Just a month and a half ago, Tesla CEO Elon Musk told investors that a regular Tesla model priced at $25,000 would be “pointless” and “silly” without the newly launched driverless robotaxi.
“It would be completely contrary to what we believe,” Musk said.
Let's call it the art of marketing excitement, but he never said anything about a Tesla model that costs less than $30,000.
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And that seems to be exactly what awaits us in 2025, say analysts at Deutsche Bank who recently took part in meetings with Travis Axelrod, head of investor relations at Tesla.
“The new Tesla model [referred to as ‘Model Q’] should start [the first half of 2025]and the price will be below $30,000 including subsidies,” Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu wrote in a note.
That means the price of the Model Q, if that's what it was called, would be $37,499 at most, excluding the Biden administration's $7,500 federal tax incentive for the purchase of a new electric vehicle.
With the new Trump administration reportedly planning to end the stimulus early next year, Musk may not have been playing with words and numbers when he declined to provide details on the price of a new affordable Tesla model.
Tesla's CEO, a close adviser to President-elect Donald Trump, has given his blessing to ending the stimulus, saying the move would be “devastating” for Tesla's competitors.
Tesla has been pushing the idea of a new affordable model since at least 2020, with many assuming this model will be cheaper than the Model 3. What's notable, however, is that the most basic Model 3 currently costs less than $30,000, with incentives on Teslas US website.
The report from Deutsche Bank and presumably Tesla's Axelrod did not provide any further information about the features of the new Model Q.
Earlier this year, Reuters reported that the automaker was developing a compact crossover with production scheduled for 2025. In May, it was reported that this new model looked like a “stripped down” version of the Model Y.
