Tesla Motors on Wednesday again pushed back the time-frame for ramping up production of the closely-watched Model 3 vehicle, its sedan aimed at the middle market.

The electric carmaker said it now expects to hit a Model 3 production level of 5,000 per week by the end of the second quarter instead of at the end of the first quarter.

The first-quarter target was itself a prolongation of an earlier plan to reach this output by the end of 2017.

"During Q4, we made major progress addressing Model 3 production bottlenecks, with our production rate increasing significantly towards the end of the quarter," the company said in a securities filing.

"In the last seven working days of the quarter, we made 793 Model 3's, and in the last few days, we hit a production rate on each of our manufacturing lines that extrapolates to over 1,000 Model 3's per week," the company added.

"We expect to have a slightly more gradual ramp through Q1, likely ending the quarter at a weekly rate of about 2,500 Model 3 vehicles. We intend to achieve the 5,000 per week milestone by the end of Q2."

Tesla, which is led by Elon Musk, said its overall vehicles came in at 29,870 in the fourth quarter and included all-time peaks for the Model S and Model X deliveries.

However, Tesla has been under pressure to ramp up production of the Model 3, which at $35,000 could appeal to a broad market and is around half the cost of its other cars.

Tesla shares fell 2.3 percent in after-hours trading to $31.10.

Tweet

More than half of Norway's new cars electrified: data
Oslo (AFP) Jan 3, 2018
Electric or hybrid vehicles accounted for more than half of all new cars sold in Norway last year, official data showed on Wednesday, confirming the country's pioneering role in carbon-free transport. Zero-emission, mainly all-electric as well as a few hydrogen-powered cars, accounted for 20.9 percent of total sales in 2017, while hybrid vehicles accounted for 31.3 percent, including 18.4 p ... read more

Related Links
Car Technology at SpaceMart.com

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only