The governor of the Mexican state of Nuevo León, where Tesla's fifth Gigafactory is located, recently stated that Tesla has entered the final stage of designing the new Model 2, which will be the "best" and most affordable electric vehicle in the world.
Rumors of the long-awaited new affordable Tesla model seem to be finally coming to fruition in the market.
Samuel Alejandro García Sepúlveda, the governor of the Mexican state of Nuevo León, where Tesla's fifth Gigafactory is located, recently stated that Tesla has completed the design work for the new Model 2, which will be the "best" and most affordable electric vehicle in the world:
"The information we have is that they have now entered the final stage of designing the new model, which, as far as we know, will be the best and most affordable electric vehicle in the world. This will be a milestone."
The Mexican factory permit has been obtained and construction can begin anytime after completion
Samuel also mentioned that although the exact start date is not yet known, all the necessary permits for the Tesla Mexican Gigafactory, including environmental and energy permits, have been obtained, and construction can begin anytime.
During the Investor Day in March of this year, Tesla announced that its fifth Gigafactory would be built in the suburbs of Monterrey, the capital of Nuevo León. There have been rumors that the factory will primarily be used to produce the new Model 2 and autonomous taxis.
Tesla previously expressed its desire to break the record set by the Shanghai factory, which took only 9 months from groundbreaking to production, by completing the construction of the Mexican factory in an even shorter time. However, it has been four months since the announcement, and construction of the Tesla Mexican Gigafactory has not yet begun, possibly due to waiting for government permits.
In addition, according to a report at the end of June by Wǎndiǎn, a source close to Tesla's supply chain revealed that Tesla underestimated the difficulty of building a factory in Mexico, and the original plan to complete construction by next summer cannot be achieved. It is expected that the new factory will be completed and put into operation in the first quarter of 2025.
It is expected that the Tesla new model will be officially released after the completion of the Mexican Gigafactory.
Is the Tesla starting at 160,000 RMB finally coming?
The governor of Nuevo León did not mention the specific specifications and design of the Model 2 in his speech.
As early as Tesla's Battery Day in 2020, Tesla announced that it would produce an electric vehicle priced at $25,000 (approximately 160,000 RMB) by vertically integrating its operations and utilizing more powerful battery production technology to reduce the cost of electric vehicles by 50%.
Tesla even hinted at the time that this $25,000 electric vehicle would eliminate the steering wheel and fully realize autonomous driving.
Since then, there have been continuous rumors about this new car. In early 2021, the media reported that this affordable new car might be named Model 2 and would be a smaller hatchback compared to Tesla's existing models. There were also rumors that the new car might be named Model Q.
During Tesla's Investor Day in March, the "Master Plan Part Deux" slide showed the outlines of two mysterious new models, one being a sedan and the other possibly a hatchback or a compact SUV.
There are rumors that the design of Model 2 is similar to a mini version of Tesla, possibly the small SUV shown in the slides.
In addition, in "Macro Chart 3," Tesla also revealed the compact battery size that may be used in Model 2. This model will use an LFP battery pack with an average capacity of 53 kilowatt-hours, which is 25% smaller than the battery capacity currently used in Tesla. However, due to the shorter wheelbase of Model 2, the vehicle weight may also be reduced by 30%. Therefore, despite the smaller battery capacity, the range may be consistent with the entry-level Tesla currently on sale.
