• This new model will combine a rear-mounted motor with an enlarged NMC battery pack.
  • Reports out of China suggest the Model 3+ may be able to travel up to 497 miles (800 km).
  • Tesla is expected to release this new model in China before the end of the year.

Nowhere on Earth does Tesla face stiffer competition than it currently does in China. In the US, it remains far and away the largest seller of EVs, but in China it has to compete with far more EV-only brands that continue to develop new models with staggering speed. It’s perhaps for this reason that Tesla is gearing up to launch a special version of the Model 3 in China, known as the Model 3+.

It was recently revealed that Tesla had applied for a local sales license to sell a new version of the Model 3. While the name may lead you to think it’ll be an even more powerful version than the Model 3 Performance, it’s instead expected to have the longest range of any version. Data subsequently released by the nation’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has provided us with more intriguing details about the Model 3+.

Read: Tesla Model Y And 3 Get Surprising Speed And Range Upgrade In China

For starters, the new model will be sold exclusively in rear-wheel drive guise. However, whereas the current entry-level RWD model in China has a small 62.5 kWh lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery from CATL, the Model 3+ uses a more expensive NMC battery from LG.

Tesla already offers an NMC-equipped version of the Model 3, but the local Long Range model is sold exclusively in all-wheel drive. It has a quoted CLTC range of 468 miles (753 km) thanks to the larger 78.4 kWh pack. That’s impressive, but by combining an NMC battery with just a single motor, Tesla should be able to further boost the EV’s range.

China Is Getting A New Model 3+ But It’s Not What You Might Think

There’s no word on whether or not the NMC battery bound for the Model 3+ will be identical to the one sold in the Long Range AWD, but it probably will be. Interestingly, Tesla already sells a Long Range Rear-Wheel Drive version of the Model 3 in the US, complete with a 79.7 kWh NMC battery.

It’s understood that the Model 3+ will offer up as much as 497 miles (800 km) of range on the generous CLTC cycle, matching the longest range version of the Xiaomi SU7. We expect to see it released in the coming months and for more details to be provided then.