As per reports from China, the prototype for Tesla’s new affordable EV is ready, and trial production is slated to begin near the end of 2021
Last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had hinted that the company may be planning to introduce a new EV, which would be positioned below the Model 3 in its lineup. This new vehicle, likely to be named ‘Model 2’, will be the most affordable car in Tesla’s international range and it is expected to globally debut some time during 2022.
A new report recently popped up on the Chinese microblogging website Sina Weibo, posted by “不是郑小康”, which stated that the upcoming low-cost Tesla EV is already in development in China. The prototype of the new model is ready, and component suppliers and vendors have been lined up. Trial production of the new EV is scheduled to begin near the end of this year.
Although this report hasn’t been confirmed yet, Twitter user and influencer Ray4Tesla has stated that this source is quite reliable, as was responsible for a few significant information leaks before. Still, he mentions that there is no guarantee that the new report would be correct, so it’s best we don’t take things too seriously right now and wait for more details to be available.
I would put some weight on this rumor as it comes from a pretty reliable source (不是郑小康). He brought several leaks to surface before, which later turned out to be true. However, like anything else, past performance is no guarantee of future results. Take it w/ a grain of salt
— Ray4Tesla⚡️?☀️? (@ray4tesla) July 30, 2021
In February this year, Tom Zhu, President of Tesla China, had confirmed that a new model is planned to be designed, developed and manufactured in the brand’s Shanghai Giga factory, slated to be sold all around the world. Tesla’s upcoming EV is expected to be priced USD 25,000 (or INR 18.5 lakh) onwards.
With electrification slowly taking hold of the automobile industry all around the world, it would be wise of Tesla to enter the affordable end of the spectrum, in order to capture a larger audience. In fact, the manufacturer had previously stated that an affordable EV would be essential for its future.
The design and specifications of the upcoming Tesla EV (Model 2) are a complete mystery at this point. We do expect the styling of the vehicle to be classy yet sporty, in line with the brand’s other models, while the driving range and performance will be impressive as well.
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