author: Vineeth Joel Patel

Teslas are the must-have electric cars at the moment, but that doesn't mean its rise to the top has been an easy climb. The latest vehicle from the brand, the Tesla Model 3 is America's best-selling electric vehicle, despite numerous set backs in quality and production. With the latest addition of the Model 3, it looks like Tesla has all of the bases covered, except for a compact crossover.



Model 3 Production To Commence In 2020



The Model S is a large luxury sedan, the Model X is a large SUV, and the Model 3 is a compact sedan. The United States has struck up a recent love affair for compact crossovers, which Tesla looks to satiate with the upcoming Model Y. While previous reports stated that Tesla was targeting November 2019 as the starting production date for the vehicle, it now looks like 2020 is the actual date.



In a conference call with outlets, Tesla CEO Elon Musk stated that the Model Y crossover would begin production in early 2020, reports Automotive News. While the electric automaker is having trouble producing the Model 3 and putting the vehicle on driveways, Musk stated that the new model won't suffer from the same production woes.



"Model Y is going to be a manufacturing revolution," he said. "We will not be starting production of Model Y next year. I would say it's probably closer to 24 months from now…[early] 2020 is a more likely prospect." When asked about the previous report that claimed 2019 was the start date for production, Musk stated, "The Reuters report is based on nothing."



The Model Y won't be built at Tesla's Fremont plant, either, as Musk claimed that the factory is "jammed to the gills" and "crazy packed." A decision on where the vehicle will be built will be made "maybe next quarter, but not later than fourth quarter."



Tesla Will Change Some Things With The Model Y



The electric automaker also announced that the new Model Y wouldn't utilize the 12-volt battery architecture that's found in the brand's other vehicles, reports The Verge. Musk alluded to the move before, but this is the first time he's confirmed the change. The architecture change would simplify the production process of the equation and drastically reduce the amount of wiring inside the car.



That's not the only drastic change that the Model Y will sport, though. Musk stated that the electric crossover would sit on a similar architecture as the Model 3. Using the same chassis would make rollout of the Model Y easier for the brand to handle and reduce the amount of time it would take to get to consumers' doors.



Robots play a large role in the manufacturing process for Tesla and that won't change for the Model Y. While Musk isn't happy with the large amount of robots that the company uses to build its vehicles, it doesn't sound like he'll be reducing the amount of machines that will build the Model Y. Instead, it sounds like Musk will be using the autonomous robots more calculatingly, claims The Verge, in an attempt to boost quality and reduce the amount of slowdowns.



While Tesla fans will wait for the automaker to roll out with the Model Y, there are a few all-electric crossovers on the market already. The Hyundai Kona Electric made its debut at the New York Auto Show earlier this year with a range of 250 miles. Jaguar also entered the electric scene with the I-Pace that can travel 240 miles on a single charge