Mainstream Model 3 holds promise – and peril – for Tesla
FREMONT, Calif. — For Tesla, everything is riding on the Model 3.
The electric car company’s newest vehicle was delivered to its first 30 customers — all Tesla employees — Friday evening. Its $35,000 starting price — half the cost of Tesla’s previous models — and range of up to 310 miles (498 km) could bring hundreds of thousands of customers into the automaker’s fold, taking it from a niche luxury brand to the mainstream. Around 500,000 people worldwide have already reserved a Model 3.
Those higher sales could finally make Tesla profitable and accelerate its plans for future products like SUVs and pickup trucks.
Or the Model 3 could dash Tesla’s dreams.