Tesla Compact.
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It looks like a new Tesla model prototype might have been caught on camera.
The 2 images on top seem to show a car with no doors or roof, in a parking lot full of Tesla Model Y. However, it also looks a lot like the Model 3, without doors or a roof. So, who knows…
The bottom image is a bit more mysterious since we can’t see any of the car.
Tesla has not released a new model since the Cybertruck, which was introduced back in 2019. And finally started production in late 2023.
As it turns out, the Cybertruck is far less popular than originally hoped by Elon Musk, with about 5% of original reservations turning into actual purchases. Musk also estimated 250,000 sales a year. Fewer than 40,000 units were sold in 2024. Sales fell over 32% recently, with numbers for January and February totalling only 2619 units.
Even the Model 3, which was revised last year, fell by 17%. This is mostly due to the Tesla brand image becoming toxic for many potential buyers, but also the total lack of new affordable models. We have heard for many years about a smaller, cheaper Tesla. Last year, Elon Musk promised all-new models using parts of both the current Model Y platform as well as something new. A new model that could be built on the existing factory line.
More recently, rumors pointed to a cheaper version of the Model Y Not a new model. Maybe something with a steel roof, cloth seats, and fewer doodads to reduce the price. One has to wonder by how much.
This would allow Tesla to advertise a semi-new product. But what the brand needs sis a few all-new cars. Not just cheaper versions of what they’ve been selling for years.
As far as the brand image is concerned, there is not much they can actually do. And that might be their ultimate downfall…