Tesla's first mass-market Model 3 electric cars are about to hit the road
Tesla plans to build 500,000 Model 3 electric cars in 2018 and is targeting one million by 2020,
Tesla is on schedule to deliver its first mass-market Model 3 cars on July 28 and from there to ramp up production exponentially.
Tesla will deliver 30 Model 3s on July 28, CEO Elon Musk said on Twitter. The model has passed all regulatory requirements for production two weeks ahead of schedule, he said.
After the first deliveries, production will grow "exponentially", which should mean 100 cars in August and over 1,500 by September and 20,000 units by December, he said.
This development is likely to come as welcome news for Tesla fans who paid $1,000 to reserve the Model 3. Tesla has over 300,000 preorders for its first mass-market vehicle.
Musk said at the launch, "You will not be able to buy a better car for $35,000 or even close, even if you get no options". The five-seater vehicle has an advertised range of 215 miles per charge and will reach 60 mph in under six seconds.
Tesla plans on building 500,000 Model 3 vehicles in 2018 and is targeting one million by 2020, significantly higher than the roughly 100,000 units of all models it currently produces.
Musk announced the first Model 3 deliveries as Tesla gave its second-quarter production delivery figures.
The company reported this week it had delivered 22,000 vehicles in the second quarter and 47,100 in the first half. It produced 25,708 in the quarter and 51,126 in the first half. In the first quarter it delivered 25,000 vehicles and produced 25,481.
Tesla said second-quarter deliveries have been hampered by a "severe" production shortfall of 100kWh battery packs, noting the "technology challenge grows exponentially with energy density".
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