Tesla ‘Robovan’ for People and Cargo Hinted by Elon Musk
Is Tesla going to make an electric van? That might be a possibility, teased Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Thursday morning.
“Maybe Tesla should make a highly configurable Robovan for people & cargo?”, asked Musk on Twitter.
When the Tesla Owners Silicon Valley account replied, “Definitely need something bigger than the X. Is this possible?”, Musk replied with a winking emoji, suggesting something was in works or it might be possible.
😉
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2022
This is not the first time we’ve heard Musk talk about an electric van. Back in November 2018, Musk said, “Maybe interesting to work with Daimler/Mercedes on an electric Sprinter. That’s a great van. We will inquire.”
When asked if Tesla should make its own sprinter van, Musk replied “Ok”. He added, “Lot on our plate, so it’s either get van gliders (no battery, powertrain or compute tech) from Daimler & produce sooner or do all & produce later. Not a big difference to total vehicles produced either way. Priority list is Model Y, solar roof tiles, pickup, semi, Roadster.”
We know the Model Y is currently one of the most popular electric vehicles worldwide. Tesla has yet to produce its Semi, Roadster and of course, Cybertruck. With the current chip shortage and supply chain headwinds, an electric van seems many years away.
A lot of Tesla customers would like an electric vehicle larger than a Model X. The only option is the Cybertruck, which isn’t set to start production until late next year.
An electric sprinter van is available from Mercedes in the form of its eSprinter 2.0, currently available in Europe and coming to the U.S. and Canada in the latter half of 2023.
Musk later added an optional solar power canopy that extends both side of the van, might be an idea as well:
Maybe with an optional solar power canopy that extends both sides of the van, tripling roof area
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2022
Pretty much. A van would have more roof height, so you could stand or sit under it for shade.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2022
Would you be interested in an electric ‘robovan’ from Tesla?