It looks like Elon Musk’s team might just be able to deliver the new mid-priced Tesla Model 3 on time. On Wednesday, January 6th, the high-end EV maker confirmed it remained on track for a March unveiling of the Tesla Model 3 prototype, with the new model becoming available to the public by the second half of 2017.
Of note, Musk last confirmed the March timeline for the Tesla Model 3 prototype launch back in early September of last year.
Director of Global Communications confirms Tesla Model 3 timeline
Various media sources are reporting that Tesla Director of Global Communications Khobi Brooklyn confirmed to the media via email on Wednesday that the firm’s new “Model 3 is on schedule” and the company will unveil the prototype sometime in March of this year and actually start selling the new EVs in 2017.
All-electric Chevy Bolt to compete with Tesla Model 3
GM CEO Mary Barra spoke at the most recent CES about the iconic automaker’s plans to unveil the production version of the Chevrolet Bolt, a bew EV with a 200-mile driving range that it will start selling by the end of 2016 for close to $35,000.
The range and price of the new Chevy Bolt EV are quite close to what Tesla has been promising for years, an affordable and rechargeable car for the masses. Given that Tesla has seen repeated delays in the development of its second luxury vehicle (the Model X SUV), there is certainly room for doubts about whether Musk et al. are really ready for real competition from GM.
Also of note,. the Bolt is the first GM car designed from scratch with car sharing services in mind, Pam Fletcher, executive chief engineer for electric vehicles, noted in a recent interview.
Analysts highlight that the Bolt offers the interior of a midsize auto, and passengers can easily exit on either side of the car. The driver sits at an elevation for notably improved visibility, and the car is set up to download a driver’s personal settings for radio and displays, so these can bed changed when a new driver takes over the car.
