Musk Sketches Out Timeline for Tesla Electric Semi-Truck
Tesla Inc.’s plans to pad its lineup of electric vehicles are taking shape, with Elon Musk sketching out a timeline for the arrival of a semi-truck, pickup and sports car.
After the final unveiling of the Model 3 sedan in July, Tesla will show an electric semi-truck in September and a pickup in 18 to 24 months, the CEO said in a series of tweets April 13. The Palo Alto, California-based company also will bring back the Roadster, its very first model, as a convertible.
Musk has telegraphed the company’s future products several times before, most notably in last summer’s “Master Plan, Part Deux.” With the Model 3 already aimed at transitioning Tesla from niche player to higher-volume automaker, the manifesto took it a step further, highlighting Musk’s desire to “expand to cover the major forms of terrestrial transport.”
“Team has done an amazing job,” Musk tweeted, referring to the semi-truck. “Seriously next level.”
Musk may have been alluding to the semi’s self-driving capabilities. The auto industry has adopted a five-level system measuring autonomous proficiency, with the highest levels indicating systems that are capable of all driving-related tasks.
“It’s at least a semi-autonomous truck,” Ben Kallo, an analyst at Robert W. Baird & Co., said by phone. “The important thing is that while everyone is focused on the Model 3, there are a lot of other projects going on at Tesla.”
Tesla declined to comment beyond Musk’s tweets. Its shares climbed as much as 3.6% and traded at $304.54 as of 3:23 p.m. in New York, valuing the company at about $49.7 billion. Its market capitalization briefly passed General Motors Co. earlier this week.
Tesla Semi truck unveil set for September. Team has done an amazing job. Seriously next level. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 13, 2017
