American electric automaker Tesla will be unveiling the much anticipated Model Y on March 14, 2019. The development was confirmed by Tesla founder Elon Musk in a series of tweets with the electric crossover set to make its debut at the company’s LA Design Studio. Sharing its underpinnings with the Model 3, the Tesla Model Y will be the fifth offering to come from the company since it was founded in 2003. While Musk did not reveal details on the specifications of the new model, the entrepreneur did confirm that the Model Y SUV will be about 10 per cent bigger than the Model 3 and will cost about 10 per cent more as well.
The Tesla Model Y was first announced in 2015 and has been a long awaited offering from the company. The car maker has revealed little about the model over the years barring it’s name and the latest teaser that shows a black and white silhouette of the upcoming offering. The Model Y though is expected to share about 75 per cent of its components with the Model 3, a decision the company took to fast-track the development period on the SUV while also keeping the manufacturing costs in check. The battery pack will also be more or less the same as the Model 3, but the Y is expected to have a slightly smaller range in comparison.
The Tesla Model Y will carry the same design language as the Model 3 and S
More details on specs and pricing will be revealed at the event, according to Musk. Tesla will also offer test drives for the Model Y post the event. Series production for the Model Y will begin sometime next year with the manufacturing to take place at Tesla’s Gigafactory outside Reno in Nevada in the US. The car is also expected to be produced at the company’s upcoming Gigafactory in Shanghai, China. Musk’s announcement for the Model Y comes just days after Tesla rolled out the $35,000 base variant of the Model 3. The company also dropped software updates for the Model 3 and Model S with an improvement in the top speed of the car to 261 kmph.
Musk also tweeted about introducing version 3.0 of its Superchargers in the US later this week. The Supercharger V3.0 will go live on March 6 at 8 pm and will be able to charge cars at a rate of 350 kW or more. At present, the Tesla superchargers have a maximum rate of 145 kW and its cars can accept up to 120 kW. In comparison, both Porsche and Volkswagen have announced a higher capacity charging network across the US, and Tesla’s network will now match the same.
The Tesla Model Y is expected to be a five-seater offering while the addition of a third row cannot be ruled out. Prices for the electric SUV are expected to start over the $40,000 mark (around ₹ 28.35 lakh), but that will just be for the entry-level version. The more expensive variants are likely to be made available first, as was the case with the Model 3. Tesla is yet to make its foray in India, so it will be a while before we see the Model Y on Indian roads.
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