Tesla Motors is apparently planning to unveil a budget electric vehicle (EV), dubbed Model E, in 2015, which will be priced around $40,000.
The Palo Alto, California-based car maker is already popular in the EV industry with its Roadster, the first fully electric sports car and the Model S, a fully electric luxury sedan. Both the cars have a premium price tag of about $70,000 and Tesla is also planning to release the long-awaited Model X sport-utility vehicle towards the end of 2014. The Model X will be priced similar to the Model S.
The carmaker's chief designer, Franz von Holzhauzen, said in an interview with the German website Autobild that the car industry will have to wait for at least a year before it sees the launch of the lower-priced Tesla car, which has been dubbed Model E (E for economy?); however, the official name of the car has not yet been confirmed by the company.
The Model E is expected to make its appearance at the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, which usually takes place in January. Von Holzhauzen also hints that the company will start selling the car probably in 2016 or 2017.
"This is hugely important for Tesla," said Thilo Koslowski, an auto industry analyst at Gartner. "This is ultimately the car that will make Tesla a household brand rather than just something in the premium segments. No car company can live off 20,000 to 30,000 sales a year and be profitable in the long term."
Even though the Model E is said to have a price tag of $40,000, customers can get the car for $30,000 after tax credits.
Tesla may include a 200 miles battery range in the rumored Model E, which is smaller than the battery found in the Model S, which has a 265 miles battery range.
"That's pretty ambitious to get there," said Koslowski. "One hundred to 120 miles of range isn't enough for mainstream consumers to really feel comfortable."
A budget EV with a 200 miles driving range may give Tesla a significant competitive advantage and may attract many customers looking to buy an electric car.
