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Tesla set to refresh the Model 3 with project “Highland”

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The Tesla Model 3 was launched over five years ago in the Summer of 2017. Since then, the car has had slight updates regarding optional extras and model specifications. However, the Model 3 has never featured any significant changes. Until now.

According to Reuters, Project “Highland” aims to upgrade the Model 3 massively. Changes to the exterior and interior are expected as well as improvements to the powertrain. The coming update of the Model 3 is thought to be heavily influenced by the refreshed Model S which launched last year. This means the Model 3’s already spartan interior could become cleaner and even more simplified.

Probably the largest change would be the “Yoke” steering wheel. This isn't great news for those who believe the yoke is far too complex and takes too much time to get used to. Even if the Model 3 retains a traditional circular steering wheel, the removal of buttons and stalks, as was done in the Model S, is likely.

Musk has stated that he wants Tesla to follow a more simplified approach to production. In this day and age, minimalism is key for cars, since it can make a small car feel far larger than it is. Furthermore, this approach also helps Tesla cost-cut and make more profit. In a conference with Baron Funds earlier in the month, he stated that Tesla removed many unneeded parts.

This is a smart approach by Tesla. Build quality could improve slightly and customers will still retain all the features they need since the parts removed are not needed. This overall boosts profit margins for Tesla on one of their most popular models.

Tesla makes $9,500 per car sold according to their company disclosure. This makes Tesla number one for profit margins per vehicle in the world for mass car manufacturers. Hardly any of the marque’s rivals even come close to Tesla when it comes to profitability per car.

The future for Tesla is bright, and the new “Highland” update will keep the Model 3 looking and feeling fresh for years to come, so it can tackle its rivals even harder. Many questions remain including whether or not it will have the 4680 structural battery pack or the large single-piece castings, similar to the new Model Y’s. Hopefully, we’ll learn more soon.

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"Candy Red Model 3 with the new nose" by jurvetson is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
 
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Existing sticky thread:
Thanks for sharing that link as it is useful for those who want to dig into the discussion. To clarify though, this is an Article Thread which serves a different purpose to a regular Discussion Thread., and is included in the frontpage Blog Feed.
 
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Correct! We have to include an image so the blog feed doesn't display a blank thumbnail.

Now if you can find a render of the new Model 3 design, we'd gladly replace it :)
Yeah, that wasn't as much about the image being used (understandable on the actual usage), more of just responding to the one poster who thought it was the refreshed model.
 
The Tesla Model 3 was launched over five years ago in the Summer of 2017. Since then, the car has had slight updates regarding optional extras and model specifications. However, the Model 3 has never featured any significant changes. Until now.

According to Reuters, Project “Highland” aims to upgrade the Model 3 massively. Changes to the exterior and interior are expected as well as improvements to the powertrain. The coming update of the Model 3 is thought to be heavily influenced by the refreshed Model S which launched last year. This means the Model 3’s already spartan interior could become cleaner and even more simplified.

Probably the largest change would be the “Yoke” steering wheel. This isn't great news for those who believe the yoke is far too complex and takes too much time to get used to. Even if the Model 3 retains a traditional circular steering wheel, the removal of buttons and stalks, as was done in the Model S, is likely.

Musk has stated that he wants Tesla to follow a more simplified approach to production. In this day and age, minimalism is key for cars, since it can make a small car feel far larger than it is. Furthermore, this approach also helps Tesla cost-cut and make more profit. In a conference with Baron Funds earlier in the month, he stated that Tesla removed many unneeded parts.

This is a smart approach by Tesla. Build quality could improve slightly and customers will still retain all the features they need since the parts removed are not needed. This overall boosts profit margins for Tesla on one of their most popular models.

Tesla makes $9,500 per car sold according to their company disclosure. This makes Tesla number one for profit margins per vehicle in the world for mass car manufacturers. Hardly any of the marque’s rivals even come close to Tesla when it comes to profitability per car.

The future for Tesla is bright, and the new “Highland” update will keep the Model 3 looking and feeling fresh for years to come, so it can tackle its rivals even harder. Many questions remain including whether or not it will have the 4680 structural battery pack or the large single-piece castings, similar to the new Model Y’s. Hopefully, we’ll learn more soon.

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"Candy Red Model 3 with the new nose" by jurvetson is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
I'm curious to know if somebody's got genuinely updated information. Tesla keeps their cards pretty close to their vest so at this point it's all just speculation perhaps bounded by a few general informative concepts.

It seems inconceivable that they would do a major refresh and not introduce the large front and rear castings because they are enormously simplifying consistent with a clear Tesla meme. It also seems unlikely that they will not move the car towards the 4680 structural battery pack. But it's not clear to me what exactly has gone wrong with the 4680 pack because except for a few cars coming out of Texas that went to employees, It seemed that it was way slower to ramp up, And I believe all the model Ys both long-range and performance that you can order now have the 2170 and no structural battery pack.