Why Are Tesla Model S And Y Deliveries Being Delayed? It's An EPA Issue

Tesla Inc. TSLA has been compelled to halt the delivery of two of its popular vehicle models in the United States due to range issues. The delay is a result of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking retesting of the vehicles.

What Happened: As reported by Drive Tesla Canada on Wednesday, the delivery of the Model S Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive (AWD) and Model Y Performance has been postponed. This decision was made at the behest of the EPA, which has raised concerns about the range figures of these vehicles.

The range ratings for the Model S, Model X, and Model Y were recently revised by Tesla. Although the company did not publicly disclose the reason for the change, internal communications revealed that it was due to changes in the EPA testing methods, resulting in “higher consumption and a slight decrease in overall range.”

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Additionally, Tesla introduced what it referred to as “comfort and functionality improvements” that draw more energy from the battery pack. This was described as an “efficiency package,” a change significant enough to prompt the EPA to request retesting of some vehicles.

Despite Tesla’s belief that it had all the necessary paperwork to deliver these cars, the EPA has requested a pause in deliveries to allow for the retesting of these two trims specifically. The delivery pause, initially set to end on February 28, has now been extended to March 7 at the earliest.

Why It Matters: In January, the company attributed the lowered range estimate on some of its vehicles to several comfort and functionality improvements, coupled with the EPA’s updated range testing guidance. This latest delay could potentially impact Tesla’s delivery targets and customer satisfaction.

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Photo courtesy: Tesla