Tesla Future Cars

The Model S is far and away Tesla’s most popular vehicle, known for singlehandedly shifting public opinion of EVs from dowdy, boring people-movers, to sexy, high-tech performance machines. This is the model that set the stage for all of Tesla’s other offerings, including the top-shelf Model X SUV, and more recently, the affordable Model 3 compact four-door. However, the Model S was first introduced in 2012, which means it’s starting to get a little long in the tooth, and a second-gen for the full-/mid-size luxury sedan should be headed down the line in the next few years. As such, we put on our speculation hats and got down to reasoning out what the next Model S might bring to the table.

Continue reading to learn more about the 2022 Tesla Model S.

The Tesla Model S has been around since 2012, and while it’s still a few years away from getting a full redesign, a rendering of a next-gen Model S is already making rounds on the Internet. It looks exactly like what we hope the next-gen Model S looks like. Designed by Emre Husmen, the new Model S rendering is far more aggressive and dynamic than the current model that’s on the market today. More importantly, it doesn’t deviate too far away from the current Model S to the point that it becomes unrecognizable. It’s still the Tesla Model S, albeit rendered to look sharper and edgier than what we have now. In other words, it looks fantastic.

In 2017, Tesla confirmed that it will build an all-electric semi truck and began taking preorders for the hauler. But the EV firm also teased a pickup truck and announced that it could go into production in a few years. Now, Elon Musk unveiled the first details about the vehicles in a Twitter discussion in which he asked his followers what would they like to see in such a vehicle.

Musk received numerous replies, and his answers include details and important hints as to what the first Tesla pickup truck will bring to the table. And we compiled everything the California-based firm has revealed so far. Find out more about it below.

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Tesla’s annual shareholder’s meeting had its share of surprises, but one of the biggest highlights from the event was the unveiling of a new prototype for the upcoming Tesla Roadster. The prototype was spotted at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, sitting alongside a Model 3, Model S, Model X, and a Tesla Semi prototype. Curiously, the Roadster was the only model that was cordoned off, suggesting that Tesla wasn’t keen on the idea of letting people get an up-close look at it.

Tesla has just finished its annual shareholder meeting, and two of the biggest takeaways involve the announcement of the Model Y crossover and the teasing of a compact car that could be built in the next five years. Without jumping to any specifics, Musk responded to a question about compact cars by saying that the electric car maker will have its own “in less than five years.” The company’s goal, it seems, is to have a car that can compete against the likes of the Volkswagen Golf and the rest of the hatchback segment.

We recently learned that Tesla had to refund almost a quarter of all the 400,000 reservations made for the Model 3 due to production delays, but Elon Musk is already looking into the future and says that pricing for the sedan could drop once production increases. The CEO also said that Tesla might start offering Model 3 leases in "six to nine months."

Elon Musk’s Twitter account has led to some pretty outrageous things. Of course, he’s made some pretty crazy claims too, but a lot of them come to life. Think about the Tesla Roadster floating through space or The Boring Company’s flame gun, for example. All seemed unbelievable and yet they really happened. Now, Musk is on Twitter again, this time with the claim that the Model Y will debut on March 15. Well, then he said it’s made up, but March sounds good. And, then said to consider it real and that March 15th is “about right.”

The Tesla Model 3 isn’t the prettiest car on the road, it’s not the fastest, and it’s not even being delivered on time thanks to a slew of production problems. There have even been complaints about customers not getting the right and/or expected materials inside their Model 3 once they’ve taken delivery. Maybe all of these hiccups happened because Musk was too busy working on a high-performance version of the Model 3. Okay, that’s probably not the case, but he really was working on one, and it’s set to rival the BMW M3 with better performance, AWD, and a similar price.

It seems like every other day arrives with some big news about Tesla and its incorrigible CEO, Elon Musk. The latest is the release of a sub-two-minute video showing off the California automaker’s various products in the making and on the road, and it includes a brief glimpse of what can only be a rough Model Y prototype.

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Tesla took the EV world by storm when they launched the Roadster in 2008. Before any car manufacturer could understand what struck them, Tesla went on to create a name for itself as the King of the Electric Vehicles segment. The Roadster was followed by the Model S, a luxury sedan which went on to become the world’s best-selling electric car in 2015 and 2016, and further cemented Tesla’s dominance. If to be seen, there was no threat to the Model S as the other ’good-selling’ EV’s were the Nissan Leaf and BMW i3 - both hatchbacks with subpar range. However, it looks like the Model S might finally face some fierce competition from another luxury automaker. Read on to find out who that is:

As per a report from Reuters, Tesla is planning to commence the production of its new crossover - Model Y - by November 2019. Reports also suggest that CEO Elon Musk is accepting preliminary bids for supplier contracts on the Model Y. This comes amidst news of continues Model 3 struggles.

An all-wheel-drive Tesla Model 3 has been in the cards for some time. We all know it’s coming; we just don’t know when it’s coming. Turns out, it could arrive sooner than we thought because Tesla appears to be rolling out the dual-motor all-wheel drive Model 3 as early as the Spring of 2018. Unless your calendars are acting up, the dual-motor Model 3 could arrive as early as March 2018 or as late as June 2018.

Elon Musk likes to tweet. He also likes to make grand promises. But unlike other billionaire geniuses with a space company, Musk tends to fulfill his grandiose promises – at least in due time. The latest on Elon’s long list is an all-electric pickup truck from Tesla. Musk recently responded to questions on Twitter about the truck, saying, “I promise that we will make a pickup truck right after the Model Y. Have had the core design/engineering elements in my mind for almost five years. Am dying to build it.”

Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard Elon say something about a Tesla pickup. The first official rambling from Elon came in January of 2016 when he said in an on-camera interview, “Yeah, I think it’s quite likely we’ll do a truck in the future.” He officially confirmed a Tesla pickup during the debut of the Tesla Semi and Roadster back November 2017. However, the rendering images of that truck show it being very large like a medium-duty truck rather than something found in your neighbor’s driveway.

Must took to Twitter shortly after tweeting the statement above to clarify the Tesla truck’s size. When asked if it would be similar to the Ford F-150, Elon replied by saying, “Similar total size. Maybe slightly bigger to account for a really gamechanging (I think) feature I’d Like to add.” As for the when, reports suggest the Model Y, a compact crossover, will debut sometime in 2018. If that’s the case, we could see a Tesla pickup by 2020. As for what that game-changing feature could be, anyone’s guess is as good as ours.

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DHL, the worldwide shipping service, has reportedly ordered 10 Tesla Semi trucks. DHL joins big-name companies like Wal-Mart, Ryder, J.B. Hunt, and Loblaws in the early adoption of Tesla’s newest model. The down payment for reserving a Semi is $20,000 – 10-percent of the truck’s full price. And though Tesla has not released its official numbers, roughly 200 trucks have reportedly already been ordered.

DHL told the Wall Street Journal it will use the Tesla Semi for shuttle runs and same-day customer deliveries in major U.S. cities while testing the trucks on long-haul-routes to evaluate driver safety and comfort. Like its other products, the Tesla Semi will offer self-driving capabilities, which should be a big help to truck drivers. Ther’s also an energy-saving “convoy mode” that allows for an autonomously controlled line of closely spaced Semis, which reduces aerodynamic drag on the following trucks.

Tesla says its Semi will travel a minimum of 500 miles on a single charge and have access to Tesla’s planned network of charging stations called Mega Chargers. The powerful electric motors will outgun current turbodiesel trucks, too. It has a claimed 0-to-60 mph time of 5.0 seconds when empty and only 20 seconds when loaded with a full 80,000 pounds. Climbing and descending hilly terrain will also be easier and safer, as well.

Though this is Tesla’s first swing into the 18-wheeler market, the California company has been working with DHL and other potential customers over the last year to offer feedback on prototype trucks. Needless to say, a mistake in this segment would be terribly costly for all involved.

Tesla just unveiled the next-generation Roadster and the preliminary (still theoretical) performance figures are downright shocking. From 0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds and a top speed of over 250 mph to a range of at least 600 miles, the second-generation Roadster will move the electric car (and the entire automobile industry for that matter) into a whole new era. Assuming it will live up Elon Musk’s claims, that is! But things got even more interested over the weekend when Musk tweeted that the crazy numbers above are for the base model, with an upgrade to take things up a notch.

"Should clarify that this is the base model performance. There will be a special option package that takes it to the next level," he said. Holy molly. What does that even mean? Will the Roadster get even quicker that 1.9 seconds to 60 mph? Will the range increase to 700 or 800 miles on a single charge? Are we getting some sort of track-spec model? Is Elon Musk on drugs or something?

But wait, there’s more. On Sunday, Must tweeted again, now saying that the special performance upgrade could enable the Roadster to fly "short hops." I kid you not; these are his words: "Not saying the next-gen Roadster special upgrade package *will* definitely enable it to fly short hops, but maybe... Certainly possible. Just a question of safety. Rocket tech applied to a car opens up revolutionary possibilities."

Is Musk Serious about This?

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Picture this: a high-riding half-ton pickup truck with an all-electric drivetrain hung between hydro-formed, fully boxed frame rails and the center of gravity akin to a BMW 5 Series rather than a top-heavy truck. That’s a far-fetched idea, but it might be something Tesla could build. See, during the debut of Tesla’s new Semi truck and the surprise reveal of the 2020 Tesla Roadster, this little sketch was briefly mentioned by Elon Musk.

“It’s a pickup truck that can carry a pickup truck,” Musk is reported to have said. We wouldn’t know since we’re apparently not cool or hipster enough to get invited to Tesla events. Bearded and skinny jean-wearing millennials also say Muck muttered, “By the way, you will actually be able to drive that with a normal driver’s license. It’s kind of wrong, but I like it.” So apparently this outlandish pickup thing has more traction than a locked differential – well, as much traction as afforded by the wishful dreams of the real-life Tony Stark.

But for real – Tesla could actually start something here. Pickups have maintained the same basic layout since their invention in the early 1900s. The engine goes in front, followed by the cab, and bookended by the cargo bed. Why change what works? Well, if Musk has his way, this cab-over style consumer pickup could revolutionize the way pickups are picking stuff up.

Continue reading for more of my rantings.

Back in 2008, a little upstart EV company named Tesla threw a lithium-ion battery pack and electric motor into a Lotus Elise and called it the Roadster. It was the very first model to bear the Tesla badge, and it was the first highway-legal series production all-electric car to travel more than 200 miles in a single charge. Now, nearly 10 years and several remarkable models later, Tesla is at it again, revealing a second-generation Roadster in a surprise debut alongside its new all-electric semi truck. While it’s still several years away from hitting public roads, Tesla dropped a variety of specs and numbers for the Roadster 2.0, and long story short, this thing is shaping up to be an absolute monster. If it really can do everything that Tesla CEO Elon Musk claims it can, the second-gen Roadster will set numerous performance records, including quickest to 60 mph, quickest to 100 mph, and quickest in the quarter mile. And that includes internal combustion-based production vehicles, by the way. It’ll also set new standards for EVs in the realms of range per charge and top speed. This is faster than Insane Mode. This is faster than Ludicrous Mode. This, dear readers, is straight up Plaid.

While we knew Tesla had a new Roadster coming down the pipeline, few would have guessed what it might be capable of. We even put together a speculative piece about a potential Tesla supercar a while back, but it turns out the California automaker combined the two ideas into one incredible world-beater. “The point of doing this is to just give a hardcore smackdown to gasoline cars,” says Musk. “Driving a gasoline sports car is gonna feel like a steam engine with a side of quiche.” Indeed, the Tesla Roadster 2.0 is framed as a bona fide halo car, an ultra-quick speed machine that’ll show Tesla’s true performance potential. Read on for the details.

Updated 11/17/2017: Tesla just revealed the new Roadster!

Continue reading to learn more about the 2020 Tesla Roadster.

Elon Musk and Tesla have defied the odds by finally debuting the automaker’s first stab at the commercial trucking industry. It’s called simply the Tesla Semi and it finally broke cover at a media event on November 16, 2017, after years of teasing. Debuting alongside the hot 2020 Tesla Roadster, the Semi is designed to reinvent the way trucking is done. Tesla says its all-electric drivetrain will give more than 500 miles of range on a single charge while towing 80,000 pounds, be far less difficult to maintain, and outperform convention semi trucks in both performance and safety – all at a lower operating cost. That’s a tall order. Oh, and it’ll hit 60 mph in just 5.0 seconds when unloaded.

Along with the Semi, Tesla will be releasing a new charging system. It’s called the Megacharger and it’s a high-speed DC charging station capable of adding roughly 400 miles of range in only 30 minutes. Tesla says the Megachargers can be installed by fleet operators anywhere along their routes and will be common at truck stops in heavily trafficked areas.

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Talk of Tesla’s all-electric semi-truck is gaining steam thanks to a Reddit user who posted a photo that appears to show an uncamouflaged prototype loaded on a flatbed trailer. The photo, first reported by electrik, is in an undisclosed and unknown location in California, though the Reddit user says it’s an area Tesla is known to conduct testing. Beyond that, the details are few. However, this still remains the world’s first view of what’s likely Tesla’s latest project.

Adding fuel to the flame (or charge to the batteries), the truck looks very similar to the teaser photo Tesla’s Elon Musk tweeted back in April. Front its tall height to its shapely finders and LED headlights, this truck is certainly similar to Elon’s dimly lit teaser image. Assuming this is the Tesla truck, its unconventional shape is definitely not similar to any semi-truck on the road today. Of course, that’s because the Tesla semi doesn’t have an internal combustion engine and therefore doesn’t need a huge hood or massive grille. Rather, Tesla’s truck features a long, sloping windshield that matches the sloping nose. Naturally, the truck is designed to be as aerodynamically efficient as possible. The truck even has an aerodynamic cab topper that helps divert air around the trailer. It’s seen sitting a few yards behind.

While Tesla has not released any specs on its upcoming heavy hauler, we know it will use large banks of batteries to power multiple electric motors. Its torque rating is expected to be well in excess of a conventional semi truck’s turbodiesel (which is usually between 1,000 and 1,4000 pound-feet), giving it more than enough grunt to pull the standard 80,000-pound trailer. Range will be the Tesla Semi’s biggest factor. Insideevs.com speculated the Tesla will need a 1,200-kWh battery in order to travel 600 miles. That’s roughly 12 times the size in a P100D and double its range.

Thankfully, we won’t have to speculate much longer. Tesla is scheduled to debut its semi-truck on October 26, 2017, so long as it doesn’t postpone the event as it did for the September debut. Stay tuned to TopSpeed for the latest.

Now that the Tesla Model 3 is officially rolling off of the line and the first 30 owners have taken delivery, it’s time to turn our attention to something else – the Tesla Model Y. It’s not only the model that will complete the S3XY lineup that Elon Musk has boasted about for so long, but also promises to be an affordable all-electric crossover for those who can’t necessarily afford the larger Model X. Up until now, the plan was for the Model Y to be built on an entirely new platform that would make it different from every other vehicle in Tesla’s lineup and it would also ditch the 12-volt battery architecture in an attempt to simplify the production process (no 12-volt system means less wiring to install by hand.) But, as it usually goes with the automotive industry, things can change overnight, and during Musk’s August 2nd earnings call, he admitted that he was being overly ambitious and would, indeed, bring the Model Y to market faster by using the same architecture as that of the Model 3.

Obviously, by deciding to use the same underpinnings as the Model 3, Tesla will cut back on its research and development costs and time spent considerably. And, that smaller crossover that was originally slated for production in late 2019 or early 2020 could, potentially, go into production by mid-to-late 2018 if things go well. It’s still quite possible that the Model Y will ditch that 12-volt system, which would make it the first Tesla model to do so, and rumor even has it that it might get those falcon-wing doors from the Model X. In the first half of 2017, Tesla managed to ship 47,000 vehicles, which isn’t bad but is still a far cry from meeting Musk’s goal of delivering 1 million cars by 2020. As such, the Model Y – and the Model 3, for that matter – are absolutely paramount to hitting that goal. If the Model Y can make it into production faster by borrowing DNA from the new Model 3, it will give Tesla a much better position to meet that extremely ambitious goal.

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So, July 28th is fast approaching, and that means that the production version of the Tesla Model 3 is just about ready to make its debut at the official handover event. The first 30 production units are expected to be given to customers during the handover event, and that’s a pretty big deal considering the model with serial No. 001 is said to have rolled off the line as early as July 7th. Following the announcement that serial No. 1 was near completion, Elon Musk also sent out a few tweets claiming that production will ramp up quite quickly, with the month of August increasing to 100 cars, and September raising to bar to “above 1,500.” He later tweeted that Tesla will be able to pump out 20,000 example per month by the time December rolls around. Furthermore, 2019 should approach somewhere around a half million units annually. This is all good news for anyone who has made a reservation and is serious about buying a Model 3, especially when you consider that reservation numbers could have topped 500,000 already. But is there more that we haven’t seen yet?

With the official unveiling of the Model 3 taking place in March of last year, we already have a pretty good idea of what to expect. Plus, we’ve seen numerous release candidates and prototypes floating around in recent months, but word has it that there could be something else on the books for the unveiling. The question is what? Will there be some spectacular new hardware that we have yet to see or some advancement in the AutoPilot system? Will the Model 3 get something else that we’re just not expecting? It’s really hard to say, but the internet has been running wild with hopes and dreams despite the fact that initial models will be very bland, with customers only allowed to choose the exterior color and wheel options.

Keep reading to learn more about it and what to expect.

Tesla hasn’t even put the model 3 into production quite yet, and it’s already working to generate hype around the Model Y – the car that will complete the S3XY lineup. So far there have been very few details revolving around the mysterious model, but recently more has come to light, including the teaser image that was just released at Tesla’s 2017 annual shareholder meeting. Originally slated to be underpinned by the same platform used for the upcoming Model 3, it is now being said that the Model Y will get its own brand-new platform that should be ready for production by the end of the decade. Much like the Model 3 is to the Model S, the Model Y should be a smaller and more basic alternative the Model X, offering up Tesla’s famed AutoPilot, but without all of the other niceties found in the brand’s more expensive models.

So, the plan is for the Model Y to go on sale for the 2019 model year, but as the story usually goes over at Tesla, 2019 will likely be the pre-order period with deliveries taking place by 2020 at the earliest. The Model Y would tackle models like the BMW i3 and Mercedes B-Class, among others. We should hear more about the Model Y when the Tesla Semi-Truck debuts in September. So, with that said, let’s take a better look at the rendering we created and speculate a little on what we can expect from the Model Y.

Updated 07/03/2017: Based on the recent details we got from Elon Muck we decided to create a rendering for the upcoming Tesla Model Y. Let us know what do you think about it in the comments section below.

Continue reading to learn more about the Tesla Model Y.

It seems almost like almost every other day now brings news about some physics-defying all-electric supercar. Outrageous output figures and broken records are pretty much the norm in this segment, with cars like the NextEV Nio EP9 or Rimac Concept_One setting new standards in electron-powered performance. Tesla is active in this space as well, earning a spot on our list of Top 5 All-Electric Performance Cars with its the venerable Model S P100D. The Model S might be a sedan, but it’s still got insane speed potential, posting a face-melting 2.3-second time in the 0-to-60 mph benchmark. Impressive? Certainly. But what if we went beyond the P100D and probed what was really possible with a few electric motors and an enormous battery pack? What about a true-blue Tesla supercar, a halo model with just two doors and a spec sheet capable of laying waste to all things internal combustion? What would that look like?

It’s a tempting proposition, but right away, there’s a problem. Tesla has adopted a “top-down” approach wherein the more expensive models come out prior to the less expensive models (for example, the Model S preceded the Model 3). So where does a super car fit into that equation? Obviously several years down the line, if at all, but that said, a supercar halo model would do well amongst well-heeled EV enthusiasts, not to mention bring even more attention to the California-based automaker. Sound good? We think so.

Continue reading to learn more about the Tesla Supercar.