This could become a fascinating international branding case study with the Asian/Western cross-currents, enthusiasms and resistances.
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I think "☰" is way too difficult to type. IMO will likely be "Model 3" or "Model III".
I'm pretty sure I answered this already. Tesla doesn't make wimpy cars. Mainstream buyers have been made to believe that performance can never be an option, without giving up something else. With a 60 kWh battery pack, you automatically get both range and power, by default. You don't have to give up either for the other.Yes, Tesla could insist on the base Gen 3 matching the BMW 3 Series gasoline car performance with their base Gen 3, but why do that if they can instead lower the base price, match the performance of base 3 Series and other diesels that sell very well outside the USA, make the car more affordable to mainstream buyers and offer performance as an option?
I answered this already too, but I'll take a different tack... You can't get volume sales, if you don't give people a reason to buy to begin with... If Tesla Motors could build an affordable, safe, desirable electric car with 200+ mile range using a 24 kWh battery pack, they would. Volume must be built from a solid foundation. For Tesla, that foundation is performance. It is a fundamental advantage of an electric drivetrain and should be highlighted, not hidden. Just being 'cheap' to buy doesn't set a standard or even meet par. Tesla wants to show people they can have something that is better, by offering an excellent car at an average price.Why would Elon Musk, who likes optionality, throw away volume?
Sorry... I hadn't checked this thread since my Birthday... :-D
Tesla Motors is trying something different. Traditionally, automakers have chosen a particular segment of the market, and stuck to it with their entire product line. Some place themselves relative to others in the market. Others place themselves strictly to go after customers in a specific earning bracket. A few cater high performance enthusiasts. More satisfy the basic needs for transportation. Tesla Motors is the only company that intends to tackle all of those markets, and perhaps create more, to be serviced by a single marque, no matter the income level of the Customer, with fully electric cars.
Just as it does not work to offer below average performance for an above average price point... It makes no sense to offer an average performance level for a below average price point. Tesla Motors makes cars that have excellent performance. When the cost of batteries goes down, and they can offer nothing less than an excellent driving experience for a below average price point, that is what they will sell. They will always strive to achieve a superior experience for the owners of their cars.
That is the primary identity of Tesla Motors. They will not abandon performance with their electric cars. Ever.
Porritt also said the upcoming compact electric saloon will be “realistically” priced against rivals such as the Audi A4 and BMW 3-series, according to Chris Porritt, the company’s vice-president of engineering.
Porritt, a Brit who left Aston Martin last year to join Tesla, told Autocar that the price of batteries was the key calculation when engineering the model, which is expected in late 2016-early 2017. “Building the Gigafactory will help make battery manufacturing more cost-effective,” he said.
Porritt also said that the small car would be constructed from “appropriate materials” and would not be based on the same all-aluminium platform as the Model S. Tesla boss Elon Musk has already revealed that the new ‘Model E’ will be about 20 per cent smaller than today’s Model S.
Porritt said: “I expect there will be very little carry-over. We’ve got to be cost-effective. We can’t use aluminium for all the [small car’s] components.” This suggests that the Model E will use mostly steel in its make-up, although it will probably use bonding and rivets in its construction.