Tesla hits Model 3 manufacturing milestone

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Tesla Inc nearly produced 5,000 Model 3 electric sedans in the last week of its second quarter, with the final car rolling off the assembly line on Sunday morning, several hours after the midnight goal set by Chief Executive Elon Musk, Reuters reported on Monday, quoting two workers at the factory.

Musk said the company hit its target of 5,000 Model 3s in a week, according to an email sent to employees on Sunday afternoon. Tesla also expects to produce 6,000 Model 3 sedans a week "next month."

"I think we just became a real car company," Musk wrote. The company hit the Model 3 mark while also achieving its production goal of 7,000 Model S and Model X vehicles in a week, Musk said in the email.

After repeatedly pushing back internal targets, Tesla vowed in January to build 5,000 Model 3s per week before the close of the second quarter on Saturday to demonstrate it could mass produce the battery-powered sedan.

Money-losing Tesla has been burning through cash to produce the Model 3, and delays have also potentially compromised Tesla’s first-to-market position for a mid-priced, long-range battery electric car as a host of competitors prepare to launch rival vehicles.

Tesla is likely to announce production and delivery numbers for the quarter later this week, and investors will watch to see whether the company can keep up its end-of-quarter production speed and increase efficiency to produce the cars at a profit.

Source(s): Reuters