Tesla’s Chinese car plant Giga Shanghai has been showing signs of slow or no production days since last week. Drone footage of the factory shows signs of slow or no production since the parking lots have been almost empty.
Bloomberg reported earlier this month that Tesla is nearing the trial production of the design-refreshed Model 3 at Giga Shanghai. Giga Shanghai assembly lines must undergo modifications and upgrades before starting production of the revamped Model 3.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk also reached China yesterday. He has been meeting Chinese government officials and industry peers after his arrival. But to add further hype to the refreshed Model 3 production start, Musk has landed in Shanghai today after his official meetings.
Musk’s presence at Giga Shanghai might result in an official announcement of the Model 3 refresh production start. It is not clear how long he will be staying in China.
If Elon Musk spends a significant amount of time at Giga Shanghai, he might oversee the initial phase of the production line upgrades and transition to the new Model 3 as well.
Tesla cleared the Made-in-China Model 3 stock by sending multiple shipments to Canada this month. This is also a reason that the Giga Shanghai production car lots are so empty.
Tesla has been working on the redesigning of its lower-end Model 3 compact luxury sedan for more than a year now. The codename for this design refresh is named Project Highland.
From time to time the Project Highland test prototypes have been spotted in the United States since last year. Just recently, the revamped front fascia of the new Tesla Model 3 was revealed accidentally.
Looking at the new design theme, a couple of Tesla enthusiast artists also designed the rear fascia of the upcoming Model 3.
However, just earlier this month, Tesla China denied rumors of the Model 3 refresh production start. The automaker has a history of such denials and they prove correct later on. After all, Tesla has to sell the existing Model 3 inventory before the new one goes into production.
In anticipation of the new Tesla Model 3, many potential buyers have been holding their purchase — they certainly want the newer version of the revolutionary electric car.
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