Elon Musk reveals Tesla’s smaller car will be the Tesla Model III
The next new Tesla – a smaller saloon to take on cars like the BMW 3-Series, Mercedes C-Class and Jaguar XE – will be the Tesla Model 3. Due to be revealed in 2016.
But soon after the Model X starts to roll off the production line, Tesla will reveal their take on a premium compact luxury saloon – a car they will be aiming at the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C Class and new Jaguar XE – and it will be the Tesla Model III.
It seems Elon Musk wanted to call their more compact saloon – expected to be 20 per cent smaller than the Model S – the Tesla E, but Ford objected. So Model III it is.
Expected to be based on a new Tesla platform, the Model III will eschew the aluminium sophistication of the Model S and Model X in favour of cheaper steel construction, but is still expected to deliver a range of up to 250 miles.
The price in the States is expected to around $35k (which probably means £30k in the UK) when it actually arrives in 2017 (after a debut in 2016), a price that will help it compete head on with the current crop of premium cars.
That low headline price will be helped in part by the cheaper construction methods, but also by Tesla’s new Gigafactory battery plant which will reduce the cost of the big bank of batteries the Model III will need when it comes on stream.
After the success of the Model S it would be foolish to underestimate the impact the Model II could have.
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