Malaysian electric car buyers will have another great priced Tesla very soon
The new Model 3 is Tesla’s first change to its mass-market car line-up since it launched its global best-seller, the Model Y, in 2020.
Reuters has reported that Tesla did not announce a launch date for the new Model 3 in the U.S. where it currently offers discounts of more than USD5,000 on some of those vehicles in inventory. The Model 3 is also assembled in Fremont, California.
Images of the exterior showed small changes that gave the sedan a sleeker front and new headlights.
The new Model 3 also promises a longer driving range of 606 km for the standard version based on China’s testing standards, which is about 9 percent higher than the base model it replaces in China.
Tesla said it had started taking orders in China, where it would begin deliveries in the fourth quarter, and in other markets where it exports to from Shanghai, including Germany, Japan, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand.
The new Model 3 should sell well outside China where there is less competition in EVs, said Yale Zhang, managing director at Shanghai-based consultancy Automotive Foresight.
“But in China, we have already seen plenty of new models rolling out since the (Shanghai) auto show in April with similar and even better features and lower prices,” he added.
PROJECT ‘HIGHLAND’
Reuters first reported last November that Tesla was developing a revamped Model 3 in a project codenamed “Highland”. People involved in the project said it was aimed at cutting production costs and boosting the model’s appeal.
Tesla did not give any details about the new Model 3’s battery, but a person with knowledge of the features said it was the same lithium-iron-phosphate battery from CATL (300750.SZ) for the base model.
The higher range is the result of taking weight out and improving the car’s profile so it faces less wind resistance, the person added. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment on the battery.
In China, the Model 3 competes against BYD’s Seal, the Zeekr 001 from Geely, Nio’s ET5 and Xpeng’s P7i. Xpeng has just announced zero-interest loans and free upgrades for that car.