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Musk’s Pledge To Build 20K Model 3s Before December Has Been A Disaster

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Chris White Tech Reporter
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Tesla produced less than 2,500 Model 3 vehicles in three months, despite company CEO Elon Musk’s repeated claims the company would sell five times that amount a month before the end of 2017.

Musk predicted in July that Tesla would be able to produce more than 20,000 Model 3s a month before the beginning of 2018. He argued the affordable sedan would help Tesla sell more than 500,000 cars a year – Musk’s prediction ran headlong into reality.

Wall Street was not impressed with the showing – Tesla’s shares tumbled on Wednesday two percent in after-hours trading. Automotive analysts were not surprised.

“This is par for the course for Tesla and Elon Musk, whose history of stating goals and forecasts and not meeting them is pretty well established,” Karl Brauer, an advisor at Kelley Blue Book, said Wednesday in an interview with reporters. “Most independent experts found the production rates he (Musk) was forecasting were pretty unlikely.”

The muted response to Tesla’s tepid Model 3 delivery numbers comes even as the company enjoyed its most productive year. It delivered 101, 312 vehicles in 2017, a 33 percent increase from the year before.

Production on the highly touted vehicle was expected to expand from 100 cars in August to 1,500 in September, and plateau to 20,000 per month in December. Musk plans to eventually build 20,000 cars per month – Musk choked the problems up to a type of production “hell” the company would experience before hitting its stride.

The Model 3 sedan, which was unveiled July 30, is priced at $35,000 before incentives or options, but could increase if customers waiting on backorder prefer a model with a larger battery. Tesla produced roughly 85,000 vehicles in 2016 and plans to make half a million in 2018.

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