Tesla Delays Model 3 Orders Until 2019 as Elon Musk Launches Roadster into Space

As the world marvels at Elon Musk’s latest SpaceX publicity stunt, Tesla’s Model 3 has been delayed — again.

Bloomberg reports that shortly after Elon Musk’s latest publicity stunt, which featured a Tesla Roadster sports car being launched into space by the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, Tesla has quietly announced a further delay on its Model 3 cars. Multiple customers that have had deposits placed on the Model 3 cars since 2016 are reporting that they received an email stating that the car will be delivered in “late 2018,” while others are being informed that they’ll have to wait until “early 2019,” to receive the car they paid for years previously.

The email received by the customers reads, “As we work hard to meet demand, we wanted to let you know that your estimated delivery timing has been adjusted to a slightly later window. Thank you for your patience.” The wait time for each customer depends on which version of the Model 3 they purchased. If they purchased the more expensive version with an upgraded battery, they are told they will have the car by late 2018 while those that purchased the standard Model 3 will have to wait until 2019.

Musk reportedly said on an earnings call on Wednesday that the company was still on track to meet their production goal of 5,000 Model 3’s a week by the end of June. This target has however been pushed back many times by this stage. Of course, Musk brought up the launch of the Tesla Roadster by SpaceX as some measure of Tesla’s ability to produce a car in a timely fashion saying, “if we can send a Roadster to the asteroid belt, we can probably solve Model 3 production.”

Some Tesla customers, however, are not happy about the delay. Ryan McCaffrey, a Model 3 reservation holder, took to Twitter saying,  “My bad @Tesla Model 3 news finally came, friends. My estimate in MyTesla got updated and … it’s not good if you’re wanting the standard battery or all-wheel drive. I’m in the latter camp. Very bummed out right now, as this has serious tax credit implications.”

Well, my bad @Tesla Model 3 news finally came, friends. My estimate in MyTesla got updated and…it's not good if you're wanting the standard battery or all-wheel drive. I'm in the latter camp. Very bummed out right now, as this has serious tax credit implications: pic.twitter.com/FBWNnUgPdV

— Ryan McCaffrey (@DMC_Ryan) February 8, 2018