New Spotting Of Red Tesla Semi Signals Possible Beginning of Volume Production Process

Yesterday, there was a new spotting of a Tesla Semi and it could mean the start of volume production soon. Here is our take on the event.

Yesterday afternoon, Reddit user u/sikhlyf posted a picture of a matte red tesla semi-truck that he had spotted in San Jose. This particular Semi was connected with a trailer possibly signaling per-production testing. The Tesla Semi was revealed in late 2017 by Elon Musk.

The Semi was engineered to maximize range, that is why it is as aerodynamic as possible, having a drag coefficient of only 0.36. It will also use less than 2kWh per mile, making it very energy efficient. The truck will be fully equipped with Autopilot, making it one of the safest on the road to date and it is fitted with four independent electric motors that will enable the truck to go from 0 to 60mph in 20 seconds with an eighty thousand pound load. The starting price was $150 000.

The Tesla Semi comes in two versions, a large cabin version and a small one. The version in the picture above is the small one since the trailer is taller than the cabin. This may be a point of testing since having the rectangular shape of the trailer impacts the aerodynamics of the vehicle.

Tesla Semi's Volume Production

Since it has already been three years since the unveiling, the public is starting to question when volume production could begin. Many Semis were spotted in the US, some were used to help deliver Tesla vehicles and one was seen in Canada for what was rumored to be cold-weather testing as well as client demos.

Back in June of this year, a leaked email from Musk stated that it was about time that the Semi was brought to volume production. The email also said that the powertrain and battery would be provided from the Tesla Nevada Gigafactory.

Possible production location?

It was still uncertain as to where the other parts of the truck would come, All that was known was that they would be produced in other US states. Now that we know where Tesla is building its new Terafactory, it is likely that Tesla's Semi will be built there too.

This may sound like an ambitious time frame, which is typical of Musk, but just look at Tesla's China factory: it was built and started production of vehicles in under a year and we are seeing the same kind of speed in the build of Tesla's Berlin Factory.Until Giga Texas is up and running, the Semis will continue being built in their current location.

Tesla Semi Not quite there yet

It seems that we will have to wait for a little while longer before we see these on the roads as frequently as Tesla's other models, but this could come at an advantage if the range is enhanced through the upcoming Battery Day improvements.

Currently, trucks are responsible for a large portion of emissions created by the transport industry. If Tesla wants to achieve the goal of transitioning to a sustainable future, it is important that it starts creating alternatives to gas trucks.

Thanks for reading this story, when do you think we will see Tesla Semi production being ramped? Do you agree with our hypothesis that it will be produced in Terafactory Austin? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments and let us know your opinion.
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Thank you to Reddit user u/sikhlyf for letting us use his image(title image) , please ask him permission if you want to use it.

Guillaume Humbert a Torque News automotive journalist covering Tesla news. "The way he first heard about Tesla was when he accidentally found a livestream of one of Tesla's cars back in 2018. It may sound boring, except this car was cruising in space. Since then Humbert has been following the EV automaker closely. Any of Tesla's innovations make the future look environmentally more friendly. "I am now trying to share the hope Tesla spread and inspire others through my articles," says Humbert whom you can follow on Twitter at Thinking Enthusiast.