EPA Range And Energy Consumption Comparison

The entry-level version offers 402 miles of EPA range. The top version with 21-inch wheels is much quicker but has 20% less range.

The 2024 Tesla Model S flagship model was recently listed on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website, revealing its official range and energy consumption ratings.

There are two versions of the Tesla Model S on the market: the base Long Range all-wheel drive (AWD) and the tri-motor Plaid version, both equipped with 19-inch or 21-inch wheels.

The 2024 model year brought a decrease in the EPA Combined range ratings due to the EPA’s new methodology, which affected all EVs.

In 2022-2023, the Model S Long Range AWD with 19-inch wheels had 405 miles of EPA Combined range, while the Plaid had up to 396 miles. The updated EPA methodology—which draws average energy consumption from best- and worst-case drive modes instead of using the default driving mode—has brought some of the numbers down.

The latest 2024 Tesla Model S Long Range AWD with 19-inch wheels has an EPA Combined range of 402 miles (3 miles lower than reported in January). With 21-inch wheels, it’s 380 miles (2 miles lower than reported in January), according to Tesla, as there is no EPA rating card.

The Plaid version with 19-inch wheels has 359 miles of range (320 miles with optional 21-inch wheels).

There is a big difference between the base and top configuration:

• LR AWD 19-inch: 402 miles
• LR AWD 21-inch: 380 miles
  [22 miles or 5.5% less than LR AWD 19-inch]
• Plaid 19-inch: 359 miles
  [43 miles or 10.7% less than LR AWD 19-inch]
• Plaid 21-inch: 320 miles
  [39 miles or 10.8% less than Plaid 19-inch]
  [82 miles or 20.3% less than LR AWD 19-inch]

The 2024 Tesla Model S LR AWD with 19-inch wheels’ energy consumption, including charging losses, is estimated at 122 MPGe, or about 276 watt-hours per mile (3.6 miles/kWh).

The Plaid versions consume a lot more energy. The 19-inch version is rated at 107 MPGe: 315 Wh/mi or 3.2 miles/kWh, while the 21-inch version at just 96 MPGe: 351 Wh/mi or 2.8 miles/kWh.

Let’s note that the highway MPGe ratings are slightly lower than the combined values. We can estimate that the Long Range AWD version will have 20 miles less range on the highway. However, this is only a rough estimate because the MPGe number includes charging losses.

Here is a simple comparison of all main configurations:

* EPA range according to Tesla’s website; acceleration with rollout subtracted

Pricing

The Tesla Model S starts at $74,630 (including $1,640 in obligatory fees). The prices exceeded the $55,000 price cap for the $7,500 federal tax credit and none of the versions qualified for the incentive.

* Tesla adds a Destination Fee (DST) of $1,390 and an Order Fee of $250 to all its models ($1,640 total).

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