— The $35,000 Tesla proved to be very short-lived – less than three months, start to finish. The company confirmed Tuesday it raised the price of the cheapest Model 3 by $400 to $35,400. It only started taking orders for the cheapest version of the car at the end of February. The company had long promised it would bring all-electric vehicles to the masses with a $35,000 version of the Model 3. But for most of the first two years of Model 3 production, it built only more expensive models, as it tried to increase its cash flow and post back-to-back profitable quarters for the first time in its history. The company could use all the cash it can get. Earlier this month Tesla sold $2.3 billion of debt and stock to raise cash. Although a $400 price increase doesn’t seem like it would make much of a difference, it is a sign that the company is keeping a close eye on its finances. That $400 per Model 3 would translate into $20 million in extra revenue in a quarter if sales remain at its first-quarter sales rate. “At this point, sadly, every dollar counts,” said Karl Brauer, executive publisher at Cox Automotive. The $35,000 price is close to the average price of all US new car purchases. And it was important benchmark of Tesla’s promise to bring electric cars to the masses. But as an upstart automaker, Tesla was having problems meeting that price. Other, established automakers like General Motors could afford to lose money on its all-electric Chevrolet Bolt and pay for any losses from its massive sales of gas-powered pickup trucks and SUVs. Tesla couldn’t do that. Fortunately for Tesla, demand for the more expensive versions of the Model 3 were strong, allowing it to become the bestselling US luxury car of any kind – gas or electric. But the promise of a $35,000 Model 3 proved elusive. A Tesla Model X electric vehicle sits inside of a closed Tesla Inc. store in Palm Desert, California, U.S., on Thursday, March 7, 2019. Tesla has cut prices of the Model 3 and its other vehicles several times this year to offset the lower incentives, most recently by announcing a plan to close most stores and shift all ordering online. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg/Getty Images