Tesla says some 8 000 customers have cancelled their Model 3 orders, with another 4 200 reservations turning out to be duplicates.
The total number of orders for the upcoming electric car thus stands at about 373 000, down from the 400 000 estimate initially suggested by Tesla.
The figures came to light after the California-based electric automaker filed to raise $1,4-billion in a share offering intended to bring forward the launch of the new vehicle.
In the filing, Tesla added that it could easily increase the number of orders with a promotional effort, but indicated that it would instead point customers to its existing Model S and Model X models.
“If we wanted to, we believe that we could further increase the number of Model 3 reservations with minimal effort, but believe it is better to guide customers to purchase products currently in production,” the automaker said.
First deliveries of the new Tesla Model 3 – which is expected to do battle with the likes of the BMW 3 Series – are scheduled for the end of 2017. The base model of the new electric car is believed to have a minimum range of 350 km, with a sprint to 100 km/h of less than six seconds.
Soon after the vehicle’s unveiling in March, Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed via Twitter that the Model 3 will be marketed in South Africa.
