Tesla Motors will probably unveil an all-wheel-drive variant of its ModelS luxury sedan today, analysts including Brian Johnson, at Barclays, and Ivan Drury, at Edmunds.com, have predicted.
The launch would better position the manufacturer of electric cars to make sales in cold-weather markets such as New York and Boston, where many consumers demand all-wheel drive to cope with snowy, wet roads.
The new variant would align Tesla with top luxury brands such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota's Lexus.
"Would it make sense as a logical move? Completely. Would Tesla gain sales? Certainly," Drury said earlier this week. "Tesla has nothing to lose by offering all-wheel drive, especially when all its competitors are offering it."
By adding that capability, Tesla stands to gain most in the northeast of the US because of adverse weather conditions there, said Karl Brauer, a senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book.
Elizabeth Jarvis-Shean, a Tesla spokesman, declined to comment yesterday.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk last week posted on Twitter that he would "unveil the D and something else". The billionaire included a photo of a darkly lit, partially obscured Tesla and the date October 9.
Barclays' Johnson said that Tesla's announcement would probably include news of a "dual-motor ModelS" to provide all-wheel-drive capability, and "driver assistance systems".
A person familiar with the manufacturer's plan said last week that Tesla would make its first foray into automated driving, joining its rivals in offering technologies such as a feature that can keep a car in its lane.
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