Project Highland Update
Tesla’s mysterious Model 3 redesign project “Highland” is continuing to progress, as public filings have pointed to the beginnings of a new production line being built at the company’s facility in Fremont, California.
Back in November 2022, a new production prototype of the Model 3 appeared just after news outlet Reuters printed details of something called “Project Highland” - which their sources claimed was a redesign of the Model 3.
Back then, the only things we had to go on was what the Reuters contacts told us - that the redesign was an attempt to lower the cost of the Model 3 by reducing the number of parts involved in its production, updating its infotainment display, and enhancing the vehicle’s powertrain performance.
Not long after that, filings with the City of Fremont were found that were made back in June 2022. They showed that Tesla was demolishing some equipment and facilities “in preparation for a new Hang On Line” - a type of assembly line where the vehicle parts “hang on” to a moving feed as they progress through the stations. It looks like demolition officially started in December 2022, though that’s harder to pinpoint.
What really points to that work being done are that filings for the new line - labelled “Highland BL3 HOL Demo” - were updated as recently as January 27th - which seem to point to the project still progressing at a good pace regardless of the massive amount of work Tesla has going on at facilities like GigaTexas.
In addition to the new filings though, another manufacturer’s model was recently seen doing some road testing near Santa Cruz - about where the first production model was spotted in the wild back in November 2022.
Covered Tesla Model 3 production test Credit: u/the_frog_said | Reddit r/TeslaMotors
The exterior doesn’t seem to have changed much, but that seems to be in line with what we know of the project - which made more specific mention of lowering the complexity of the interior, and the head and brake lights. The Model 3 has been updated in little ways throughout its existence, so it wouldn’t take a whole lot of effort - or changes to its design - to make it efficient enough for this year’s production push.
Let’s not forget that this is a big year for Tesla. They’re starting production on the Cybertruck, expanding production on the Tesla Semi, and ramping production for the Model Y and Model 3 of course. This isn’t even the only redesign we know Tesla is working on right now.
Earlier in January, Tesla’s Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen had an interview where he talked briefly about his ongoing work with the Model 3 - but also the Model S, which he hinted was going to be going through a similar, efficiency-focused design change - when Tesla had the time to focus on it.
But it looks like the Model 3 is a much bigger priority for the EV company right now - it is one of their cheapest vehicles. And with the new US tax incentives and rebates on the table for new buyers, it’s exactly the right time to refresh one of the company’s oldest designs, not only to make them cheaper to produce - but also (hopefully) cheaper to purchase for new EV buyers.