Image: Joe Tegtmeyer
Last month, Tesla launched the refreshed version of the world’s best-selling car, the Model Y, which brought a whole lot of styling and comfort features to the re-engineered model.
Now, it appears that another model is under development, with pictures of a heavily camouflaged Model Y, which was sighted at Tesla’s factory in Austin, Texas.
In new drone footage from a Texas-based drone operator and Tesla EV enthusiast, Joe Tegtmeyer, a black, heavily camouflaged Tesla has been seen amongst other cars with the front and rear completely covered.
On the inside, the dash also appears to be covered, hinting at multiple changes to both the exterior and interior.
From another angle, it appears to be smaller than the conventional Model Y, leading some to believe that it could be the upcoming more affordable model from the leading EV maker.
The new model has been in the works for the last 12 months and has been mentioned several times in the company’s earnings call deck and on the calls themselves.
Late last year, in the Q3 earnings report, Tesla said: “Preparations remain underway for our offering of new vehicles – including more affordable models – which we will begin launching in the first half of 2025.”
This was followed up at the company’s Q4 earnings call last month when the Tesla team told investors that the new product is well under development and will be launched by June this year.
On the call, Tesla’s CFO, Vaibhav Taneja, said: “We are still on track to launch a more affordable model in the first half of 2025,”. Taneja also hinted that there would also be more products to follow the more affordable model.
Although not much is known about what the affordable model’s specifications might be, the company has shared some details in its earnings call presentation deck stating: “These vehicles will utilize aspects of the next generation platform as well as aspects of our current platforms and will be produced on the same manufacturing lines as our current vehicle line-up”.
Using the same lines as the current vehicle line-up will ensure that the tooling of the manufacturing lines is a lot more streamlined. This will reduce manufacturing complexity while delivering expected cost reductions Tesla needs to bring the model at a much lower price to drivers than its current Model 3 and Model Y EVs.
The latest sighting comes at an interesting time for the brand when its sales fell in 2024 for the first time in many years. The new model will likely help bring Tesla back into a growth phase for its vehicle business.
We expect the model to have its launch event with pricing and specs unveiled before the car goes into mass production. This could be as soon as Q2 this year with deliveries likely to start in the second half of 2025.
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.
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Research a little more widely? Apparently there will be TWO new vehicles:
One is a Model Q, small SUV a la shrunken MY; the other is the Model 2, a shrunken hatchback M3.
Are you having an identity crisis? I've seen a pork chap around here. I think we all deserve to know what's going on.
My roomate's mom-in-regulation makes usd eighty one each hour at the laptop . She has been fired for eight months but remaining month her paycheck turned into usd 17367 just operating
on the pc for a few hours..... Dailygooglework.blogspot.Com
If that is one of those bodgy BEV's with a hole in the roof, then the musk rat can stick it in the appropriate place. And, the muskrat appears to have alot of room to put it there, being as bigger one that he is.
While I don't disagree with you on Musky, you may need to sit down and wipe your chin.
Musk rats are cute. Please don't insult musk rats by comparison to Melon Usk.
Cutting down on fraud has you all upset
Seems a different approach to all the hoopla for the Cybertruck years before release. How is that going by the way?
These cars seem more mainstream customer focused and therefore more likely to reach the scale required to come down to competitive prices. Using existing production lines will help that. Perhaps an actual functional ute/pickup model should be next.
It's interesting the way Tesla the car company is subtly trying to distance itself from Musk. Suddenly we are seeing the senior staff and management much more on YouTube, meeting celebs like Jay Leno, and their words quoted in articles (for instance the one above). Musk is totally off doing stuff that has very little relation to the business of vehicle manufacturing.
The rest of Tesla should just ignore Elon, tell him to f-off, and make all the decisions and run the company by themselves. Maybe that’s what’s already happening.
Hey Giles.
Here's an idea. Stop allowing links to be included in replies.
This will annoy honest people who want to share important information but it will seriously hamper the scammers who have discovered this site and are now infesting it.
Cheers.
Giles does not care about the truth just his narrow version of what he thinks is the truth
People usually find ways to circumvent those types of blocks
Pathetic that The Driven hasn't got the balls to do the right thing. Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield from Transport Evolved has decided to STOP reporting on Tesla for all the right reasons: Elon Musk is Attempting A Coup - Why Are EV Insiders and Journalists Ignoring It? - YouTube
Electrek is also another great website that is doing the right thing and calling out Muskrat
You guys are lazy, incompetent and completely spineless and don't deserve my attention. You continue to promote a car company (headed by Musk) that completely goes against the needs of humanity. Goodbye and good riddance!!!
You want this site to boycott Tesla? GTFO!
Bye Byeeee! 👋
Oh look, another one. This unhinged behavior reminds me of a religious fanatic.
Its like you didn't finish watching that vid you linked. What a pillock.
"don’t deserve my attention"
Um... so why are you here then?
Tesla is a public company - it's not hard to work out.
Don't worry, people are not buying Teslas much anymore - 60% drop off in sales in Europe in the last month, and just wait until the Geely EX5 hits - it will eat Tesla's lunch big time.
Yeah yeah. Every non Tesla is a Tesla killer. Hasn't happened yet. EX5 won't be the one either. Only the refreshed Tesla Model Y will be the Tesla Model Y killer.
Finding misspent tax payers money have you all upset
So sorry we don't deserve your attention - I'm sure we're all hugely disappointed, aghast, shocked, horrified, suicidal, you won't be with us any longer.
Oh, someone touched a raw nerve there. Your undecipherable, hysterical rant and cowardly, pathetic name is HILARIOUS.
Although you claim this site doesn't deserve your attention, guess what fool? It did get your attention.
Damn, all the down votes here for what is basically the truth (yes, Transport Evolved is a great channel, the best EV channel IMO). Seems a lot of Tesla fanbois really don't have much in the way of ethics if they are still supporting Tesla, because by doing so they are also supporting fElon Skum, as he benefits from every Tesla sale. Fortunately, Europeans seem to be a more ethical lot, with Tesla sales falling off a cliff over there, and rightly so.
Tesla needs some new vehicle models in its lineup. Badly. And soon.
Definitely smaller. The pics don't do justice. Here's the original clip
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxQs8NMBK2ABTzTUkx2DATZDSkV8oe-WMk?si=f0J2rm1xnaRdLfcd
Riz your stories are stale and boring
1. The Chinese have beaten Tesla to the punch by some time
2. Musk destroyed Tesla
Feck off cockroach!