Tesla Model 3 release date, news & update: Service station woes worry future EV owners; Making profits may not be feasible

Tesla service centre woes are causing panic among Tesla Model 3 enthusiasts. The electric vehicle that is assumed to cost US$35,000 (AU$47,000) when released is undoubtedly the most-anticipated devices of the Elon Musk-led Tesla. However, even before the company has started delivering the vehicles, people are finding issues that Model 3 owners are most-likely to face when the vehicle arrives in the market.

According to MCrunch, certain users are complaining that Tesla is taking too much time in fixing eve petty issues at the service stations. Minor issues are being fixed only after a week or 10 days and weeks for major issues. The problem is believed to be the scarcity of Tesla service centres and too many Tesla vehicles in the market. Tesla Model 3 future owners fear that the issue is going to get worse once the EVs arrive.

The biggest test for Musk and his company is the successful launch of the Tesla Model 3 vehicle. The vehicles is said to deliver 200 miles of range on a single charge. Tesla Supercharger networks will make it easy for the vehicle to go on long drives. The Model 3 has received an unprecedented number of pre-orders, surpassing 400,000 pre-orders at US$1,000 (AU$1,340 approx) apiece.

According to Business Insider, Tesla may struggle making profits with its Tesla Model 3 vehicle as most small cars that sell for around US$20,000 (AU$27,000 approx) generally find it harder to make profits. Tesla has tried to cover it up by reportedly pricing the vehicle around $10,000-$15,000 more. However, it is still hard to bring in a substantial margin to make profits from that price.

The common assumption is that Tesla Model 3 will be a massive money-maker and that Tesla’s margins will be consistent due to lower battery costs as it is being mass-produced at the company’s Nevada Gigafactory. However, Tesla is supposedly moving exactly in the opposite direction when it comes to its Model 3 car.

“A compact SUV, sometimes called the Model Y, is planned, but the first Model 3's will be modest four-door. And essentially no automakers doing business in the US are trying to disrupt the low end of the market, as the Japanese and later the South Koreans did when they first arrived,” the report states.

Building compact mass-market cars in the US, when one could be assembling SUVs instead, does not make sense. Tesla Model 3 may debut in Australia in 2018. Stay tuned on IBT AU for more updates on the Tesla Model 3.