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Tesla Model 3 single-piece casting will come, but not anytime soon, Elon Musk says
Tesla will “likely” switch the Model 3 sedan to a single-piece casting design in the future, CEO Elon Musk said in an interview with Sandy Munro. However, the design will not be on its way anytime soon, as Musk said the Berlin and Texas Gigafactories need to have production efforts well underway to sustain demand fulfillment.
The Model 3’s current design is not a single piece casting and is comprised of 70 different metal parts welded together to create the vehicle’s underbody. Tesla improved upon this design in its Model Y crossover by using a massive, single-piece casting to eliminate 69 total parts. The single-piece design is effective for manufacturing purposes and increases structural rigidity in the event of an accident.
As the Model Y and Model 3 dominate Tesla’s current sales and delivery figures, Munro mentioned to Musk that he was disappointed that his new Model 3 teardown did not reveal a single piece casting similar to the Model Y design. However, Musk indicated Tesla’s mass-market sedan would eventually use the single-piece casting, it would just take its next two production facilities to be in operation for it to happen.
Musk told Munro:
“At some point, we probably will switch to a single-piece casting, but I think we need to get the Texas factory and the Berlin factory going. We do have an issue. It is hard to change the wheels on the bus when it is going 80 MPH down the highway. So, Model 3 is…well, was most of our volume. Model Y will exceed Model 3, but we just need an opportunity to redo the factory without blowing the cash flow of the company.”
In its Q1 2020 Update Letter, Tesla showed the two designs. The Model Y casting (right) was two pieces at this point in time. Thanks to the introduction of Tesla’s Giga Press from IDRA, the automaker has eliminated the two-piece design in favor of a massive one-piece casting. The elimination of so many parts was a huge advantage for Munro, who detailed the casting advantages in several teardown episodes last year.
Tesla Model Y owner Tony Pham then showed the one-piece casting design on his vehicle while having a third-party accessory installed into his all-electric crossover. Pham’s Model Y was delivered in late 2020, proving that Tesla has been utilizing the one-piece design for several months.
Model Y single piece rear casting!
VIN 97k, delivered 12/23/2020. Thanks @TeslaFrunk for the rear kick sensor installation pic.twitter.com/jkIGwX265v— Tony Pham – “Quick Bandit” license plate mount (@TonyTesla4Life) January 10, 2021
Tesla’s single-piece design is widely thought by automotive engineers, including Munro, to be the most advantageous way to build a car. In Munro’s opinion, other automakers have ignored a single-piece design’s advantages due to their stubbornness to keep things the same. “Thousands of engineers, big-time executives, walk by [the idea]. They don’t do it,” Munro said.
One of Tesla’s manufacturing process’s main advantages is that it continues to refine its techniques and never admits that its current processes are the best way to handle things. Tesla is always looking to improve the situation of its manufacturing and production lines, always seeking different techniques and new ways to build its vehicles. The issue now is that Tesla’s vehicles are becoming so popular that its limited production lines cannot be halted to update some production techniques, especially to mass-market vehicles that have been produced for several years. Musk’s analogy of the bus going 80 MPH down the highway is extremely accurate, especially as Tesla is coming off of its largest production and delivery year in company history. Halting Model 3 production lines for an update to the vehicle’s casting design would be detrimental at the current time.
While it is likely that Model 3 single-piece castings could happen down the road, it is not something to expect soon. With Musk indicating that Giga Berlin and Giga Texas need to be in operation for this to occur, these facilities will likely need to have Model 3 production numbers high enough to offset the closure of lines at Giga Shanghai and Fremont. With Berlin focusing on Model Y production initially, it is likely that Model 3 lines will not be ramped for at least a year, so the single-piece Model 3 casting may not be seen until at least 2023.
Elon Musk’s full interview with Sandy Munro is available below.
Tesla has expanded the footprint of a massive safety feature worldwide with a recent Software Update labeled as 2026.20.6. The expansion of the “Blind Spot Warning While Parked” feature represents the more widespread availability of the feature, which aims to prevent “dooring.”
Dooring is when a driver or passenger opens a car door into the path of an oncoming road user, usually a cyclist or motorcyclist. It is among the most common types of cycling accidents, the League of American Bicyclists says.
For this reason, Tesla created a feature that warns occupants not to open the door because an object is approaching. The feature will sound a chime, and it will also delay the opening of the door to prevent an incident.
The release notes state (via Not a Tesla App):
“If you attempt to open a door while an approaching object is detected in your blind spot (for example, a bicyclist approaching from behind) a chime sounds, and your door will not open upon initial button press. Wait a short time and press the button a second time to override the warning.”
Tesla initially rolled out this feature back in 2024 with the Model 3 “Highland.” However, it remained with the Model 3 exclusively for over a year; that was until Tesla added it to the Cybertruck this past Spring.
Now, it is making its way to the new Model Y, 2021 and newer Model S, and 2021 or newer Model X.
The prevention of dooring incidents could eliminate many injuries to cyclists, especially in an urban setting. Dooring accounts for 10-20 percent of bike-related crashes in major cities, and over 17,000 dooring-related incidents were treated in the U.S. over the course of a decade. These usually involve fractures, contusions, and head trauma.
Tesla confirmed this morning that it has sent the first production units, manufactured with no steering wheel or pedals, to on-road testing in Austin, sharing video of the first rides with no human controls.
The lack of steering wheels and pedals in the Cybercab aligns with Tesla’s self-certification of Robotaxi as Level 4 SAE, a platform it plans to make widespread through internal vehicles and customer-owned cars that will operate and generate revenue for individuals.
The start of these engineering tests is a major signal for Tesla, which plans to bring driverless, wheel-less, and pedal-less Cybercabs to market in the coming months. With production already well underway at Gigafactory Texas, where the Cybercab is built, there is some inclination to believe the first public rides could happen sooner rather than later.
Engineering tests of the first production Cybercab have begun in Austin pic.twitter.com/fk3KQvcE8a
— Tesla (@Tesla) June 30, 2026
Tesla’s engineering tests will put the Cybercab in real-world scenarios, testing not only the hardware, but more importantly, the software that drives the car around Austin with nobody supervising it within the car.
This is perhaps the biggest part of the internal testing process, especially prior to allowing regular, everyday people to hail the Cybercab for an autonomous ride. These early rides serve as a true benchmark for Tesla: How many rides can it achieve safely? How many miles did it travel consecutively without needing an intervention? What scenarios challenge the Full Self-Driving suite the most?
The proper precautions have already been put into place as well, as Tesla released the First Responders Guide to Cybercab over the weekend, ensuring that emergency services have 24/7 access to Robotaxi Assistance, as well as other boundaries, such as Geofencing features that can be used to redirect autonomous vehicle traffic due to accidents, road closures, construction, or maintenance.
Cybercab seems genuinely close to being added to the Robotaxi fleet in Austin, but Tesla has prioritized safety throughout this entire process. Therefore, we think it could be months before it truly starts giving rides to the public. People have been frustrated with this, but Robotaxi in Austin has a tremendous safety record so far, so the slow rollout has kept people safe and accidents to a minimum.
The most important thing is that Tesla continues to show consistent progress in the Cybercab’s ramp-up toward fleet addition. A few weeks back, we saw the EPA reward the Cybercab a Certificate of Conformity, allowing it to enter the stream of commerce. Then, we saw Tesla add decals, signaling that it was likely about to start testing it publicly. That has now happened.
The next big move will be the announcement of the first rides, so this Summer should be filled with anticipation.
For years, there have been images and videos across social media platforms that have reminded me of when I was a 15-year-old kid teased by “Xbox 720” videos on YouTube. These videos are of the supposed “Tesla Phone” that Elon Musk was secretly developing in between leading Tesla with its electric cars and SpaceX with its reusable rockets.
Would you buy a Tesla phone ? pic.twitter.com/aaTwvvIJit
— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) October 6, 2023
Although Musk has put those rumors to bed several times, it was never completely out of the realm that he could get involved in cell phones in some capacity. Think outside the box and more macro-level, though. Instead of reinventing the computer, Musk reinvented connectivity by developing Starlink with SpaceX.
It could be something similar, TD Cowen analyst Gregory Williams said in a note last week, where he hinted SpaceX could be gathering some steam to acquire T-Mobile.
Williams said it would be the “clear choice” for SpaceX if it decided to go through with a network acquisition. He also suggested AT&T.
The move would be possible through selling more of its own stock, which would help SpaceX raise the money to purchase T-Mobile, which would cost roughly $300 billion. It could be one of the moves SpaceX makes post-IPO in terms of an acquisition: it already acquired Cursor AI for $60 billion.
Other analysts, like Dan Ives of Wedbush, believe SpaceX and Tesla will eventually merge into one anyway, and that conglomeration could come as soon as this year, some have said.
The implications of SpaceX purchasing T-Mobile are massive. A combined entity would create a truly ubiquitous network: T-Mobile’s terrestrial 5G towers and Starlink’s growing constellation of Direct-to-Cell satellites. This would essentially eliminate dead zones across the U.S. and potentially globally.
SpaceX would instantly become a full-scale facilities-based carrier with satellite differentiation; a huge advantage. This would pressure AT&T and Verizon heavily.
There are also concerns like a potential reduction in long-term competition, and of course, a deal of that size would face intense scrutiny from government agencies.
The strategic fit is compelling due to the existing Starlink–T-Mobile partnership and complementary technologies (space + terrestrial). It could create a dominant integrated communications player. However, the regulatory, financial, and execution hurdles are enormous — this remains highly speculative with no indication SpaceX is actively pursuing it right now.
Tesla expands massive safety feature worldwide in latest update
Tesla sends production Cybercab with no steering wheel, pedals to on-road testing
