1st Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Pluses Registered In Norway!

For those of you who have followed the Norway Tesla registration statistics this quarter, it has been very slow since the end of quarter flurry in June. Tesla delivered most of its shipments in June and the country has been waiting for a ship since then.

Tesla didn’t have production capacity in June to make more cars for overseas shipment, and even if it did, it may not have wanted to put them on a ship over quarter-end since 3,000 cars times $40,000 is $120 million in increased working capital, so that would reduce cash by a similar amount.

On the other hand, Tesla has mentioned several times it wants to “unwind” the big international delivery waves. I have taken that to mean that it it inefficient to have staff on hand to deliver bursts of 500 cars a day, many of them doing little for most of the quarter and then working overtime the last 2 weeks of the quarter.

This is another example of the Tesla Cycle. As orders slowed a bit in Norway as the tremendous pent up demand for the Performance and Long Range All Wheel Drive models was satisfied, Tesla opened up the Rear Wheel Drive Standard Range Plus for ordering (a few months ago). A significant reduction in price always increases demand, as more people can afford it and the lower price allows it to displace less expensive competing vehicles.

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With the country of Norway only 267 miles wide at its widest point, the 240 mile range should be plenty for many people, considering there is no lack of charging infrastructure in the country. On the other hand, Norway is buying enough EVs (Teslas and other brands) that the country needs to continue to build and expand chargers to keep up with demand.

Will the Standard Range Plus be more popular than the higher priced Model 3 trims? History suggests it will, since the 60 kWh and 70 kWh versions of the Model S and Model X have sold about twice as many units over the last few years as the longer range 85, 90, and 100 kWh versions. Time will tell which models sell the best.

Use my Tesla referral link to get 1,000 miles of free Supercharging on a Tesla Model S, Model X, or Model 3 (you can’t use it on the Model Y yet), here’s the link: https://ts.la/paul92237 (but if someone else helped you, please use their link).