Tesla posted record revenues of $ 2.7 billion in the first quarter of 2017, thanks to record auto deliveries. But the company ultimately lost $ 330 million in the quarter. The market, however, seems forgiving of these losses, showing only a 2.5-percent drop at the time of this writing. The electric vehicle company’s letter to investors primarily focused on the development and impending production of the Model 3, and investors seem to be willing to wait to see how the more modestly-priced electric vehicle turns out.
The investor letter noted that Tesla is on-track to begin production of the Model 3 in July, after which the company expects to churn out “5,000 vehicles per week at some point in 2017, and… 10,000 vehicles per week at some point in 2018.”
The letter also noted that Tesla foresaw some branding issues with the Model 3. “One of our challenges will be to eliminate any misperception about the differences between Model S and Model 3,” the letter noted. “We have seen a belief among some that Model 3 is the newest and more advanced generation of Model S. This is not correct. Model S will always have more range, more acceleration, more power, more passenger cargo room, more displays (two), and more customization choices, and Model S, X, and 3 will all have equivalent Autopilot functionality. We will continue to clearly communicate these distinctions to avoid any misperceptions.”
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