, who were just putting &#x27;wheels on batteries&#x27;. That hasn&#x27;t happened.