Tesla Teases Three New EVs Including Compact Car With 53-kWh LFP Pack

The upcoming compact passenger car is projected to have a sales potential of 42 million, almost double that of the Model 3/Y.

Tesla official design sketch of an entry-level EV

Photo by: Tesla

Dan Mihalascu

By: Dan Mihalascu

Apr 6, 2023 at 5:31am ET

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After dedicating much of last month's Investor Day presentation to its Master Plan Part 3, Tesla has put its long-term strategy on paper, revealing interesting details in the process.

The document shared by the EV maker on its website is quite technical as it outlines the assumptions, sources and calculations behind the Master Plan Part 3 presentation on March 1. While dedicated to the company's battery strategy and sustainability, the document does include some exciting tidbits of information regarding future products.

Perhaps the most newsworthy is the fact Tesla has teased three new vehicles in the "Batteries for Transportation" chapter. More specifically, the automaker has mentioned a vehicle in the compact segment – most likely the so-called $25,000 entry-level car – an entry in the commercial/passenger vans segment, and a bus.

In a table included in the document, Tesla reveals details about battery capacity and chemistry for each of its current and future vehicles, including the three mentioned above.

The compact model, rumored to be called Model 2 or even Model Q, will feature a 53-kilowatt-hour battery pack with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry. Tesla says the lower energy density of this battery type makes it the most fitting for standard-range vehicles, while long-range models require higher energy density chemistries (high nickel).

By high nickel, Tesla means low to zero cobalt Nickel Manganese cathodes currently in production and under development in-house, at suppliers, and in research groups.

Tesla forecasts that the compact EV, which may or may not be a shrunken version of the Model Y, has potential for 42 million sales, which is almost double the estimated sales of its current best-selling line, the Model 3/Y. The automaker does not provide a timeframe for the projected sales, though.

Tesla reportedly expects a Model 2 production rate of 4 million units per year, of which 2 million are supposed to come from its new Gigafactory in Mexico – with Giga Berlin and Giga Shanghai splitting evenly the remaining 2 million.

Moving on to the second new model, Tesla says the commercial/passenger van will require a High Nickel battery pack with a capacity of 100 kWh. The company anticipates this model has potential for 10 million sales, making it the third-best selling model in Tesla's range after the compact EV and the Model 3/Y.

The commercial/passenger van may or not be the robotaxi Tesla has mentioned so many times in the past – or at least the base on which the robotaxi will be built.

Finally, Tesla's Master Plan Part 3 mentions a Bus that will feature a 300-kWh LFP battery pack. The company reckons this product has potential for 1 million sales.

What do you think?

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Another interesting takeaway is the battery capacity listed for the Cybertruck – 100 kWh with High Nickel chemistry. That clearly isn't big enough to enable a driving range of 500 miles, but given how many times Tesla has changed its mind about the Cybertruck so far, we wouldn't say the 100-kWh pack is set in stone.

Of course, there's also the possibility the battery packs listed above are simply the smallest ones available on each model.