Tesla makes long-awaited announcement about new vehicle that has fans talking: 'Wish this was happening several years ago'
A post on the social platform X was shared to the r/teslamotors subreddit with the headline, "Tesla Manufacturing: RT @tesla_semi: Semi Factory progress update."
The first Tesla Semis from the new facility are due to be rolling off production lines this year, according to engineer Dan Priestley. The Semi factory is still under construction in Nevada, but walls, pillars, and the ceiling are all up. While they are preparing the facility for high-volume production, it will take time to ramp up to the ultimate goal of 50,000 Semis a year.
The Tesla Semi was announced eight years ago, and a few have been on the road since then in pilot program capacities. Priestley says these use cases show that "electric trucking is ready for scale." Early adopters have voiced glowing reviews.
Medium- and heavy-duty trucks are the source of 23% of U.S. transportation pollution, according to the EPA, so electrified alternatives are welcome. The sooner industry can disconnect from dirty energy sources like gas, oil, and coal, the more quickly it can mitigate extreme weather patterns, warming oceans, and loss of sea ice.
Best of all, EVs are much cheaper to operate. Tesla estimates Semi owners can save $200,000 in fuel costs over three years of operation.
Despite the potential good Tesla stands to do both in commercial and residential transportation, CEO Elon Musk has recently been a challenge to the brand's image as a result of polarizing political activity that has appeared to shrink the company's market of eager customers. Some Tesla owners have taken to disguising their vehicles for fear of vandalism. Some Tesla charging stations have been severely damaged. Sales have been dropping precipitously.
The benefits of EVs apply equally to consumers, regardless of the brand they buy from. If you've already made the switch to an EV, adding solar panels to your home can help you save even more. By driving with homegrown electricity, you avoid pollution created from a dirty grid, save money on monthly utility bills, and build up resilience in the face of outages. EnergySage has a free tool that can help EV owners find vetted local solar installers. Those technicians can provide a free quote and save homeowners up to $10,000 in installation costs.
Reddit commenters had tempered expectations for the Tesla Semi rollout.
"Awesome. Wish this was happening several years ago, but better late than never. (The Tesla way.)," one community member said.
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"I think there is also not a rush on these because they need the new charging infrastructure for these," another said. "They would also be battery limited at 50k semis right now, so I think they're ok with taking another 2-3 years to get to 50k/year."
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