Tesla has received a formal permit to begin the mass production of the Model 3 at its Gigafactory 3 site in Shanghai, China. The final clearance for Tesla’s mass production activities was announced by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on its official website Wednesday.
With its mass production permit acquired, Tesla is now able to produce the Made-in-China Model 3 at scale on Gigafactory 3. As noted by Bloomberg, carmakers in China also need to have their products approved for local sale. So far, Chinese authorities have yet to confirm if Tesla has received such a clearance.
Nevertheless, a mass manufacturing license bodes well for Tesla and its operations at Gigafactory 3. While the company waits for the release of its final permits, the electric car maker could start its production operations in the Shanghai-based site. This has been hinted at in recent flyovers of Gigafactory 3, with drone operators mentioning that more Model 3 units are now being spotted around Tesla’s general assembly building.
Tesla has been conducting trial production runs of the Model 3 since the company received a formal approval to begin initial manufacturing operations in Gigafactory 3 back in mid-October. During this time, sightings of the first Made-in-China vehicles were reported around Gigafactory 3. These sightings have only increased with time, culminating in a series of press rides and meet-and-greet sessions with the China-made vehicle.
The reception of the Made-in-China Model 3 has been very positive so far. In a video review, current Model 3 owner and Tencent Auto editor 常岩 noted that the locally-made electric sedan actually has a number of advantages over its imported sibling from Tesla’s Fremont factory. The Model 3 that’s produced in Gigafactory 3, for example, is fitted with supplementary components that allow the vehicle to handle and survive the dangers of China’s typhoons.
Yet, one thing that truly stands out about the Made-in-China Model 3 is its quality. It is no secret that it took some time before Tesla was able to iron out the body panel issues of the Model 3 during its initial ramp in the United States, resulting in a number of vehicles that had uneven panel gaps (among others). These issues were eventually ironed out, though Tesla critics continue to point out the alleged build quality problems of the company’s electric cars until today.
The Tencent Auto journalist noted that compared to his imported Long Range RWD Tesla Model 3, the Made-in-China vehicle was actually better built, with its equal panels gaps and extremely quiet ride. Overall, the Chinese-made Model 3 seems to be an evolution of sorts from the first iterations of the vehicle that made it to the country’s shores. With its lower price and China-customized features, there is a very good chance that the locally-made vehicle will be quite a best-seller.
H/T Ray4Tesla.
News
Tesla lands regulatory green light for Robotaxi testing in new state
This will be the third state in total where Tesla is operating Robotaxi, following Austin and California.
Tesla has landed a regulatory green light to test its Robotaxi platform in a new state, less than three months after the ride-hailing service launched in Texas.
Tesla first launched its driverless Robotaxi suite in Austin, Texas, back on June 22. Initially offering rides to a small group of people, Tesla kept things limited, but this was not to be the mentality for very long.
It continued to expand the rider population, the service area, and the vehicle fleet in Austin.
The company also launched rides in the Bay Area, but it does use a person in the driver’s seat to maintain safety. In Austin, the “Safety Monitor” is present in the passenger’s seat during local rides, and in the driver’s seat for routes that involve highway driving.
Tesla is currently testing the Robotaxi platform in other states. We reported that it was testing in Tempe, Arizona, as validation vehicles are traveling around the city in preparation for Robotaxi.
Tesla looks to make a big splash with Robotaxi in a new market
Tesla is also hoping to launch in Florida and New York, as job postings have shown the company’s intention to operate there.
However, it appears it will launch in Nevada before those states, as the company submitted its application to obtain a Testing Registry certification on September 3. It was processed by the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles Office of Business Licensing on September 10.
NEWS: Tesla has officially received approval from the Nevada DMV to start testing autonomous vehicles (robotaxis) on public roads.
Today, I confirmed directly with the Nevada DMV that @Tesla‘s application to obtain a Testing Registry certification was approved by the DMV Office… pic.twitter.com/hx5JhHBFiD
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) September 11, 2025
It will then need to self-certify for operations, essentially meaning they will need to comply with various state requirements.
This will be the third state in total where Tesla is operating Robotaxi, following Austin and California.
CEO Elon Musk has stated that he believes Robotaxi will be available to at least half of the U.S. population by the end of the year. Geographically, Tesla will need to make incredible strides over the final four months of the year to achieve this.
Tesla is set to improve a critical feature that has not been present in older vehicles with a new update.
Tesla vehicles feature a comprehensive suite of driver assistance features, some of which aid in driving itself, while others support the vehicle’s surroundings.
One of those features is that of Driver Visualization, and with the rollout of a new update, owners of Intel-based Tesla vehicles are receiving an upgrade that will come with a simple software update.
Tesla plans to use Unreal Engine for driver visualization with crazy upgrade
The update will provide new visualizations while Intel-based vehicles are in reverse, a feature that was not previously available, but will be with Software Update 2025.32.2.
The improvement was spotted by Not a Tesla App via TheBeatYT_evil:
Noticed something new in 2025.32.2 on my Intel MCU + USS car with FSD.
When shifting into reverse, the full FSD visualization now stays on instead of switching to the old plain autopilot visuals.
Might be small, but it makes backing up feel more seamless. pic.twitter.com/o44levkdtM
— Beat (@TheBeatYT_evil) September 5, 2025
Previously, vehicles Tesla built were equipped with Intel-based processors, but newer cars feature the AMD chip, which is capable of rendering these visualizations as they happen. They were capable of visualizations when driving forward, but not in reverse, which is what this change resolves.
It is a good sign for those with Intel-based vehicles, as Tesla seems to be paying attention to what those cars are not capable of and improving them.
This was an undocumented improvement associated with this particular update, so you will not find any mention of it in the release notes that Tesla distributes with each update.
News
Tesla looks to make a big splash with Robotaxi in a new market
Tesla has been transparent that it is prioritizing safety, but it believes it can expand to basically any geographical location within the United States and find success with its Robotaxi suite. CEO Elon Musk said it could be available to half of the U.S. population by the end of the year.
Tesla is looking to make a big splash with Robotaxi in a new market, as the company was spotted testing validation vehicles in one region where it has not yet launched its ride-hailing service.
After launching Robotaxi in Austin in late June, Tesla followed up with a relatively quick expansion to the Bay Area of California. Both service areas are operating with a geofence that is expansive: In Texas, it is 173 square miles, while in the Bay Area, it is roughly 400 square miles.
Tesla has been transparent that it is prioritizing safety, but it believes it can expand to basically any geographical location within the United States and find success with its Robotaxi suite. CEO Elon Musk said it could be available to half of the U.S. population by the end of the year.
There have been plenty of reports out there that have speculated as to where Tesla would land next to test Robotaxi, and Nevada, Florida, Arizona, and New York have all been in the realm of possibility. These regions will need to approve Tesla for regulatory purposes before Robotaxi can officially operate.
Tesla is still testing and performing validation in several regions, and in Tempe, Arizona, things are moving forward as a Model Y with a LiDAR rig was spotted performing ground truth for the platform:
🚨 BREAKING: Just caught Tesla Robotaxi test vehicles cruising in Tempe, AZ! Rollout coming soon! pic.twitter.com/Oanw0Zx5pP
— Adub08 (@adub0808) September 10, 2025
With the LiDAR unit, many followers of the self-driving and autonomy space might wonder why Tesla uses these apparatuses during validation, especially considering the company’s stance and vision-based approach.
LiDAR is used for “ground truth,” which is basically a solidification or confirmation of what the cameras on the car are seeing. It is a great way to essentially confirm the accuracy of the vision-based suite, and will not be used on Robotaxi units used within the ride-hailing suite.
The Robotaxi platform was made available to the public earlier this month, as Tesla launched its app for iOS users.
Tesla Robotaxi app download rate demolishes Uber, Waymo all-time highs
Downloading the app allows you to join a waitlist, giving you the opportunity to utilize and test the Robotaxi platform in either Austin or the Bay Area.
Tesla lands regulatory green light for Robotaxi testing in new state
Tesla is improving this critical feature in older vehicles
Tesla looks to make a big splash with Robotaxi in a new market
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