As you all know Musk has been teasing the Model Y for months now, but unfortunately we have not seen anything solid so far. In the meantime, Tesla has been working on the increase of the Model 3 production that as of now has around 400,000 reservations.
According to what we found out, Musk assured his investors that the Model Y will enter production in 2024, or late 2019 as a best case scenario. As you know, this vehicle has a huge role in the company because it is a part of the plan to sell a million vehicles per year in 2024. Most experts from the industry, as well as all of us, expected it to arrive sometime in the next year but thanks to Musk announcement saying it will be based on a “completely different” platform from the Model 3, the delay is justified.
As everyone is aware, usage of the same platform on multiple vehicles allows sharing key components as well as reduction of manufacturing costs an improvement is sales margins. This is just what Model S and Model X did for the company, but since Musk announced an entirely new platform for the Model Y, this could mean that the carmaker is ready for a new generation of EV. But there is something more to this new platform. Musk told his investors that he plans to change the old 12-volt battery architecture that is by now very outdated. But just an FYI, Tesla, as well as all other EV makers, still rely on that 12-volt battery to run stuff like heating, infotainment, and electric seats that are also found in traditional vehicles.
According to Musk replacement of the old 12-volt battery system could improve the company’s manufacturing process and save some money in the future. How exactly? Well, the fact is that just the wire harness on Model S was 3 km long while the one on the Model 3 will be half that size, and the ultimate goal is to have only 100 m wire harness on the Model Y.
What is extraordinary is that, after some initial problems, Tesla managed to break through and after the production and quality problems with Model X they still managed to ship about 25,000 vehicles during the quarter which is basically their best so far. Thanks to this the company is closer to achieving the target of delivering 50,000 vehicles in the first half of 2017. To boost its credibility, Tesla is planning to add 100 new retail, delivery and service locations across the world, as well as 100 mobile repair trucks to minimize overhead costs of servicing. They also plan to double the number of Superchargers around the world.
