What’s next for Tesla in Australia?
Tesla Australia says its plans to introduce the headline-grabbing Tesla Cybertruck are slowly firming, while also admitting the pioneering Tesla Model S and Tesla Model X remain unavailable.
In a wide-ranging chat with the NRMA’s Open Road this month, Tesla Australia country director Thom Drew said he was buoyed by Tesla’s product pipeline in Australia.
The American manufacturer launched the updated Model Y SUV this month – the world’s most popular new car at the time of writing – and is enjoying renewed sales from the facelifted Model 3 sedan, which landed on Australian roads last year.
With those two products essentially carrying the Tesla brand in Australia – following the withdrawal of the larger Model S sedan and Model X SUV in 2023 due to lack of right-hand drive availability – the obvious question for Tesla Australia officials is, “What’s next?”
“There’s nothing that I can share there, but obviously there are other less expensive products that have been mentioned on our earning calls,” responded Drew.
That vehicle is speculated to be a new variant from Tesla known as the Model 2, also referred to as the Model Q or Model C in some circles.
The most obvious next entrant from the EV manufacturer is the headline-grabbing Cybertruck. Tesla has spent recent weeks touring a Cybertruck to customers around the country, in what originally looked like a publicity stunt.
“I don’t have any insight that I can share there, but we have been touring the Cybertruck around the country,” he said.
“That’s partly to show off that product, but for me it has been garnering genuine interest so that it can help our decision making and whether that product comes to market.
“It’s a segment locally that we’d really love to see filled with that product, and so far the feedback has been genuinely positive and surprising. It’s something we’ll continue to work on. We can’t guarantee that it’s going to come to market, but I’d love to see that.”
Tesla Cybertruck
One of the key hurdles around the Cybertruck was supposedly its compliance with Australian Design Rules, particularly pedestrian safety.
Drew, however, watered down those concerns and explained the Cybertruck’s approval centred more on whether its right-hand drive production was viable at a factory level.
Asked what would need to happen for the Cybertruck to be green-lit for Australia, Drew said: “There are obviously changes required for right-hand drive production, beyond what everyone seems to be talking about with pedestrian crash protection and so on.
“The vehicle as it stands would align very closely to Australian Design Rule compliance, there would only be some small external design changes required.
“But there is other engineering required in order to swap over the vehicle to right-hand drive, and that’s what our engineers are investigating at the moment.”
Separately, Tesla Australia has also expressed interest in a seven-seat version of the Model Y SUV. Such a variant is available overseas, although it is understood the Chinese factory that produces the Model Y isn’t yet geared to produce seven-seat variants.
“It’s also identifying other gaps within our existing line-up that we can cater to. We’re obviously viewing other variants and there has been some chatter about that,” Drew said.
Two models that won’t be coming to Australia – at least in their current generations – are the larger Model S and Model X.
Drew confirmed this month that both were off the table.
“With Model S and Model X we were planning to bring the revised version to market,” he explained. “It was relatively late in the product development that the decision was made to not produce right-hand drive. So, for this current generation, it isn’t possible for Australia. So we won’t see that product anytime soon.”
