Tesla Model 3
A wheel of a prototype of the Tesla Model 3 on display in front of the factory during a media tour of the Tesla Gigafactory, which will produce batteries for the electric carmaker in Sparks, Nevada, U.S. July 26, 2016. Reuters/James Glover

Tesla is about to report its earnings on Wednesday but investors and analysts are not bothered about the figures. Contrarily, they are more interested in answers from Tesla chief Elon Musk regarding his mass-market electric vehicles, Tesla Model 3. Managing director at Global Equities Research and a Tesla enthusiast, Trip Chowdry, recently stated that Tesla numbers mean nothing right now and results in any quarter are irrelevant for a while. Wednesday’s report will only reflect sales of Tesla Model S and Model X luxury cars and Tesla’s multitude of heavy investments in new products.

Tesla Model 3 is very much a part of the make-or-break investments on products, as the company plans to start manufacturing this year and sell hundreds and thousands of them annually. Tesla’s sales growth reflects great progress with the Model X SUV and Model S luxury sedan. There are various questions plaguing minds of investors and analysts. They want to know when the Tesla Model 3 assembly line is locked and loaded. They also want a date for the start of production.

Investors and analysts also want to know when the EVS will be shipped to satisfy the incredibly large number of waiting customers, reports Los Angeles Times. Chowdry wants details on Tesla Model 3 Autopilot and when the latest iteration, Autopilot 8.1, will be released. It will also be interesting to see how Tesla reduces the cost of the battery packs for the electric vehicles. Battery packs still cost way more than combustion car engines sans the electric motor. This is an instrumental part in the success of Tesla Model 3.

Moreover, competition is going to shoot up in 2018. Up to now, Tesla had had more of a free run without much competition. Major automakers are going to release a number of EVs and that will directly affect Tesla. Chevrolet Bolt EV is already in and it has a range topping 200 miles, a direct competitor to Tesla Model 3. Meanwhile, a report on Electrek has revealed that UACJ, a major Japanese aluminum group, is investing three billion Yen into an aluminium part manufacturing company to support Tesla Model 3 production.

The investment will allow Tesla to raise production capacity by ~50 percent by the end of this year. Tesla Model 3 production may outpace the combined production of both Model S and X by the end of the year. However, Musk said it’s just a guess.

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