On Sunday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the company managed to meet a self-imposed deadline to produce 5,000 Model 3 cars in a week.

The car maker had been under intense pressure to deliver on the sedan, something seen by analysts as integral to Tesla breaking into the mainstream.

Tesla has repeatedly missed production targets and failed to reach profitability. Despite those factors, the company pulled out all the stops to produce 7000 cars in total last week.

On Sunday, Musk sent an effusively worded communication to all employees, thanking them for their hard work, adding that the company became "a real car company" in the process.

CNBC obtained a copy of the email Musk sent to Tesla staffers, which can be read in full below:

From: Elon Musk

To: Everybody

Subj. 7000

Jul. 1, 12:37 PM

We did it!! What an incredible job by an amazing team. Couldn’t be more proud to work with you. It is an honor.

The level of dedication and creativity was mind-blowing. We either found a way or, by will and inventiveness, created entirely new solutions that were thought impossible.

Intense in tents. Transporting entire production lines across the world in massive cargo planes. Whatever. It worked.

Not only did we factory gate over 5000 Model 3’s, but we also achieved the S & X production target for a combined 7000 vehicle week!

What’s more, with the widespread productivity gains throughout Tesla and the new production lines spooling up, we are on track to reach 6k/week for Model 3 next month.

I think we just became a real car company …

Thank you for your hard work and dedication,

Elon