Tesla Motors looks to alleviate the public’s concern regarding the battery life of plug-in cars and is planning to discuss the solution in a press conference scheduled for Thursday, as CEO Elon Musk informed his Twitter followers via a tweet on Sunday. The CEO of the electric car maker company promised an over-the-air software update to address the issue.
Tesla plans software update
Range anxiety is one of the major concerns when it comes to electric cars and has presently become the biggest impediment in one’s preference for them. The term has been used to define people’s fear of running out of charge in the middle of nowhere. Moreover, the limited range of most plug-in cars seems to have worsened the situation. Much of them cannot go further than 100 miles per charge.
“Tesla press conf at 9am on Thurs. About to end range anxiety … via OTA software update. Affects entire Model S fleet,” read a tweet from Musk.
Tesla Motors stands out for producing cars with the longest ranges. Even with the largest battery pack allowance of 265 miles per charge, as per the federal rating, drivers’ range anxiety can still seep in during intercity travel. Thus, in a bid to address the issue, the company has come up with a software update for all its Model S cars.
How Musk plans to end “range anxiety”
Musk claims that the proposed over-the-air software update will completely “end range anxiety,” however, he failed to elaborate much on the issue. Exactly how such a software update would aid people’s concern has yet to be made clear, but one won’t have to wait much, as the press conference is set for later this week.
According to USA Today, the CEO might have decided to compromise on Model S performance in exchange for extra miles to boost its range. Other possible solutions could be developing better ways to approach drivers on how far they could expect to reach on a single-charge or by enabling cars with a new way to guide them to the nearest charging station.
However, irrespective of whatever the Tesla CEO has planned, if the software update lives up to the presumed expectations of ending all fears related to range anxiety, it would be a boon for electric car enthusiasts and certainly improve the attitudes of the general public toward plug-in cars.
