Tesla drops the Model S 75 and leather seats

Tesla’s now dropped the entry level Model S 75 and leather seats option among changes prior to launching its Model 3 shortly.

It will discontinue the Model S with the 75kWh battery pack and rear-wheel drive by the end of the year, Electrek reports.

Models 60 and 60D were dropped in April, so with the 75 now going the cheapest option is likely to be the Model S 75D with dual motor all-wheel-drive at US$74,500.

The changes appear to aim at better differentiating the base version of Model S with the new Model 3 in order for the latter not to cannibalise the sales of the former, Electrek says.

Tesla salespeople have begun contacting potential buyers and Tesla owners showing interest in upgrading their car to advise the Model S powertrain will soon be unavailable.

All Tesla vehicles, Model S or X, will probably be dual motor all-wheel-drive now.

The Model 3 is also expected to have a dual motor option, but chief executive officer Elon Musk iss reported as saying that early production is dedicated to rear-wheel-drive units to streamline production.

Leather seats are gone too, with only vegan seats of new synthetic material now available.

Some cars will still have a leather steering wheel as standard, but Tesla can provide a non-leather one on request.

It would seem many Tesla customers prefer an interior unrelated to cattle, perhaps because of that agriculture business’s big environmental impact, overseas media sources surmise.