Tesla Model 3 unveiled: Australia reservations open with long queues, first person to order is Aussie
Tesla has finally unveiled its Tesla Model 3 after a decade of impatient waiting, and the first person in the world to pre-order the electric car is Aussie Andreas Stephens.
Queuing for 48 hours outside the Sydney Tesla dealership, Stephens was not alone in the line which stretched to more than 20 metres from the building. The queue and preorders down under had begun even before the car's public debut, The Guardian reported, and despite the expected 2018 release of the Tesla Model in Australia and then-unannounced price tag.
Stephens was one of over 200 Australians in Sydney and Melbourne who queued up to pay the preorder fee for the Tesla Model 3, Gizmodo Australia reported.
The US$35,000 electric car is said to be a more affordable environmentally-friendly version meant for the masses, with the company confident that shipping will start sometime at the end of 2017.
The Verge reports that the Tesla Model 3 has 215 miles of range for its price tag, and can go from zero to 60 in less than six seconds, at least for the prototype car, with some figures still being fine-tuned towards the final version. The Tesla Model 3 will also come with a Supercharging network, autopilot hardware, safety features and more capacity for cargo.
Interestingly but not unexpectedly, the demographics of Tesla Model 3 buyers, including the Australians who waited in line for the pre-order, are different from those who usually queue up for a new gadget.
After all, the Tesla Model 3 is not just a gadget. In fact, when interviewing those who had queued for the preorder, Car Advice found that many of those who were in line had either never driven a Tesla before but felt that it was a good opportunity and model to start, or were already huge fans and owners of Tesla cars.
“You’ve got to remember, these guys are lining up for something sight-unseen. They’ve not seen the product and they’re putting down their money, so that shows a lot of faith in the company,” Tesla Motors Australia’s Heather Walker said to Car Advice.
Now that the world has caught its first glimpse of the Tesla Model 3, all eyes will now be on whether the car actually delivers on the company's bold claims and promises for the affordable model. Hopefully, the claim of having 7,200 Superchargers to match the roll out of the Tesla Model 3 come the end of 2017 will be met.
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