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September: 2024 Model 3 details added below.
What's coming down the line for the world's most popular EV brand?
Its success comes from its ability to fulfil its large order bank thanks to prodigious output from its Shanghai plant, not to mention the fact that Aussie buyers have fallen for the charms of the stylish, simple and futuristic electric vehicle pairing.
But what next for the American upstart? At 20 years old, Tesla can no longer be regarded as the new kid on the block, and even though the 3 and Y have some years to go in their respective model cycles, it’s time for Tesla to fish or cut bait with new product to back up its current wave of success.
Let’s take a look at what’s on the horizon for Tesla.
JUMP AHEAD
Tesla Cybertruck
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A lot’s been said about the… let’s say stylistically advanced Cybertruck pick-up.
Debuting in 2019, the large ute has just started rolling down the line at the company’s self-styled Gigafactory in Texas. The first versions to come off the line are slated to be top-spec four-motor versions.
The million-dollar question is, of course, whether this first iteration of the Tesla Cybertruck will ever go on sale in Australia.
Aside from the fact that Elon Musk himself has said the original Cybertruck in its initial form was never destined for world markets, the lengthy production delay and subsequent pent-up demand – it’s been reported that there are a million expressions of interest in the can - is sure to put markets outside the US right down the pecking order.
If/when the Cybertruck is a hit, though, it will likely spawn smaller offshoots that would be great options for overseas markets where full-size trucks aren’t as prevalent as they are in the US.
A smaller Cybertruck could also potentially be built on top of the third-generation platform that is set to underpin a new generation of Teslas, as well.
December 2023: Cybertruck pricing and specs
You might be glad, or you might've hoped it wouldn't happen – but Elon's teenage wet dream, the Cybertruck, is actually real and finally in customer hands.
Story continues...
Semi
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Another oft-delayed roll-out, the Semi electric prime mover is trickling out of Tesla’s Nevada plant at a slower pace than expected.
There is a brace of 35 rigs under trial with the PepsiCo company in California, with reports from the company suggesting the Semi is good for a range of around 425 miles (684km).
This is against Elon Musk’s original claim of 500 miles (804km) with a full payload of 45,000lb (20,000kg), and at highway speeds.
However, the projections of having 50,000 Semis in market by 2024 appear to be some way off.
A recent recall notice in the US has revealed that that only 36 Semis had been built as of February this year, and 35 of those belong to PepsiCo.
It’s worth noting, too, that the PepsiCo trucks aren’t yet configured for any form of autonomous operation, despite the hardware being in place.
Battery construction and other technical details are still scarce, and with Cybertruck the next big focus for Tesla, the Semi – a good idea in of itself and one that has great potential – may be on the back burner for the moment.
Roadster
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The Tesla Roadster put the then-tiny EV company on the map back in 2008, and so it follows that people would be keen on a new version.
That's particularly true right now, given the popularity of high-performance variants of the Model S. Alas, the second-generation Tesla Roadster has stalled in the starting blocks.
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Back in 2017, Elon Musk previewed a swoopy 2+2 hardtop that he said would rip to 100km/h in a claimed 1.9 seconds, top 400km/h and boast 1000km of battery range.
The on-sale date of 2020 has come and gone, however, and Musk himself has admitted earlier this year that the earliest the world will see a gen-2 Roadster will be at the end of 2024.
Model 2
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Speculative Tesla Model 2 rendering | Wheels Media
There’s more positive (EV joke!) news on the purported launch of what’s widely known as the Model 2, though the name is yet to be confirmed.
Ostensibly the car that the Model 3 was meant to be, the smaller-sized EV will be based on a new, less complex platform and the company’s much-vaunted 4680 battery cell technology.
Reducing battery costs will be key to bringing the new vehicle in at its purported US$25,000 (around $36,000) price tag.
Announced in 2020, the new battery chemistry is said to be far cheaper to produce and easier to pack into modules (which offers more freedom when adding them to a platform).
While a 4680 battery pack will reportedly offer a much greater range than the same-sized lithium iron phosphate pack, it will do so at the cost of recharge cycles, with reports suggesting that the new chemistry will last two-thirds as long as the current cell structure.
When will we see the Tesla ‘Model 2’? Probably not until 2025 at the earliest. A new plant in Monterrey, Mexico, is purported to be the first to build the new car, but given Tesla’s aim of producing 20 million vehicles a year by 2030 (Toyota currently produces around 11 million a year, by way of comparison), the new car will likely roll down the line at most, if not all, of Tesla’s plants around the world.
Model 3
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What was only recently a series of rumours, reports and spy photos is now official: The Model 3 will enter 2024 in facelifted form.
Debuting as its first major makeover since its launch in 2017, the new-look Model 3 uses the same body but introduces some significant styling and technology changes.
Externally, the 3 gets slim new headlights and a reshaped front bar inspired by the upcoming (?) Roadster, while the rear shows off a new pronged design to the tail lamps – wrapping around into the same corner lights and charging port as featured on the current model.
The 2024 Model 3 also gets a number of new features in the cabin, including a bigger and faster main display, a large centre-mounted screen for rear passengers, and ventilated front seats (at long last), among others.
They also drive further, too – and you can learn all about this, and other updates, in our 2024 Model 3 pricing story.
Model Y facelift
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Facelifted 2024 Tesla Model Y, imagined by Theottle | © Wheels Media
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Facelifted 2024 Tesla Model Y, imagined by Theottle | © Wheels Media
With the Model 3 facelift now out in the open and on its way to Australia, it can only be a matter of time before the Model Y – often a top-selling model in Australia – is blessed with the same updates.
The two cars are largely identical at the front and rear, and in the cabin – so the Model Y adopting the 3's styling and interior updates is surely right on the horizon.
Model S & Model X
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This is a simple one… as of June 1 this year, neither the Model S sedan nor the Model X SUV are available for purchase in Australia from Tesla.
The local version of the website confirms this, and it follows news that Australian reservation holders for the two former mainstays of the Tesla line-up were informed in May that their cars would no longer be delivered.
Both cars now make up a miniscule percentage of Tesla’s global sales, and the Model S is getting on for 11 years old. The scissor-doored Y debuted in 2015.
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