Tesla may yet again change the game in the world of electric cars with its new $25,000 "mystery model," expected to be available to the public in the near future. But for now, it's all speculation, as Tesla remains tight-lipped about the details.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk first announced that a $25,000 electric car was on the horizon at Tesla Battery Day in 2020. He revealed that the cheaper price would be made possible thanks to a new kind of battery Tesla was developing that could reduce battery costs by over 50%, as Electrek reported.
Since then, Tesla has simplified its battery manufacturing process and developed the new 4680 batteries, named for their 46-millimeter-by-80-millimeter dimensions. The new batteries not only allow Tesla to produce and sell a car for $25,000, but they also likely provide a range of 250-300 miles on a single charge, according to MarketWatch. This is more than most other EVs with similar prices.
In March, Car and Driver released a list of the top 10 cheapest electric cars, which ranged from $27,495 to $42,715. The driving range on a single charge for the cars listed was anywhere between 100 and 270 miles. Of the three cars on the list that cost under $30,000, only one had a range of over 250 miles, and not by much.
Other manufacturers like Hyundai and Ford currently have announced no plans to introduce lower-end EVs, choosing instead to concentrate on larger vehicles with wider profit margins, according to CNBC. Yet Tesla's goal is to manufacture four million of its $25,000 cars, per MarketWatch.
The new vehicle is expected to be a compact hatchback resembling a smaller version of the Tesla Model Y. Compared to current Tesla models, which range from around $40,000 to $120,000 before discounts, the new model will be available to a larger consumer base that may have previously wanted an EV but found them to be unaffordable.
Making EVs more available to the masses could have a huge impact on local air quality and the environment as a whole, as the typical passenger vehicle produces about 5.1 tons (over 10,000 pounds) of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year.
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