During the recent “Tesla Battery Day,” one of the biggest firsts was the confirmation that Tesla is preparing a model below the Model 3. This vehicle, possibly a compact hatchback located in the C segment, will be launched in the year 2023 at an estimated price of about $25,000, which will be possible thanks to the use of LFP batteries.
However, manufacturing expert Sandy Munro doesn’t have them all with him. The technician, very popular on the Internet for his Tesla model breakdowns, affirms that building such a cheap vehicle would pose more risks than benefits for the North American firm due to its market position and profitability.
According to the engineer, shareholders probably do not see the point in launching a cheaper model with lower profit margins. Tesla could be producing more expensive and profitable vehicles, which are also in high demand today, such as demonstrate the good figures achieved by the Model 3.
Despite the advances promised by Elon Musk in reducing manufacturing costs (through the use of large castings, structural batteries, the new 4680 cells, etc.), Munro doubts that Tesla is capable of profitably selling an electric car for less than $32,000.
On the other hand, if Tesla is unable to solve its build quality problems (which are reaching new heights in the Model Y, whose assembly failures have been in the news for weeks), the sale of an affordable model in large numbers could lead to a collapse of technical service centers.
Despite everything, Munro maintains his admiration for Tesla. In the same online seminar in which he criticized the decision to launch a $ 25,000 model, he also affirmed that on a technical level, the Californian firm is ten years more advanced than its rivals, thanks, among other things, to its policy of continually updating its cars.