Tesla Model 3 here mid-2019
BY TIM NICHOLSON | 29th Oct 2018
ELON Musk has confirmed via Twitter that Australian deliveries of the Model 3 liftback will kick off in mid-2019, a few months earlier than anticipated.
The most recent Australian timing of deliveries to buyers that put down deposits early was some time in the third quarter, with anyone placing ad order in the past few months expected to receive their mid-size EV late next year.
However, an Australian Tesla customer, Martin Hungerford, tweeted Mr Musk to clarify updated delivery timing for his Model 3.
“I’ve noticed the delivery date on my Australian reservation has disappeared from the website. It was late 2019, any ideas on when model 3s will be available in Aus,” he tweeted.
Mr Musk replied: “Around mid 2019”.
He went on to reply to another user confirming that UK timing would be the same.
Tesla showed off the Model 3 to local customers in late-August, with three left-hand-drive examples bound for Tesla’s three Australian stores in middle-grade, rear-wheel drive, long-range battery specification.
Pricing is still yet to be confirmed for local buyers but the base Model 3 in the US costs $US35,000, which converts to about $A50,000, although final pricing is likely to vary.
Keen Tesla buyers started putting down $1500 deposits for the Model 3 back in March 2016 – with many paying deposits before the vehicle was officially revealed.
In the second quarter of this year, Model 3 production overtook the combined production volumes of the Model S large liftback sedan and Model X SUV.
This followed a slower than anticipated production schedule that has pushed back the company’s original delivery forecasts.
Bloomberg has reported that, to date, Tesla has built 113,249 Model 3s, according to the publication’s Tesla Model 3 Tracker.
Meanwhile, the Californian EV-maker has reportedly turned a profit in the third quarter of this year, posting net income of $US312 million ($A439.9m) and marking the second profit in two years.
The profit has been partially attributed to the improvements to the Model 3 production output.
