New Tesla model planned? this is over "Highlands" known

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• Tesla Model 3 is to be revised and thus become less complex and expensive
• Visible changes cannot be ruled out
• Is Highland just a trial run for the Model Tau?

Tesla Model 3 is being revised

Tesla is currently developing a revised version of the Model 3, according to a report by the Reuters news agency, which it says was informed by four people familiar with the work. With the revised version of the now five-year-old electric sedan, the main aim is to reduce production costs and increase attractiveness. A focus of the new design, codenamed “Highland,” is to reduce component count and complexity within the Model 3’s interior while focusing on features Tesla buyers appreciate, including the display, the people said. who did not want to be named because the revision has not yet been officially announced. The revised Model 3 version is to go into production at the Shanghai plant and at the Fremont, California plant. Production at the Gigafactory in Shanghai is scheduled to start in the third quarter of 2023.

Less complexity

As Reuters explains, the redesign is indicative of an approach to vehicle development that Tesla pioneered and is now being copied by other automakers to reduce complexity and therefore cost in production. Musk himself explained that Tesla wanted to reduce costs through simplification and was working on a small car platform that would cost half as much as the Model 3. “We kept finding parts that weren’t needed Drops or accidentally installed. We’ve eliminated so many no-good parts from a car,” the Tesla CEO said in an interview at a Baron Funds conference, according to Reuters. This approach is part of what has made Tesla the most profitable electric vehicle manufacturer, while many competitors are still operating at a loss.

Visible changes

The new version of the Model 3 is said to build on the revision of the Model S that was released last year. It did so by adding an airplane-like yoke in place of a traditional steering wheel, and removing buttons and traditional air vents as part of a minimalist interior, finally centered around a 17-inch display. Ed Kim, president of the AutoPacific Group, which tracks market trends and production, tells Reuters that the current Model 3 has already been updated compared to the first version from 2017. However, these revisions were not visual, as Tesla updated battery performance, information, and entertainment options through software. “However, consumers still tend to equate visual changes with novelty. Tesla knows that visually tangible changes are appropriate,” he explains. “The upcoming changes that potential customers can see and feel will be very important in ensuring that EV customers still see Tesla first as truly excellent alternatives to Tesla begin to flood the market.”

Is Model Tau coming?

The YouTube channel “Connecting the Dots” also speculates that the new redesign of the Model 3 could be a test run for the development of a new vehicle called “Model Tau”. In a video, he compares the advances Tesla has made in electric car production and profitability with the advances made by US automaker Ford in the early 20th century.

However, the production of a new Tesla vehicle using the huge die-casting machines is said to be only part of Musk’s plan to develop new vehicles. According to the YouTube channel, the name “Model Tau” could be a homage to the connection to the Ford model T, which was able to massively reduce the production costs for cars for the first time. (“Tau” is the ancient Greek version of the letter “T.”) He also suspects that Tesla could reveal a little more about the new vehicle at the announced Investor Day on March 1. However, it remains to be seen whether the speculation will actually come true.

E. Schmal / Editor finanzen.net

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