Tesla to produce simpler car model in Shanghai

Tesla is developing a revamped version of Model 3 as the top EV maker aims to cut production costs and boost the appeal of the five-year-old electric sedan, Reuters reported Tuesday.

Codenamed "Highland", the redesign is to reduce the number of components and complexity in the interior of the Model 3 while focusing on features that Tesla buyers value, including the display, said the report quoting anonymous sources.

The revamp version could also include some changes to the Model 3's exterior and powertrain performance, and will go into production at Tesla's factory in Shanghai and the company's Fremont, California plant.

According to Reuters, Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory will put the redesigned Model 3 into production in the third quarter of 2023.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has pushed a simplified approach to design and production at Tesla that the Highland project represents.

Tesla is looking to drive costs down through simplification and working on a small-car platform that would be half the cost of the Model 3, Musk said.

"Over and over, we found parts that are not needed. They were put in there just in case or by mistake. We eliminated so many parts from a car that did nothing," Musk said in an interview at a Baron Funds conference earlier in the month.