Tesla Q4 Deliveries Hit All-Time Record

Tesla delivered 90,700 vehicles in the last quarter of 2018, more than all the cars it delivered to clients in 2017, the company reported.  It also delivered a total 245,240 cars in full-2018, which is more than Tesla’s deliveries for all prior years, the company boasted.

The Q4 2018 number was 8 percent higher than in the previous quarter, with the Model 3 booking the largest increase in deliveries, from 55,840 in the third quarter, to 63,150 in the final quarter of last year.  It’s worth noting all Model 3 sales were made in North America, the company said.  There is likely a significant sales growth potential for the most affordable model of the EV maker abroad, but this has yet to be tapped.

Given the plans Tesla has for the Model 3, the news is more than good:  after a series of delays and uncertainty about whether the Fremont factory would be able to ramp up production of the affordable Tesla model quickly enough to keep up with pre-orders, Tesla proved it was capable of doing what many analysts considered impossible:  it did ramp up the Model 3 production and it even booked a quarterly profit for Q3 2018, for the first time in its history.

What’s more, Tesla said, it will cut the prices of its models by US$2,000 as it begins to absorb the cost of the cut in the federal tax credits for EV purchases, which, as of January 1, stood at US$3,750, down from US$7,500.

Adding that buyers of Teslas may be eligible for a range of state and local tax incentives for electric cars, Tesla also said that “Combined with the reduced costs of maintenance and of charging a Tesla versus paying for gas at the pump – which can result in up to $100 per month or more in savings – this means our vehicles are even more affordable than similarly priced gasoline vehicles.”

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