Tesla could be moving away from the iconic interior wood trim sections in the upcoming updated Tesla Model 3, according to a well sourced Tesla enthusiast, Chris Zheng, on Twitter.
The new speculation suggests that Tesla will be removing the wooden trim section and replacing it with a bonded fabric material instead:
An early farewell to the wood trim on the Tesla Model 3! IMO this wood trim is a good balance of low cost, high volume and design vibe. The new Model 3 will be covered with ABS bonded foam non-woven fabric. pic.twitter.com/VIE2cFCA0v
— Chris Zheng (@ChrisZheng001) February 16, 2023
The current wooden trim runs along the width of the dash in the Tesla Model 3. In recent years, itās extended to the doors as well, particularly in Australian-delivered cars that were built at Teslaās GigaShanghai plant.
Although no images of the updated interior have been shared, it is likely that we will be receiving more details on this change in the coming weeks from Tesla directly at the upcoming investor day.
Event will be streamed live on Twitter & YouTube https://t.co/ZiLok5aJ7A
— Tesla (@Tesla) February 8, 2023
The updated Tesla Model 3 has been spoken about in the Tesla community for many months now and this change is in-line with Teslaās aggressive drive to simplify manufacturing processes.
Changing the material to something standardised would ensure that parts for the interior are reduced, hence simplifying the manufacturing process.Ā
A change as small as white interior trims can add more time to the stock management and manufacturing process. The potential change to the same colour for both types of interiors would simplify the process further.
The use of bonded foam non-woven fabric would not only provide a higher density look around the trims but would give a more modern look to the current aging Tesla Model 3.
In Australia, the Tesla Model 3 has been on sale for nearly four years. An update in the coming months would be well received by those looking at upgrading their current Tesla Model 3 to something a bit newer.Ā
šØWell, well, well. Why would a Model 3 need to cover up its front, rear and dashboard unless it had something to hide? #refreshmodel3 #teslamodel3 #tesla pic.twitter.com/fAkNUiLd1z
— Tesla Raj (@tesla_raj) February 16, 2023
Tesla has more behind-the-scenes updates to ensure the cost of manufacturing the all-electric sedan is kept low as it moves towards an even more affordable priced EV platform.Ā
The refreshed interior of the Tesla Model 3 would also form part of the imminent hardware 4.0 changes that are expected to include higher-resolution cameras for the full self-driving suite.Ā
More details of the updated Tesla Model 3 and Teslaās next-generation platform will come to light in days to come.
RizĀ is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.