Tesla's Entry-Level Sedan to Be Called Model III

Although it won’t arrive until 2016, Tesla has already begun to build the hype over its new entry-level sedan. Previously thought to be called the Model E, Auto Express has just confirmed that the car’s official name will be the Model III. With at least a 200-mile (321 km) driving range, the Model III will be targeted directly towards the likes of the BMW 3 Series. Consider it affordable luxury. So why the name change? Why not the Model E?

Tesla CEO has a very good explanation: “We have the Model S for sedan and X for the crossover SUV, then a friend asked what we were going to call the third car. So I said we had the Model S and X, we might as well have the E. We were going to call it Model E for a while and then Ford sued us saying it wanted to use the Model E – I thought this is crazy, Ford’s trying to kill sex! The new model is going to be called Model III, we’ll have three bars to represent it and it’ll be S III X!” So there you have it. That’s the logic behind the name. The Model III will be about 20 percent smaller than the Model S and be priced at around $35,000.