- Tesla has said it will unveil a new more affordable model by mid-2025.
- The car, reportedly inspired by the Model Y, may be mass-produced in China in 2026.
- Elon Musk emphasized self-driving as essential for a cheaper Tesla model, dismissing alternatives.
Tesla's plans for its upcoming more affordable electric vehicle seem to be getting clearer.
The automaker has promised that the model will be unveiled in the first half of 2025, which means it could debut by the end of June if Tesla meets the deadline.
The other morsel of company info so far has come from CEO Elon Musk. On January's earnings call, he said it would be "pointless" to make a cheaper model without self-driving abilities, in response to a question about a "$25,000 non-robotaxi regular car model."
"It would be silly. It would be completely at odds with what we believe," Musk said.
Outside of its deadline and Musk's comments, Tesla has kept the details of this project hush-hush. However, 36Kr, a Chinese media outlet, reported on March 13 that the car will take after the Model Y, which currently starts at over $50,000 on Tesla's official website.
The Model Y is a popular option for Tesla buyers, and a newer version of the vehicle with a longer range and Cybertruck-style light bar was released in January.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported on March 14 that the potential lower-cost vehicle will be produced in Shanghai, the US, and Europe, with mass production in China expected in 2026.
The slate of anticipated launches and announcements in 2025 follows a year of losses for Tesla. The company missed estimates in Q4, and sales declined 13% in Europe in 2024.
Tesla analysts have previously told BI that an affordable model launch could be what it needs to regain its footing as Chinese rivals emerge with their own low-cost EVs. As of Friday, Tesla's cheapest existing vehicle is the Model 3, which starts at over $30,000.
