The Tesla Model 3 was announced quite a while ago back in 2014 on Twitter, but it has remained a mystery for the past two years. All that is about to change as Tesla Motors will be unveiling the Model 3 electric car at the company's facility in Hawthorne, California at 8:30 PM Pacific Time. This is the news of the Tesla Model 3 Event with what to expect, as well as the release date and price of the Model 3 and the even more mysterious Model Y.
According to The Verge, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is planning to show off a lot when it comes to the Tesla Model 3. In fact, he has tweeted that tonight's unveiling will be Part 1 of the Model 3 unveil. As for Part 2, that will "take things to another level" and be closer to production, with no release date yet known of that, for now.
The concept of the Model 3 dates about a decade ago, and this is what is known so far. The first is that the Tesla Model 3 will have plenty of range, being able to go over 200 miles. Should it be anything like the Model S or the Model X, there will be multiple battery options.
So what will the price be? Well, it is expected to really pull in commuting consumers at $35,000 base price, and it is made for those who want to go electric. It is not clear what will be the basic purchasing package for that relatively low price. Those that want to purchase it will cost $1,000 for a reservation slot, and then there might be quite a waiting period after that.
It is pretty clear that Tesla's plans involve selling more high volumes of their product. They have only made 100,000 units so far, with goals of half a million by 2020. For this, Tesla is going to need a Gigafactory, a battery factory that the company is building in Nevada with Panasonic to create the lithium ion cells needed for this volume.
The Model 3 won't be the first practical electronic vehicle (EV) for consumers, as there is already the e-Golf from Volkswagen, the Nissan Leaf, and the Ford Focus Electric. GM will have its Chevy Bolt on the roads sometime later this year, and it could take until 2017 before the Tesla Model 3 will be available for its drivers.
So there will be some competition for Tesla with this vehicle, and there is also the matter of the Model Y, which is a possible crossover variant of the Model 3. So far, there isn't really a lot known about this vehicle, other than it could have the electric power and some of the Model X's gull-wing doors.
