Hawthorne, Calif. – The long anticipated Tesla Model 3 electric vehicle was finally revealed on Thursday night.
At the unveiling, Tesla CEO Elon Musk claimed the car will cost $35,000, a sharp decrease from the current Tesla Model S, which typically sells for twice that price.
Tesla says the Model 3 will be able to travel at least 215 miles on a single charge, and do 0-60 mph in less than 6 seconds. Musk says there will be versions that can go even faster.
The cars are also said to include support for Tesla’s high-speed supercharging network, which Musk says will provide relatively quick charging of the Model 3. Tesla says the superchargers will be placed at convenient locations along major interstates across the country.
Musk says the Model 3 will come with autopilot as a standard feature. Autopilot allows the vehicle to detect road signs, lane marking, obstacles, and other vehicles. Current Model S vehicles are capable of hands-free driving in many situations using the autopilot feature.
According to Tesla, the car will have a 5-star safety rating in all categories.
The Model 3 isn’t expected to begin production until late 2017. Tesla is taking pre-orders for a down payment of $1,000.
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