As the dates for the Goodwood Festival of Speed come closer, Tesla adds its name to the festival's list of reveals. The Tesla Model 3 will make its European debut at the event next week – about a year before it is due to begin production of the car's right-hand-drive line.
The US-spec version of the car is scheduled to be shown on the Duke of Richmond's front lawn, on static display – which means that it won't be driven up the famous hill climb. It will, however, give people in the UK and Europe their first chance to get up close to the new electric car. In the UK the Model 3 is expected to go up against the likes of the Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Jaguar XE and Mercedes-Benz C-class in terms of pricing and size.
The car is available with 50kWh or 75kWh batteries. The 50kWh Model 3 has a claimed range of 354km, hits 0-100kph in 5.6sec and has a top speed of 209kph. According to official tests carried out by the US's Environmental Protection Agency, though, the car's 75kWh Long Range variant has a claimed range of 499km on a single charge; it can do 0-100kph in 5.1sec and has a 225kph top speed.
A Performance variant is due later, but Musk has previously said a more powerful 100kWh battery (which is the standard battery for Tesla Performance models) will not fit into the Model 3's smaller frame. This suggests Tesla might only slightly increase the battery size of the current Long Range variant for the Performance version. The Model 3 is more than 400kg lighter than the Model S, so it could be quicker than the Performance version of the Model S.
Tesla revealed its all-electric Semi lorry and a new Roadster last year, following an injection of $1 billion worth of investment (around Rs 6,857.5 crore) into the company – which Musk has said would help the company meet the high demand for the Model 3.
Model 3 hit a production milestone of 5,000 cars a week in the last week of June, just meeting Tesla's self-set deadline for the end of Q2 2018. A temporary 'tent' was constructed outside the firm's California factory so as to hold another production line and increase its output. An estimated 5,00,000 orders have been received for the Model 3, so far.
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