Model3
Latest
Tesla's Model 3 won't have a 100 kWh battery to start
Tesla's started off 2017 with a bang, officially opening its Powerpack-filled 20-megawatt energy storage station in Mira Loma, California last week as it looks to start production of its Model 3 at the end of the year. Just don't expect its new, more affordable electric car to come with the larger batteries they stuck in their existing vehicles last year: CEO Elon Musk himself finally confirmed that the Model 3 won't initially come in 100 kWh.
Tesla will have 'major' car revisions almost every year
If you're a Tesla buyer, you were probably miffed when you realized that the self-driving hardware revision rendered your car obsolete, even if it was just weeks old. However, you're going to have to get used to that feeling if you're going to stick with the brand. Tesla founder Elon Musk is telling customers that there will be "major" revisions every 12 to 18 months -- not quite yearly, but far more frequently than the every few years (at best) you see from conventional companies. He adds that retrofits would slow the company's progress "dramatically." For example, adding self-driving tech to earlier vehicles would require stripping the "entire car" and replacing 300 parts.
Tesla will manufacture Model 3 parts at the Gigafactory
Nevada governor Brian Sandoval has announced that Tesla will bring some of its manufacturing for the Model 3 across from California. At a speech outlining policy initiatives for the last two years of his term, Sandoval revealed that the car company will build electric motors and gearboxes in the state.
Tesla's Gigafactory ramps up to full battery production
Following earlier production tests, Tesla's Gigafactory is now pumping out Powerwall 2 and Powerpack 2 energy storage products at full speed, with Model 3 cell production set to follow next quarter. By 2018, it'll produce 35 GWh of lithium-ion cells per year, "nearly as much as the rest of the entire world's battery production combined," the company wrote.
Tesla narrowly missed its 2016 sales targets
At the start of 2016, Tesla set itself the ambitious goal of delivering up to 90,000 new cars to customers, and by the end of the year it almost, but not quite, achieved it. The company has revealed that it managed to get 83,992 electric vehicles out to people over the year; it would have been more but for some production hiccups in the fall. It's a big year-over-year boost for the relatively small automaker, since it only managed to deliver 50,580 cars in 2015.
Tesla's UK prices are about to go up by 5 percent
Tesla has sent out an email informing customers and anyone else that's registered interest in the company's EVs of an impending 5 percent price in the UK. From January 1st 2017, any custom order will become costlier, while second-hand and showroom vehicles are safe from the hike. It's not an insignificant jump when you consider it will up the price of the base Model S by almost £3,000 -- from £58,900 to £61,845.
Tesla's master plan was realized in 2016
Tesla started in 2006 as a niche electric sports car manufacturer. Its 2008 Roadster had an insane range of 244 miles and an equally bonkers price of more than $100,000. It was the first step in CEO Elon Musk's 2006 master plan to eventually bring a high-range, reasonably priced EV to the masses. Ten years later, that strategy is finally about to pay off.
Tesla buys an engineering firm to meet Model 3 production goals
Tesla is going to need to make a lot of cars if it's going to fulfill all those Model 3 pre-orders... 500,000 per year by 2018, to be exact. And it's making a big purchase to help it reach that lofty goal. The company is acquiring Grohmann Engineering, a German firm specializing in automated manufacturing. The buyout (which creates Tesla Grohmann Automation) should give Elon Musk and crew more of the expertise and systems they need for high-volume production not only at the Gigafactory, but elsewhere in the world. Grohmann will serve as the base for Tesla's Advanced Automation Germany facility, with more locations coming.
Tesla asks new car buyers to pay for Supercharger access
It's not just your average Model 3 owner who'll have to pay to use Superchargers. Tesla has announced that anyone ordering one of its cars after January 1st, 2017 will no longer get unlimited free Supercharger top-ups -- yes, even if you buy a top-tier Model S or X. You'll get 400kWh of free credit every year (enough to recharge a P100D four times), but every charge after that will carry an incremental "small fee." The company is quick to note that Superchargers will "never be a profit center," and that whatever you pay (which may depend on local electricity rates) will be less than what it would take to fill a similar gas-powered car.
Fisker's EMotion sports car, and more in the week that was
Tesla swept headlines this week by launching a groundbreaking solar roof tile that's better looking and longer lasting than standard shingles. The technology could trickle down to the company's cars too -- Elon Musk hinted that the upcoming Tesla Model 3 could feature a solar roof that melts ice and snow while generating energy from the sun. Meanwhile, legendary automotive designer Henrik Fisker finally unveiled his EMotion sports car, which will be able to drive 400 miles on a single charge when it launches next year. Nissan debuted the first all-electric mobile office, which is housed in a beautifully renovated e-nv200 van. And a Chinese company is getting ready to launch the world's fastest maglev train, which will be able to hit 373 miles per hour.
Tesla added an all-glass roof to the Model S
Elon Musk has apparently been thinking about roofs a lot lately. SolarCity might want to make the most out of the roof on your house, but Tesla wants to remove those barriers between you and the sun entirely. Behold: the glass-roofed Tesla Model S sedan, which improves on the already sunny panoramic sunroof by doing away with the middle crossbar for a nearly seamless view of the sky.
Tesla makes its case for buying SolarCity
Tesla's been busy with more than the Model 3 in recent months. In August, founder and CEO Elon Musk announced that Tesla would join with his other company, SolarCity, in a $2.6 billion merger. Musk said at the time that the melded company would serve as an "end-to-end clean energy" solution. And just last week, he unveiled the company's new solar roof and Powerwall 2 home battery which, taken together, would harness and store the sun's energy to both the house and the electric car in its garage. On Tuesday, Tesla clarified what it expects to come from the merger and how the two companies will function as one.
Tesla gives new Model 3 orders a mid-2018 delivery date
First Tesla moved this week's big product unveiling, now the company has started alerting car shoppers and potential buyers that it could be awhile before they can finally get behind the wheel of that Model 3 they have their eye on. According to Tesla's own preorder site, and confirmed by TechCrunch, new Model 3 orders placed after today will ship around mid–2018 or later. Production on the $35,000 electric sedan is still slated to begin in late 2017, so customers who have already preordered should still see their vehicles arrive around the end of next year.
Tesla is holding a 'product unveiling' on October 17th
This October is a busy month for Tesla. On top of a SolarCity-linked event on the 28th, the company's Elon Musk has revealed that there's a Tesla-specific "product unveiling" event slated for the 17th. It's not certain what will appear at the event (Musk says it's "unexpected by most"), but there are already ideas floating around. Suffice it to say that this probably won't involve pure energy products -- those are more likely to wait for the 28th.
Tesla ramps up production to meet aggressive delivery goals
In Tesla's second quarter earnings release (PDF), the company announced it had completed the design phase on the long-awaited Model 3 while also missing the mark on delivery numbers for current production models. Although CFO Jason Wheeler said on an accompanying conference call that Tesla is "clearly disappointed" about those deliveries, CEO Elon Musk was characteristically upbeat when talking about the future of his company as it launches part two of its Master Plan.
Tesla Master Plan pt. 2 explains how everyone gets an electric car
Back in 2006 Elon Musk casually revealed the plans for what Tesla Motors has mostly accomplished in the decade since, and now (after some teasing) he's back with part two. While the original "Secret Tesla Motors Master Plan" explained how the company's vision extended beyond its Roadster to cars that would become the Model S and Model 3, what's next is even bigger. Besides adding a compact SUV and pickup truck to its model line, don't expect to see any Tesla's coming out that are cheaper than the Model 3. Instead, as Musk envisions, the rollout of fully self-driving automobiles will allow owners to put their car to work when they're not using it, and make ownership economically viable for anyone (of course, it's worth noting that car companies like Ford and GM are working on similar plans of their own).
Musk: Tesla will do 'the obvious thing' for Autopilot on Model 3
Tonight during an interview at the Code Conference, Elon Musk shared his thoughts on everything from The Martian to AI (he's only worried about one unnamed tech company when it comes to AI, maybe we should Google the answer) to the current presidential race. Most notably however, he mentioned Tesla is planning another Model 3 event this year, saying it's already notched over 400,000 preorders and the design should be done in about six more weeks. Pressed for an answer by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher on the availability of Autopilot on the $35,000 base model, Musk would only say "we'll do the obvious thing." You can watch the interview below for more details on things like why SpaceX lands its rockets at sea and its launch schedule for the next few years.
Free Supercharging won't come standard on the Tesla Model 3
Tesla's early adopters have been enjoying a lifetime of free charging at the company's network of Supercharger stations, but that won't be the case for owners of the forthcoming mass-market Model 3. In today's annual shareholder meeting, CEO Elon Musk explained free charging for life won't be included with the new model, but will be available as an optional package.
Tesla hosts a grand opening for its Gigafactory on July 29th
Tesla's sprawling Gigafactory has yet to kick into full swing, but that isn't stopping the electric car maker from giving its plant an official debut. It's inviting its biggest fans (including those who referred buyers) to a grand opening for the Gigafactory on July 29th, even though the Nevada facility is still well away from being finished. There's no mention of what's on the itinerary, although it's reasonable to suspect that this could be the first truly revealing, officially sanctioned peek inside the factory. Motor Trend got a tour in April, but mainly showed the outside.
Tesla can count on Panasonic to keep up with Model 3 demand
Tesla may be willing to stump up a lot of cash to meet brisk demand for the Model 3, but it still can't do this alone -- not when Panasonic is pouring $1.6 billion into the Gigafactory needed to make the electric car's batteries. Thankfully, the Japanese electronics giant has Tesla's back. Panasonic tells reporters that the company will "do [its] best" to speed up its investment if it's needed to help Tesla meet its accelerated production goals, which now have it making 500,000 cars per year by 2018 instead of 2020. While the firm wants to get a good return on its investment, it also doesn't want to "be a bottleneck" to Tesla's plans.
