- Tesla VP hints that the automaker plans refresh the aging Model S and Model X later this year
- The automaker last updated the car in 2021
- Model 3 and Model Y recently received upgrades with the Highland and Juniper updates in 2024 and 2025.
It’s been a while since the Tesla Model S and Model X got any real attention. While the Model 3 and Y have been getting all of the flashy upgrades recently (thanks, Highland and Juniper), the company’s flagship luxury models have been left to age like an old iPhone. That could be about to change as early as this year.
Tesla’s VP of Engineering, Lars Moravy, recently appeared on an episode of the Ride The Lightning podcast where he said Tesla plans to show “some love” to both vehicles later this year. Potentially, this means the automaker’s flashy sedan and SUV could soon get a much-needed refresh in the looks and feel department.
“Just give it a minute. We’ll get there,” Moravy said, responding to a question asking about potential upgrades for the Model S and X. “The upgrade a couple [of] years ago was bigger than most people thought in terms of architecture and structure. And the car got a lot better too. But we’ll give it some love later this year and make sure it gets a little bit of the stuff we’ve been putting in 3 and Y.”
What’s Changing?
Well, that’s a big unknown. Moravy didn’t drop any sort of feature list, but he made it sound like the refresh will be more substantial than people might expect. The exec mentioned that Tesla was already working behind the scenes with its last upgrade to make major structural and architectural improvements, and it seems like the automaker will build on those by siphoning some of the changes implemented in the Model 3 and Y.
To give a quick refresh on what changed in the Model 3 and Y: visual upgrades (including the Cybertruck-inspired light bar on the Model Y), suspension and chassis tweaks, new interior materials (like the ambient lightning) and other upgrades.
Interestingly, Moravy didn’t make any mention of upgrades being pulled from the Cybertruck, which makes us wonder if Tesla really thinks the tech stuffed into the stainless steel doorstop is truly ready for prime time, or if it’s still more of an engineering testbed.
Tesla took an interesting approach to updating its fleet. Normally, an automaker trickles most of its premium upgrades down the lineup. But in this case, Tesla is going up-market with its changes, refreshing the 3 and Y before the S and X—though the age of Tesla’s more affordable platform was certainly starting to show, and Tesla knew that it needed to update those models to stay competitive in a changing market.
“Obviously with 3 and Y higher volume stuff, you’ve got to focus there [to] make sure you’re staying competitive and getting it out there,” Moravy said. “But everyone here [has] a little place in our heart for S and X.”
Model S And X Aren’t Going Anywhere
Sales of the S and X haven’t exactly been great. The S, X, and Cybertruck made up less than 5% of Tesla’s overall deliveries (combined) in 2024 with only 85,133 units being delivered to customers. In 2023, that number was less than 4% at just 68,874 units.
The sales numbers don’t phase the Tesla, though. According to the exec, Tesla isn’t considering sunsetting the Model S and X.
“Not anytime soon,” Moravy said. “As Elon says, definitely there’s like some nostalgia to them and [we] like keeping them around. We don’t have any immediate plans to change that.”
A Refresh Might Not Be Enough
Now for the elephant in the room: these changes might not be enough to convince folks to buy the cars. Tesla has a lot of other issues going on right now that—even with a refresh—might not convince buyers to open their wallets.
Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, has pushed away many of Tesla’s core buyers with his cost-cutting activities in the U.S. government and far-right activism globally. Then there’s the increasing competition in the EV space. While most of the new competition is focused on meeting or beating the price bracket of the 3 and Y, Tesla still has a lot of luxury players that it needs to compete against. Audi and Porsche, for example, will benefit from the recent Volkswagen-Rivian software partnership, birthing new premium vehicles for the brands. Then there’s the BMW Neue Klasse, entries from Lucid and Lotus, and we can’t forget about the myriad of EV pickups priced at luxury levels, either.
Ultimately, Tesla may need help on all fronts to boost sales this year, and that seems to include the Model S and X too. Perhaps we’ll hear more about these changes later this year.
