Tesla CEO Elon Musk had a string of tweets about the planned new model, including a teaser video.
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Whether the “release candidate” vehicle means the Model 3 is in production is unclear. It’s a lineup expansion, in the same way Mercedes might add a variant of the C-class that’s newer than an S-class but not as full-featured.
Tesla expects to begin production at the Buffalo factory in June.
It’s been nearly one year since Elon Musk gave his keynote address announcing the new Tesla Model 3, so most of the initial hype seemingly has worn off.
Friday was a revealing day for Tesla (TSLA) and its planned launch of the Model 3.
Driver-assist hardware and software included in the Model 3 will make the $35,000 vehicle 10 times safer than the average auto.
But it’s clear Musk still thinks the locker-room joke will land. Musk also tantalized the Twitterverse with hints about other future offerings. It will feature a liquid cooled supercomputer manufactured by NVIDIA that is capable of processing 40 times more data than the the first Autopilot computer introduced in October, 2015. “This report, however, provides clients with directional data that gives greater insight to Tesla vehicle quality and owners’ emotional attachment”. It has always been believed the Model 3 would be a successor to the Model S, but it’ll be more like its little brother with less features.
Unfortunately, Ford sued to block Tesla from using the Model E trademark in May 2016. Model S will keep on faster due to its larger battery. The Model 3 will still be like nothing else out there – the self-driving features, the range and styling, the predicted next-gen HUD system – which should result in a lot of leeway from early adopters.
Production of Model 3 has been confirmed by a U.S. “Oh so little faith”, Musk replied. Rather, the auto is a simplified and less luxurious version of the $68,000 Model S.
It’s barely light, which may indicate that some Model 3 testing has been conducted after dark-possibly explaining the lack of spy shots. Instead, it’s a somewhat smaller offering that Musk likens to the BMW 3-series or the Audi A4, whereas the Model S continues to be closer to the BMW 5-series or 7-series.
Musk has answered some, including some potentially disappointing news for those with early reservations hoping for particular specifications.
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At first glance, the Tesla Model X does stand out of the pack, particularly when the second-row doors open.
