Tesla is accelerating plans for a lineup of recent electrical automobiles, together with “extra reasonably priced fashions,” the automaker stated in a memo to buyers Tuesday. New fashions beforehand slated to begin manufacturing within the second half of 2025 will now launch earlier than then, the corporate stated, implying manufacturing will begin a lot earlier.
It’s unclear whether or not the brand new, reasonably priced fashions are the identical mysterious “next-gen” vehicle that Tesla has beforehand hinted was within the works, or a brand new lineup. Executives declined to share particulars on their plans for brand spanking new automobiles throughout an investor name Tuesday. Tesla’s inventory value rose by greater than 9 p.c in after-hours buying and selling late Tuesday.
The change in plans comes after a troubled few months for Tesla, which has confronted a lag in US EV sales and the growing global dominance of Chinese rivals. Firm outcomes launched immediately confirmed that each car deliveries and whole income fell 9 p.c within the first three months of 2024 in comparison with the identical quarter final yr. That marks Tesla’s first drop in gross sales since pandemic-troubled 2020 and its largest fall in income year-on-year because the early aughts.
Tesla didn’t present particulars of the reasonably priced automobiles within the works or how a lot its plans have been pulled ahead. However it disclosed in Tuesday’s memo that to speed up manufacturing of recent fashions it’ll reduce its ambitions for brand spanking new manufacturing expertise.
For years, CEO Elon Musk has touted the corporate’s path-breaking strategy to auto manufacturing. In 2023, he promised that its subsequent technology of automobiles could be produced not by the basic, Henry Ford-ian manufacturing line, however by a brand new, cheaper “unboxed” technique that may enable components to be assembled concurrently in several components of a manufacturing unit. Executives stated this new strategy would save the automaker labor and manufacturing prices.
The brand new automobiles slated for supply earlier than mid-2025 will as an alternative be produced on the identical manufacturing traces Tesla at the moment makes use of, the corporate stated Tuesday, utilizing a mix of recent and older engineering strategies. That gained’t reduce manufacturing prices as a lot as the broader manufacturing revamp, the automaker admitted, “however allows us to prudently develop our car volumes … throughout unsure instances.”
The corporate stated that its beforehand introduced future robotaxi car will nonetheless be constructed utilizing “a revolutionary ‘unboxed’ manufacturing technique.” Musk debuted a brand new title for the longer term car on a name with buyers Tuesday, calling it a Cybercab.
This isn’t the primary time Tesla has scaled again grand manufacturing plans. In 2016, Musk introduced that Tesla’s Fashions 3 and Y could be constructed utilizing a totally automated manufacturing unit dubbed an “alien dreadnought.” However by 2018 it was clear that Tesla would hold using people on its manufacturing traces. The ensuing chaos—which WIRED reported left workers to carry car parts to their stations by hand—contributed to Tesla’s near-bankruptcy.
Reuters reported earlier this month that Tesla’s plans to construct a extra reasonably priced automotive were canceled because the automaker pivoted to concentrate on constructing a robotaxi and improved autonomous driving merchandise. CEO Elon Musk disputed the story on X, however confirmed that Tesla would maintain a robotaxi unveiling event in August.
Final week, Tesla stated it will lay off some 10 p.c of its world workforce, and two top executives left the corporate. On Tuesday the corporate reported thousands of job losses to state companies in California, Texas, and New York. The automaker stated in Tuesday’s memo that it has additionally been affected by delivery route shutdowns within the Pink Sea throughout the Israel-Hamas battle, and by a suspected arson assault that introduced down its German manufacturing unit for days.
Additionally final week, the automaker recalled all 4,000 Cybertrucks it had beforehand delivered, after a cleaning soap used within the manufacturing course of allowed the pads on their accelerator pedals to change into trapped.
Up to date 6:50 pm EDT 4-23-2024: This text was up to date with extra info from Tesla’s investor name.
