2024-04-06 04:31:36
U.S. carmaker Tesla is scrapping plans for a long-promised low-cost electric car that investors had counted on to boost growth, according to three sources familiar with the matter and company filings seen by Reuters.
Tesla will continue to develop self-driving taxis on the platform of the same small electric car, the sources said.
Thus, the company is abandoning its long-standing goal, which the head of “Tesla” Elon Musk often characterizes as his main mission – affordable electric cars for the mass consumer. His first “master plan” for the company in 2006 was to produce luxury models first, then use the profits to finance an “affordable family car”.
Shortly after the “Reuters” publication, Tesla’s shares fell by about 6 percent, after which they recovered part of the losses, writes BTA.
The brand’s cheapest model is now the Model 3 sedan, which sells for about $39,000 in the US.
The new, smaller and cheaper electric car, sometimes described as the “Model 2,” was expected to be priced around $25,000.