Customers in Europe who are getting ready to place an order for a Model 3 are in for a longer than expected wait as estimated delivery dates for the electric sedan have been pushed back to the end of the year. The bump in wait times is a good hint that Tesla is expecting to launch their Project Highland refresh during that timeframe.
According to an update to Tesla’s online configurator on Wednesday, the two most popular variants of the Model 3, the Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) and Long Range, are now scheduled to arrive between October and November 2023. Customers hoping to order the Performance variant will have to wait even longer, with delivery estimated between November and January 2024. (via @TslaChan)
As you probably already know, Model 3 cars in Europe are built at Giga Shanghai, which has been leading the design and development of the Project Highland refresh. Giga Shanghai is expected to be the first factory to launch the new Model 3, with recent reports suggesting the factory has already started trial production. Based on what we have heard from our sources the targeted release date has been missed several times already, but this is a good sign that Tesla believes the launch is imminent.
You might be asking why we think this is the case, especially when delivery wait times in China are still as short as 1-4 weeks. This pattern of extending delivery dates out by several months is something we have seen previously with other refreshes, and that’s because extra lead time is needed to get the cars from China to Europe. With delivery dates now showing as early as October, it would not be surprising to see Tesla officially launch the new Model 3 in September.
Tesla’s Project Highland Model 3 sighting reveals front bumper camera
