- Tesla has begun teasing a new model
- It’s likely just a lower-cost version of its existing Model Y
Over the weekend, Tesla began releasing teaser videos suggesting that a new model will appear on Oct. 7.
Videos posted to the social media site X included a close-up of a spinning wheel and a set of headlights shining in the dark.
They closely resemble the shape of parts used today on the company’s Model Y SUV, its best-selling product and one of the best-selling vehicles in America.
A Substitute for the Long-Planned Model 2?
- Tesla had long planned a low-cost Model 2 but canceled that plan last year
Tesla has long teased a new entry-level product to attract fresh customers. However, the plan for the low-cost car has evolved drastically in recent years.
From its 2003 founding until 2024, the company followed a loose strategy of building expensive luxury cars first, then introducing lower-cost models as sales of high-end vehicles paid for research and development. Leaders routinely said a Model 2 with a target price as low as $25,000 would be the company’s most mainstream car.
But, in 2024, CEO Elon Musk canceled it.
He set the company on a new path, toward building humanoid robots and an army of driverless taxis, insisting autonomy was its future. He went so far as to tell investors that Tesla was no longer a car company, even though most of its products are cars.
Changing strategies may be the right move. An analysis of sales figures finds that Tesla’s sales peaked in February of 2023 and have never returned to similar numbers.
However, the move left Tesla without the long-hyped $25,000 car. Earlier this year, reports emerged that a lower-cost Model Y would help fill that gap, though it will likely still be priced close to $40,000.
To keep costs down, Tesla may use cloth seats instead of faux leather, remove technologies like a standard rear-seat screen, and perhaps reduce range by using a battery with fewer cells.
