An interesting new development in Tesla electric vehicles has emerged, with the spotting of a modified Model 3 sedan testing in the US with no side mirrors and multiple new camera locations.
This new development was first shared by a Tesla enthusiast niccruzpatane and shared on X after pictures were taken by user mrsaltyp on X.
Apart from the lack of side mirrors, the location of the cameras facing outwards in the rear side window instead of the side door found on the standard car is also interesting.
The side view mirror appears to be replaced by a camera facing backwards where the front side repeater camera is normally located.
There is also a camera on the boot lid which is located higher on the lid than the one found on the actual Model 3, just underneath the Tesla badge.
This is VERY interesting.
A refresh Model 3 was spotted without any side mirrors, and testing all new camera locations. (Rear window, trunk, side repeaters)
The car was seen in Palo Alto.
What do we think?Thanks for the pics! @MrSaltyP pic.twitter.com/fOC838T3qn
— Nic Cruz Patane (@niccruzpatane) May 15, 2024
This car that this was seen on is a dual-motor refreshed Model 3 that was launched in the US earlier this year. It has Texas “Manufacturer” number plates on it which indicates that its a test vehicle by Tesla.
After this sighting, it is unclear whether this car being tested ahead of the upcoming Robotaxi model which is set to be announced on August 8.
The other possibility could be the more affordable models that were hinted at in a recent earnings call by Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk.
“We’ve updated our future vehicle lineup to accelerate the launch of new models, previously mentioned start of production in the second half of 2025. So, we expect it to be more like the early 2025, if not late this year,” Musk said in April.
“These new vehicles, including more affordable models, will use aspects of the next-generation platform as well as aspects of our current platforms, and we’ll be able to produce on the same manufacturing lines as our current vehicle lineup.”
This vehicle is the first sighting with these new camera locations undergoing real-world testing. It will likely continue in the coming months as we get closer to the August unveiling of Tesla’s next innovative product.
Riz 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.