Is This A Tesla Model S AWD Prototype Caught Testing? (Video, Photos)

It's long been expected that sooner or later, the Tesla Model S electric sport sedan will be offered with all-wheel drive.

Now, two different Tesla fans have captured photos and video of what appears to be a prototype test vehicle with external instrumentation driving around the San Francisco Bay Area.

As published on TransportEvolved, the video and first photos posted yesterday by Frank Hsueh--which aren't of particularly high quality--simply showed the silver Model S with roof-mounted instrumentation and wheel sensors on all four wheels.

MORE: AWD Tesla Model S Coming Soon? (Warning: Pure Speculation) -- April 2013

But then a closer and much crisper shot appeared, and it seems the test car rides slightly higher than a standard Model S.

It's fitted with California "manufacturer" license plates, and was photographed near an entrance to the University of California--Santa Cruz, about 40 miles from Tesla's Palo Alto headquarters in Silicon Valley.