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Elon Musk shares photos of the first Model 3 off the production line

Published Jul 9th, 2017 6:20PM EDT
Model 3 Elon Musk
Image: Tesla

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Given Tesla’s checkered past when it comes to meeting production deadlines, you could be forgiven for thinking that Tesla wouldn’t be able to meet its Model 3 production schedule. But in a sign that Tesla has learned from previous mistakes with the Model S and the Model X, the first Model 3 — as initially promised — rolled off of the production line this weekend, an event that Tesla CEO Elon Musk celebrated with a pair of tweets.

The first photo is below.

And a second one for good measure.

Now as to who the lucky owner of the first Model 3 is, well, it’s none other than Musk himself. Not to worry, Musk didn’t gift himself the car. On the contrary, it was given to him as a birthday gift by Tesla board member Ira Ehrenpreis.

According to Musk, first dibs on any new Tesla vehicle goes to the first person who pays for it in full. That said, Musk relayed via Twitter that he was the first owner to receive the Roadster and the Model X, but not the Model S.

With the Model 3 production line already in operation, the next big Model 3 event is slated for July 28 where Tesla will deliver the next 30 vehicles to early reservation holders. Additionally, the event is where Tesla will presumably give the public a closer and crisper look at what the shipping Model 3 is going to look like.

Priced at $35,000, the Model 3 represents Tesla’s first effort at shipping a mass market car. That being the case, it will be interesting to see if Tesla can ramp up production in a timely fashion in order to meet staggering demand. While Tesla hasn’t released an official tally of Model 3 reservations, it’s believed that the current figure falls somewhere in the 400,000 range. Further, Musk said during a recent earnings conference call that the cumulative number of Model 3 reservations continues to rise each and every month.

Production wise, Musk said that Tesla is hoping to churn out upwards of 20,000 Model 3 vehicles per month by December of this year. By 2018, Musk is hoping to double that figure to 40,000 units.

Yoni Heisler Contributing Writer

Yoni Heisler has been writing about Apple and the tech industry at large with over 15 years of experience. A life long expert Mac user and Apple expert, his writing has appeared in Edible Apple, Network World, MacLife, Macworld UK, and TUAW.

When not analyzing the latest happenings with Apple, Yoni enjoys catching Improv shows in Chicago, playing soccer, and cultivating new TV show addictions.