On the day of the unveiling,
addressing his employees, admirers and the media at the company’s California
Design Studio, Musk said, “I want to emphasise that even if you buy no options
at all, this will still be an amazing car. You will not be able to buy a better
car for $35,000 or even close.”
In September 2015, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited the
Tesla Motors factory in the US and had made known India’s interest in the
company’s solar Powerwall technology. Modi and Musk had also apparently
discussed the possibility of a more affordable car from the company.
Musk stated that Model 3 will
have a minimum 215 miles (346km) range on a single charge.
“We have got an amazing product to be shown to
you tonight and you’re going to be blown away. ...Why are we making electric
cars? It is very important to accelerate transition to sustainable transport.
This is really important for the future of the world. We have record high CO2
levels. What it does is that it is steadily increases temperature. We have
already increased that by 2 degrees. But that does not tell the whole story
because extremes of temperature increased by as much as 20 degrees,” Musk said
before unveiling the electric car.
Musk in his address took the
audience through the company’s journey
wherein it started with the Roadster as part of the company’s secret Tesla
Master Plan. “This was the first plan that I wrote for the company. Originally
it was a three-part trilogy but now it is a four-part trilogy,” he said. He
elaborated n the success of the Model S and the Model X. “Both of them are
really important because the revenue from Model S and X is what was needed to
develop the Model 3. ... The models S and X are what paid for the Model 3,” he
said.
“We now come to the final step
in the Master Plan, a mass market, affordable car. It was only possible to do
that by going through the prior steps. The Model 3 is going to be an incredibly
safe car. We really believe that safety has to come first. The Model 3 will be
five-star in every category. Even the base model will do 0 to 60 miles (almost
100km) an hour in less than 6 seconds. Of course there will be versions of
Model 3 which will go much faster. The range will be at least an EPA rating of
215 (346km) miles per charge. These are minimum numbers and we hope to exceed
them. All Model 3 cars will come standard with auto pilot hardware. Auto pilot safety features will there in all
cars. The car fits five adults comfortably,” he explained to the audience in
his speech which was shared live around the globe through internet.
The Model 3 has enough leg
room for both rows of seats and the rear roof area is one continuous pane of
glass. “It gives you amazing headroom and a feeling of openness. By far it has
the best roominess for any car of its size. Like the Model S it has the front
and rear trunks. It has more cargo capacity than any gasoline car of same
external dimensions,” he noted.