The Tesla Giga Austin electric car plant in Texas has been under construction for about 400 days now, on track to start production in 2021.
Most recently, a photo of a completed Tesla Model Y at the production line (and an additional one in the background) emerged with a description that it might be one of the first pre-production units inside the General Assembly building.
Joe Tegtmeyer, who very closely tracks Tesla's progress, actually indicated in early August that there is a high probability that "the first fully completed test Model Y (operational, but not street legal) will be built at Giga Texas within the next week."
Most likely, it's exactly this, which means that Tesla has achieved a major milestone and proof that we will see series production in Texas within a few months.
Other than that, the construction progress at the site - not only the buildings but also the surrounding infrastructure - is huge compared to about a month ago.
At one of the parking lots, adjacent to the plant, Tesla already installed dozens of destination charging points:
At this point, it's not yet clear whether Tesla will use 4680-type cylindrical cells in the Model Y right from the beginning, or rather if it will initially use 2170-type. We guess that the second option is more likely.
The second confirmed vehicle - Tesla Cybertruck - was officially postponed to 2022.
A few more videos from Tesla Giga Austin:
See also
Tesla Giga Austin (Gigafactory 5) in Austin, Texas:
- started on July 17, 2020, and announced on July 23, 2020
- Cybertruck: in development, unveiled in late 2019, production from late 2021
- Model Y: an additional production site in the U.S. (no word about the Model 3)
- Semi: in development. To be launched in 2021, but (not yet confirmed for Texas)
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2,481 acres of land (2,100 acres initially plus additional 381 acres acquired in September 2020)