Tesla CEO Elon Musk has offered to install a power trunk for a Model 3 owner who is confined to a wheelchair after politely asking for one in a letter published by Tesla China.
The soon-to-be Model 3 owner was one of the first reservation holders in China, placing his order the day reservations opened in China.
Unfortunately before he was able to take delivery of his dream car, he suffered a major spinal injury which rendered him wheelchair bound.
In 2019, he was able to relearn how to drive with a vehicle modified with hand controls, but his dream car was still a Tesla Model 3.
Based on his experiences driving since his accident, he made a plea to Elon Musk asking for some accommodations for his disability in his Model 3.
One of the requests was for a power liftgate, so he can easily open and close his trunk to get his wheelchair in and out of the vehicle.
Musk responded on Twitter, saying that Tesla would install one for free.
A Tesla on the wheelchair —— A story of a Tesla owner in China pic.twitter.com/YffVdcUJVE
— Tesla China (@teslacn) July 25, 2020
The interesting part about this offer is that Tesla does not currently offer a power liftgate for the Model 3. There are some aftermarket options, like the Hansshow power trunk and frunk kits, but nothing that comes from the Tesla factory.
There have been rumours a Model 3 power liftgate could soon be coming to the vehicle as standard equipment, but Tesla has been silent on the subject so far.
Musk was also silent on the other request made by the Tesla fan, to include Smart Summon in the basic Autopilot package. By doing so, that would help disabled Tesla owners by being able to move the car remotely so they can fully open the driver door to get in.
It’s not surprising that Musk didn’t address this part of the request, as Smart Summon is one of the key features of the Full-Self Driving (FSD) package. By including in basic Autopilot, it would reduce the value of Smart Summon for existing owners.
But maybe it will one day come as a upgradeable option within the Tesla mobile app?
Do you think Tesla will be adding a power liftgate as standard equipment soon? Or as an aftermarket upgrade? Would you get it? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured image via TechNewsCode
