Tesla Model 3 Reservations Hit 325,000, Musk Rejoices Somewhere Cool and Fancy

by Steph Willems

Published: April 7th, 2016

tesla model 3 reservations hit 325 000 musk rejoices somewhere cool and fancy

As promised, Tesla has revealed the tally for first-week orders of the upcoming “affordable” Model 3 electric car, and it’s good news for the company.

It’s also bad news if you ordered late and are hoping to show off your ride anytime soon.

As of today, the electric automaker has taken over 325,000 reservations on the 215-mile range Model 3, which translates into an eventual $14 billion in revenue if no one backs out. With each buyer putting $1,000 down on their order, that means Tesla just made a cool $325 million that could be used to ready the vehicle, and the company’s facilities, for production.

Orders for the Model 3 opened on March 31, the same day a pre-production version of the curvaceous EV was launched amid great hype and fanfare. Billed as costing $35,000 before government incentives, a total of 115,000 reservations for the Model 3 were logged by the first night.

Tesla is clearly pleased with the enthusiasm that preceded the launch. Under the heading “The Week that Electric Vehicles Went Mainstream,” Tesla gushed on its website about the outpouring of interest in the vehicle.

“Unlike other major product launches, we haven’t advertised or paid for any endorsements,” the company stated, adding that the reservation numbers make this “the single biggest one-week launch of any product ever.”

Tesla founder Elon Musk now needs to boost production capacity so the new model can be cranked out at a clip that doesn’t keep annoy customers. Production is tentatively scheduled to begin late next year, with the first deliveries going to existing Tesla owners on the west coast.

#ElectricVehicles #ElonMusk #Environment #EV #Finances #Green #Model3 #Sales #Tesla

Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments

Join the conversation

9 of 110 comments

Islander800 on Apr 07, 2016

Elon's "launch" consists of what amounts to a shiny show concept car that will require two to four years of development, reliability and endurance testing and government-mandated safety certifications, let alone massive production tooling, before the first one rolls off the assembly line, if past auto industry experience is a guide. I hope the "early adopters" have patience. What people don't realize is that it took Detroit talent and experience to bring the Model "S" to market. Elon extolled the high-tech aspects of the vehicle without giving credit to the old-school auto platform developers. Now, according to reliable reports, a lot of that Detroit talent has since left Tesla. Mr. Musk could have a real challenge on his hands delivering on the Model "3" before 2020.

Like Reply
- See 3 previous
- SCE to AUX on Apr 07, 2016
  
  It's never been a secret that much of Tesla's talent came from other car mfrs - no shame in that. The biggest challenge they face is ironing out the details of the vehicle itself, and getting the Gigafactory to produce cells (a new 21700 form factor, IIRC). What won't be so hard is the basic technology: motor, drivetrain, inverter, touchscreen, charging, steering, suspension, and those fancy door handles. Tesla has already conquered these mountains for the Model S, so on the Model 3 they will just be variations on the theme. But on second thought, as a product developer I understand the hard road to travel between working prototype and production. Even scaled versions of existing designs don't always work right.
  
  Like
- Derekson on Apr 07, 2016
  
  @SCE to AUX "The biggest challenge they face is ironing out the details of the vehicle itself, and getting the Gigafactory to produce cells (a new 21700 form factor, IIRC)." Disagree. The biggest challenge they face is trying to actually get the operations in place to manufacture automobiles in a large scale assembly line. The Model S is still being made the way that exotics are assembled, more or less.
  
  Like
- Mcs on Apr 07, 2016
  
  @derekson Really? The S and X assembled the way an exotic is assembled? Hmm. Okay, the Aventador is maybe 1,200 a year. Tesla, right now, is producing cars at a rate of 80,000 per year. Model Xs alone have jumped to 750 per week. I spent a lot of time observing and literally crawling around high volume auto plants early in my career (Including Fremont). Also had a parent that was an expert at auto production that communicated a great deal of information to me throughout my childhood. Looking at a slide show of Tesla production in Fremont, it really looks like any high volume plant I've ever seen. Here is an annoying slide show of the Model S production line. Exactly how is Tesla production similar to an Exotic? There are some photos of what looks like a repair area. We had those too back in conventional plants. Cars were occasionally pulled off the line for repair or quality checks. http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-tesla-fremont-model-s-production-pictures-photogallery.html
  
  Like
- Mopar4wd on Apr 08, 2016
  
  @mcs Tres, spoke to this before as have others. They don't have the systems in place. There was a report that they currently have 4000 employees at the plant in Freemont cranking out 5,500 cars a month. Nummi had around 4,800 employees and turned out 20,000 cars a month it would seem there are some major inefficiencies there. I like Tesla but realistically they do have some very major hurdles ahead.
  
  Like
JEFFSHADOW on Apr 08, 2016

Heard on an exorbitant-entry-fee golf course four years from now: "I just got my new Tesla!" "Really? Which one is it?" "It's the Model 3" "You mean like a Model T or Model A?" "Oh, no...Model 3" "You do know that sometime in the 1950s manufacturers started giving actual model names to cars, right?" "They did?" "Yeah, and then some years later they had really cool names that really meant something, like TORONADO, RIVIERA and ELDORADO" That's why I have eleven GM cars and SUVs, with actual names. No Tesla needed, ever. TESLA, the rock band from Sacramento, yes!!

Like Reply
- Skink on Apr 08, 2016
  
  jeff, Fee free to buy a Model 3, and then go ahead and name it anything you like. Ots of young women do that. Key thing is, once you settle on a really cool name, pick a font and have somebody fabricate a couple of badges to put on your car. It's a shame you've been stuck with buying GM cars all these years, when you could have bought better cars with names you thought of yourself! Eldorado: an imaginary city! Tesla: a real, visionary inventor!
  
  Like
Skink on Apr 08, 2016

Edits: Feel. Lots.

Like Reply
JonBoy470 on Apr 10, 2016

Tesla's range is double that of any other full EV on the market. They've also addressed the road trip/range anxiety factor with their ever growing Supercharger and Destination charger network. Tesla's chargers are both free at point of use, and conveniently located for those on road trips. Even as competitors move to build EV's that match Tesla's range, they are doing nothing to address the Supercharger side of the Tesla equation. If I buy a Bolt, Leaf 2.0, BMW i3, etc. I'm stuck using J1772 or CHAeDeMO chargers that are not as conveniently located, not as fast, and not necessarily free. According to CHAeDeMO's website, a disturbingly large percentage of their installed base is located at Nissan dealerships. Road trip charging is an incredibly important part of the EV equation the major OEM's are all completely ceding to Tesla, because they still, fundamentally, view EV's as compliance cars.

Like Reply