You can't buy Tesla's $ 35,000 Model 3 Online Anymore
Tesla's long-awaited $ 35,000 model 3 seemed like a good step forward for the company in terms of making electric cars more accessible and affordable. And now it is not quite as available, suddenly. Tesla announced in a blog post that it no longer offers $ 35,000 base model online, like any other model 3 ̵[ads1]1; and it will also miss some features that may have made the purchase of Model 3 so attractive in the first place. [19659004] Tesla masked the bad news in and among the news about his Autopilot semi-autonomous system. Where customers previously had to buy Autopilot as a separate package, all of Tesla cars will be equipped with the technology as a standard feature – and yes it includes a price increase across the board on all Tesla vehicles. Tesla notes that Autopilot will now cost less for consumers than it did when it was only an optional feature, but they will still pay for the technology.
So yes, it requires a price increase on that model 3. [19659005] Tesla found a way around it, though. You'll still be able to buy $ 35,000 Model 3 Standard – but you won't be able to make it easy. The car will no longer be available for purchase online. You must call Tesla or visit one of their dealers to order.
Tesla Will Only Sell Cars Online
Tesla's Newest Requirements Can Be The Most Brave: "Tesla Shifts Sales Worldwide to Only Online."
Read More
Discussion ? Tesla claims that the Model 3 Standard Plus "sold at more than six times the frequency" of the Standard. Instead of continuing to produce a standard, the standard will now become a "software-limited" version of Standard Plus. The blog post states that the decision to limit the standard is a matter of cost optimization.
Essentially, the blog post, it is cheaper for Tesla to simply make the hardware a model of basic model 3, and only decide to lock or unlock the maximum range.
Here's what else you will miss if you buy the software limited Standard, from Tesla's blog post:
Its selection will be limited by 10%, and more features will be disabled via software (including our music station onboard, live navigation traffic visualization and heated seats). Like other software-limited cars previously manufactured, Standard customers will always be able to upgrade to a Standard Plus. Similarly, anyone who has already purchased Standard Plus and wants to convert to Standard is welcome to do so and we will refund for the difference in price.
A big point of $ 35,000 model 3 seemed to be its availability – It was a cheaper version of Tesla more expensive cars, and so there is an option for anyone wishing to switch to an electric car without sacrificing any of the Tesla pizzazz. Now, all the features that made it so attractive-online purchase, decent selection, heated seats – have been nixed to the standard.
And it is not that these things will not physically be there on the car, because apparently they will. You just won't be able to use them unless you pay up.
The decision makes sense from an economic point of view if Tesla sells more Standard Plus models than standards. But that doesn't make it any less frustrating, especially when this news comes from a company that has previously promised one thing, and then turned out to deliver another.
In and among model 3 Standard news was information about leasing. From April 12, Tesla customers will be able to rent a model 3 variant for "an annual mileage of 10,000, 12,000 or 15,000 miles."
But it also came with an interesting warning:
Please note that customers who opt for leasing over ownership will not have the opportunity to purchase their car at the end of the lease because, with full autonomy, we are coming through the-air software update, we plan to use these vehicles in the Tesla equestrian center.
These are a few more, uh, "bold" movements from Tesla, those who are not spared hard through a critical lens. It is frustrating to see that Tesla offers readily available and less expensive versions of its cars, just to later add another obstacle to actually getting it.
