Electrek has discovered a new secret Tesla project called “Palladium” and involves some major updates to the Model S and Model X.
At the beginning of this year, Electrek Information revealed exclusively about Tesla’s secret “Roadrunner” project to build its own new battery cells and its own technology to produce them.
Now sources have confirmed that Electrek that Tesla has another secret project codenamed “Palladium” that is currently being implemented at the Fremont and Gigafactory Nevada factory.
Tesla Palladium Secret Project
Not much is known about the project as Tesla keeps the information compartmentalized across the organization, but Electrek It has been able to confirm its existence with various sources.
The project consists of building new production lines for updated versions of the Model S and Model X.
It is still unclear how far-reaching the Palladium update will be, again because Tesla keeps the information compartmentalized, but it looks like it could be important.
According to people familiar with the matter, the new Palladium update will include new battery modules and drive units that will serve as the basis for the upcoming “Plaid” version of the Model S and Model X.
The new powertrain will allow for a three frame engine configuration and feature increased performance and efficiency. We don’t have the final numbers yet, but it should be impressive.
Another source said Electrek It involves more than just the powertrain, and one employee even referred to a new “Model S and Model X Palladium Body,” meaning the new version of the vehicles will have a different body.
When Tesla began testing the first prototypes of the S Plaid model, it featured some body modifications, but it was unclear whether Tesla plans to bring them to the production version.
Tesla is currently updating production lines at the Fremont and Nevada factory as part of the new Palladium project.
The exact timing of the launch is unclear, but it should be ready by the time Tesla celebrates its ‘battery day’ in September.
Why palladium?
We could not confirm why Tesla named the project “Palladium”.
Palladium is one of the six metals in the platinum group, and most of the palladium mined worldwide ends up in catalytic converters in automobile exhausts.
It’s unclear if any of the new components in the new Palladio Model S and Model X update use the materials, or it could be a hit on combustion engines that need their emissions cleaned with palladium.
Is Tesla like palladium for the entire auto industry?
Furthermore, the price of the material has increased significantly in recent years, and some have even compared it to the increase in Tesla stocks.
The taking of Electrek
On another interesting note, it also appears that both Roadrunner and Palladium might be related.
For example, the new Palladium Model S and Model X could be the first vehicles in the Tesla line to receive the new batteries built by Tesla from scratch.
New cells, new modules, new engines, and a new body would be some significant updates to the Model S and Model X, but Tesla does not make car updates.
It could also be scheduled with an interior design update, which Tesla originally planned for last year before being promoted.
Although if combined, it would be difficult for Tesla not to call the update an “update”.
Either way, I’m glad Tesla is planning a major upgrade for the Model S and Model X, which have been neglected as Tesla’s flagship vehicles.
They received several incremental improvements over the past year, but it now appears that the cheaper Model 3 and Model Y are the technology leaders for the automaker.
It looks like the Palladium project is going to change that.
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