Tesla confirms the upcoming arrival of a Model 3 Performance

The American manufacturer Tesla has confirmed working on a Performance version of its recently refreshed Model 3.

Presented in September 2023, the updated version of the Tesla Model 3 marketed in France since 2019 (and late 2017 in the United States) had so far only two trims: Rear-wheel drive or Long Range. The most powerful and expensive, the Model 3 Performance, had disappeared, Tesla prioritizing its urgent needs—namely quickly supplying the Chinese, European, and now North American markets.

Since then, it was silent. Tesla was busy launching the electric pickup Cybertruck, then managing communications about the upcoming renewal of its increasingly threatened best-seller, the Model Y SUV.

This Friday, January 26, 2024, Martin Viecha, Tesla’s Director of Investor Relations, confirmed that the Performance will have a new commercial career. He did not specify the exact date, but Tesla usually doesn’t delay, and a market launch in 2024 seems inevitable.

Unchanged Power?

In the previous generation (2017-2023), the power gap between the Long Range and Performance versions was ultimately quite small. Both cars had 158 kW (214 horsepower) on the front axle, and 208 kW (283 hp) and 235 kW (320 hp) on the rear axle. That’s a combined power of 497 horsepower and 534 horsepower.

It is confirmed that Tesla has not altered the power outputs for the new Model 3 Rear-wheel drive and Long Range versions. It’s likely that they won’t change them for the Performance either, given its already impressive acceleration capabilities.

This raises the question of the later arrival of a much more extreme version called Plaid. Tesla is keen to challenge its European rivals. But the Model 3 now has a weakness: its relatively small battery capacity. In Europe and China, the new standard for high-performance vehicles is around a 100 kWh battery.

Will the Model 3 be able to do this? Engineers are working on it.

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