April 14, 2023

Tesla to Debut Affordable Compact Car, 2 Other EVs

After many onlookers hoped for a new car announcement at Tesla’s Investor Day, the automaker has officially detailed three new electric vehicles it plans to debut in the weeks since. And one of them appears to be the highly anticipated affordable mass-market EV that we’ve all been waiting for.

Above: Tesla's cars parked in a row (Image: Casey Murphy / EVANNEX).

Tesla shared a document detailing its Master Plan Part 3 earlier this month, which revealed plans to launch three new EVs to continue helping the world’s transition to sustainable energy, as reported by The Street. The document notes plans for an affordable compact EV, as well as both passenger and commercial vans. The announcement of a compact EV set to arrive in the coming years has reignited excitement for a sub-$30,000 car.

In the document, Tesla’s “Batteries for Transportation” section shows a Vehicle Fleet Breakdown chart displaying the target volumes and battery pack sizes for each segment. Additionally, the chart shows the auto segments Tesla currently hits alongside those it plans to target with the upcoming vehicles, dubbed “TBD” in the chart, as can be seen recreated below.

Vehicle Type	Tesla	Cathode	Pack Size (kWh)	Vehicle Sales	Global Fleet	Global Fleet (TWh)
Compact	[TBD]	LFP	53	42M	686M	36
Midsized	Model 3/Y	LFP	75	24M	380M	28
Commercial/Passenger Vans	[TBD]	High Nickel	100	10M	163M	16
Large Sedans, SUVs and Trucks	Model S/X, Cybertruck	High Nickel	100	9M	149M	15
Bus	[TBD]	LFP	300	1M	5M	2
Short Range Heavy Truck	Semi Light	LFP	500	1M	6.7M	3
Long Range Heavy Truck	Semi Heavy	High Nickel	800	2M	13.3M	11
Total	-	-	-	89M	1,403M	112

Above: Tesla's Vehicle Fleet Breakdown from Master Plan Part 3.

“Autonomy has potential to reduce the global fleet, and annual production required, through improved vehicle utilization,” Tesla added in this section of the document.

Crucially, the chart points out that the compact EV will have a 53-kWh battery pack. The Model 3 and Y have a 75-kWh battery pack, while the Model S and X have a 100-kWh battery pack — expected to be similar to the commercial and passenger vans, as well as the upcoming Cybertruck.

Neither the compact car, the van nor the bus has been given names publicly yet, and it’s not clear when the automaker may share more details on the vehicles, though some have colloquially dubbed the compact EV the "Model 2," or "Model Q." Still, Tesla also announced the construction of a new Gigafactory in Mexico, set to begin in the coming months, where its next generation of EVs will be built.

===

Source: Tesla / The Street