Tesla is reportedly working on a brand new, smaller and cheaper electric crossover, according to a handful of anonymous sources, and the company has been in contact with suppliers in recent weeks to discuss details its plans for the small SUV. Unlike the enshittened Model 3 and Model Y Standard, this won’t be a variant of an existing car, but an all-new vehicle. We’ve all heard this story before, but maybe it’s real this time.
Not much is known right now, but the sources say the compact crossover will indeed be compact — just 14 feet long, which is roughly the size of a Chevy Bolt. It’ll also be produced in China, Europe and the U.S. Of course, this all comes a bit out of left field. After all, CEO Elon Musk killed Tesla’s low-cost EV project in 2024 to focus in on humanoid robots and autonomous robotaxis. Perhaps he had a change of heart, perhaps he felt Tesla’s stock needed another pump or perhaps the new model will be some sort of autonomous box. Who the hell really knows? From Reuters:
Two of the sources said Tesla aims to offer the new vehicle at a substantially lower price than its entry-level Model 3 sedan, which starts at $34,000 in China and about $37,000 in the United States. They said Tesla planned to save costs in part by using a smaller battery, which would mean a shorter driving range compared with 306 to 327 miles for the Model Y.
One of the people added that the automaker would also offer a single electric motor instead of two, a performance option on current Tesla models. Tesla also wants to make the car much lighter, this person said, at about 1.5 metric tons compared with about two tons for the Model Y.
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[I]n 2024, Reuters reported that Tesla had abandoned plans for the Model 2, although it still planned a driverless robotaxi on the same platform. Tesla’s biggest EV rivals in China had already started producing much cheaper EVs. Later that year, Musk said it would be “pointless” and “silly” for Tesla to make a $25,000 EV for human drivers because the company would soon offer driverless vehicles.
A former Tesla manager said an all-new cheaper traditional car would represent a significant departure from the company’s philosophy through mid-2025. Until then, the manager said, Tesla had dropped the effort to mass-produce an entry-level car in favor of robotaxis as the key to lowering costs per mile for riders and the car owners charging them for trips.
After scrapping the Model 2, Musk and other Tesla executives described different plans for new, “more affordable” EVs in vague terms. When the vehicles arrived last fall, however, they were stripped-down versions of the current Model 3 and Y offered in new “standard” trim levels at only a modest discount.
There’s a high likelihood that if this car does get made, Tesla tries to slap its autonomy gimmicks on top of it. Surprise, surprise, I know.
The Tesla employee declined to confirm or deny details of any specific vehicle but said, in general, the automaker now aims to build models that would be driverless but offer a human-driven option.
While aiming for full autonomy across its lineup, the person said, Tesla realizes many global markets won’t see meaningful adoption – nor regulatory acceptance – of driverless vehicles for years. Preserving the option to build a particular model with or without driving controls could enable more sales and help ensure Tesla can keep its car factories running near capacity, the person said.
Obviously, it’s incredibly important to take all of this information with a heaping dose of skepticism. The four people who spoke with Reuters said the project is in the early development stages, and the outlet was unable to determine whether or not Tesla had given the green light to the car’s production just yet. Hell, even if it did, that doesn’t mean anything. Just look at the poor Roadster.
