It is not yet known when Tesla’s new Gigafactory in Grünheide or near Austin in the US state of Texas will start production of the Model Y – but there is speculation that it could start very soon for both. In the case of the German factory, a number of new Model Y Performances could be seen on the site shortly after pre-approval; Besides that CEO Elon Musk announced another visit this week there in mid-February. And the Tesla factory in Texas, which started later, seems to be producing at least on a test basis.
Tesla Model Y in new blue
This emerges from a video that local observer Jeff Roberts published on YouTube. At the weekend he had already documented the first photovoltaic work on the roof of the Gigafactory Texas. On Monday, his drone filmed, among other things, nine Tesla Model Ys standing neatly next to each other at supercharger charging stations on the edge of the factory. In closer shots, the green flashing ports show that they are apparently all being loaded.
“Could we be seeing the first production vehicles from Giga Texas?” Roberts asks in the video caption for his images of the Model Y sparkling in the Texas sun. After all, the electric cars are unlikely to be fully charged if they are only produced for testing or machine tuning. In any case, they do not appear to belong to employees in the Tesla factory, because there are no identification marks on them.
In addition, the nine Model Y still look completely unused, and seven of them shine in a color that has never been seen before from Tesla. If the drone shot is not deceptive, the intense blue tone could be different one of the three new liveries Act that CEO Musk has announced, although so far only for Model Y from the German Gigafactory. According to current rumours, it should only start with the performance version in black or white.
Texas start possible with LFP battery
The wheels of the Model Y at the Texas factory, on the other hand, are more indicative of the Long Range variant. There was even speculation on Twitter that Tesla could do that there first Model Y only with rear wheel drive and smaller battery to produce. This entry-level variant like the Tesla Model 3 is not yet available outside of Asia, but it should also be popular in the West because of the likely lower price. In addition, should Tesla’s planned structural battery pack can also be realized with LFP cells from CATL, as they are currently used in a more conventional design for the smallest Model Y in China.