Matthew DeBord/BI
- Tesla is introducing a lower-priced version of its Model 3 vehicle.
- The base price of the car will cost $45,000; it will cost about $35,000 in California after federal and state tax rebates.
- The company has long promised the Model 3 will be its vehicle for the masses, but it originally focused on building premium versions of it while it struggled to ramp up its production.
Tesla is finally offering a less expensive version of its Model 3 electric car.
The company has relased and is taking orders for a "lower cost, mid-range" version of its mass-production vehicle, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced Thursday on Twitter. The base price of the car will be $45,000. But in California it will cost $35,000 after federal and state tax rebates, Musk said.
Tweet Embed://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1053060766771761152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Just released lower cost, mid-range Tesla Model 3 & super simple new order page https://t.co/cz0TQn7IOZTweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1053061305081315328?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Costs $35k after federal & state tax rebates in California, but true cost of ownership is closer to $31k after gas savings
Musk said Tesla has set up a new web page to take orders for the vehicle. On that page, customers can choose one of three versions of the Model 3 — the top-of-the-line performance version, the long-range battery one, and the new mid-range battery one.
To date, the company had only been offering more expensive versions of the car. The performance version of the car, for example, has a base price of $64,000. That's before the tax incentives, but it also doesn't include options such as the company's "autopilot" automated driving system, which many customers choose to add on.
Tesla still isn't making the Model 3 for the massesTesla originally touted the Model 3 as the car it would mass produce and price for mainstream consumers after first producing luxury vehicles in the Model S and Model X. That promise helped it lure in more than 400,000 pre-orders for the vehicle. But Tesla has struggled to ramp up production on the Model 3 and initially focused on making the higher end versions.
Even the new version, though, doesn't fulfill the company's promises. Musk has said that the company plans to offer a version of the car that will have a base price of just $35,000 before any tax incentives. Although he's promised that Model 3 will be out by the end of this year, some car industry experts are dubious he'll deliver.
Hitting that price target is important, because the federal tax incentives — worth up to $7,500 per car — are due to start dwindling in January. When they do, the amount customers will effectively pay for a Model 3 will much be closer to the list price of the vehicle.
The new mid-range version of the Model 3 has a single rear-wheel drive motor and a battery pack that will go around 260 miles on a charge. The performance and long-range versions each have dual all-wheel drive motors and battery packs that will go some 310 miles on a charge.
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