“It’s been a very difficult journey, but I’m super excited about being able to produce a car that most people can afford. There will be future cars that will be even more affordable down the road,” revealed company founder Elon Musk during the Future Transport Solutions conference that was held in Oslo, Norway.
While roughly half of motorists can afford the Model 3 (pictured), Musk predicts that almost everyone will be able to afford Tesla’s fourth-generation models. The comments fall in line with Tesla’s original plan, which is to bring affordable electric mobility to the masses. Musk has previously explained that the bigger Model S and Model X — luxury cars that often sell for north of $100,000 — were a way to generate the funds required to build electric cars that the general public can afford.
Concrete details about Tesla’s fourth-generation cars aren’t available because they’re still several years away from hitting showrooms; currently, Tesla is focusing on ramping up Model X production, and turning the Model 3 into a reality. However, Musk explained that the concept of economies of scale is key to building affordable cars. Notably, the massive Gigafactory in Nevada will greatly help Tesla lower its operating costs.
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Interestingly, Musk also mentioned the need to have multiple design iterations. The S and the X share many components, and Tesla is believed to be working on a crossover that rides on the same architecture as the Model 3. We don’t know what form the fourth-gen cars will take yet, but odds are the lineup will be expanded into even more body styles in order to help Tesla lower costs and boost profits.
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