Tesla 3 orders fall by 12,200

Tesla has revised downward the number of pre-orders for its new Tesla 3 electric car, officially due in 2018.

More than 8,000 customers have cancelled their orders – presumably because the unexpectedly high number of pre-orders and the fact that no one believes they will be filled in 2018 means they won't see their prized possession for another four years. The company said it has also removed 4,200 duplicate orders.

That said, the company still has 373,000 orders outstanding and as a result filed this week to raise $1.4bn in capital in order to make them. The market had expected Tesla to seek an additional $1bn in funding, so the extra $400m was seen as a good thing, despite the three per cent reduction in orders. Shares rose just under two per cent.

The Model 3 is projected to cost less than half of Tesla's two current models, the S and X. At a $35,000 base price, it brings the company's widely praised technology within reach of the mass market. ®