With the first deliveries of the Standard Range Plus (SR+) Model 3 starting last week in Canada and the US, we are now getting our first look at the new heat pump.
The addition of the heat pump was first speculated earlier this summer when Tesla changed the design of the frunk tub to closely resemble that of the Model Y. Making the case even stronger was evidence of two unusually large orders for heat pumps from a Chinese supplier discovered in September.
When Tesla’s Design Studio was updated to include all of the new changes on the refresh Model 3, there was no mention of the heat pump as being part of them. It was only through one of our sources, and then later some marketing emails that we learned Tesla had officially added it.
Today the first image of the new Model 3 heat pump has surfaced online, and it looks just like the unit included in its big brother, the Model Y.
As you can see, the heat pump includes the acoustic blanket, which was added to the Model Y heat pump after its release to help reduce the noise from the unit while in operation.
With the addition of the heat pump, which allows for more efficient heating and cooling of the cabin, Tesla has been able to squeeze more range out its batteries. The SR+ Model 3 gained 21km of range, going from 402km to 423km.
The Long Range (LR) saw the biggest jump from 518km to 56km of range, but it appears that wasn’t just because of the heat pump. Customers in Europe have reported their registration papers show the electric sedan now comes with a 82kWh battery pack, presumably thanks to a new cells from Panasonic with increased energy density.
