[wemdyjreichert]

That would be incredibly environmentally irresponsible, considering the impact of mining lithium, cobalt, rare earths etc. You'd basically be wasting limited resources, which would run contrary to Tesla's stated mission of creating a more sustainable future.

[njarboe]

My guess is that all the battery is used and the extra capacity allows for a "full" charge without really getting full. It could also let the range stay at the original level for a lot longer as the battery deteriorates. I would hope so anyway.

[davidgould]

Lithium batteries do not use rare earths.

Tesla's specific battery chemistry uses significantly less cobalt than the other common vehicle batteries