RELATED: Six-seater Tesla Model Y L teased, to launch soon in China With the Robotaxi enterprise likely not returning a profit anytime soon, a more affordable model could help Tesla alleviate some of its current woes. The Q4 timeline would also coincide with the end of the US Federal EV Tax Credit on 30 September 2025, courtesy of the Big Beautiful Bill that former-best-friend Donald Trump pushed for, that would in practice raise Tesla’s prices in the US up by USD7,500 (approx. RM32k), and drop demand for their cars even further. We don’t know yet how much this “more affordable” model is going to cost, although Musk has previously stated that it’ll cost under USD30,000, with tax credit rebates. Considering that the cheapest Model 3 in the States costs USD42,490 (approx. RM179k) before the tax credit, the introduction of the affordable model could make Tesla ownership accessible to a much wider customer base. As Elon Musk said in the earnings call, “The desire to buy the car is very high. Just people don’t have enough money in their bank account to buy it. Literally, that is the issue. Not a lack of desire, but a lack of ability. So the more affordable we can make the car, the better.” So what would Tesla strip out from the Model Y to make it more affordable? Think replacing the standard leather upholstery with a more basic cloth upholstery, removing the rear passenger display on the centre console, and forgoing features like ambient lighting and ventilated seats – as seen on the cheaper Tesla Model 3 model that was introduced in Mexico last year. But would a cheaper model really bring customers back to Tesla? Or are buyers still turned off by the idea of owning an Elon Musk car, given his political involvement these days? Only time would tell.