Photo: Alessandro Menato via Behance
Elon Musk's nerdish naming scheme is almost complete. After managing to go around Ford's refusal to give up on the Model E nameplate by going 1337, the Tesla range now spells the word "sexy," which the CEO probably finds extremely funny.
The upcoming Roadster will literally make things even sexier by adding the "R" at the end for "S3XYR," but just like in a game of Scrabble, you have to realize when there is no way left to add to a word and think about something else. If I were a betting man, I'd say the next two models will be called "I" and "M", and thus the range would become "IMS3XYR," which would take the nerdiness to a completely new level.
Since Musk likes to keep the cards close to his chest, the next new car would then be called the "Model M," making his intentions slightly more difficult to read than if the "Model I" came first. That means the fictional car previewed by this rendering would be called just that, the "I," considering all signs point toward the next Tesla being a smaller hatchback and not the luxury coupe this thing hints at.
The sketch belongs to Alessandro Menato, an IED student of Transportation Design from Turin, Italy. This drawing is thrown together with a series of sketches showing various interpretations of other models and brands - including a very good modern redo of the Peugeot 206 hatchback - but it's sure to catch your eye when you're browsing through them.
Alessandro doesn't say the exact nature of his creation, and judging by the length of the front door - the only visible one - he probably envisioned this as a sedan and skipped on drawing the rear one as well (possibly the next Model S?). Still, I think the very powerful line of the rear wheel arches and the sloping roof make for an excellent luxury-oriented grand tourer in the Bentley Continental GT vein.
Of course, Tesla and luxury don't really go hand in hand because you can use the best materials in the world and hire the most talented designers, but when the rear seats come off just by tugging them a little and the paint looks like it was done by a butcher in his spare time, you'll have a hard time selling something to the pickiest clientele possible. However, the "Model I" would be a project for 2025, leaving Tesla plenty of time to work on the quality of its products.
Since Musk likes to keep the cards close to his chest, the next new car would then be called the "Model M," making his intentions slightly more difficult to read than if the "Model I" came first. That means the fictional car previewed by this rendering would be called just that, the "I," considering all signs point toward the next Tesla being a smaller hatchback and not the luxury coupe this thing hints at.
The sketch belongs to Alessandro Menato, an IED student of Transportation Design from Turin, Italy. This drawing is thrown together with a series of sketches showing various interpretations of other models and brands - including a very good modern redo of the Peugeot 206 hatchback - but it's sure to catch your eye when you're browsing through them.
Alessandro doesn't say the exact nature of his creation, and judging by the length of the front door - the only visible one - he probably envisioned this as a sedan and skipped on drawing the rear one as well (possibly the next Model S?). Still, I think the very powerful line of the rear wheel arches and the sloping roof make for an excellent luxury-oriented grand tourer in the Bentley Continental GT vein.
Of course, Tesla and luxury don't really go hand in hand because you can use the best materials in the world and hire the most talented designers, but when the rear seats come off just by tugging them a little and the paint looks like it was done by a butcher in his spare time, you'll have a hard time selling something to the pickiest clientele possible. However, the "Model I" would be a project for 2025, leaving Tesla plenty of time to work on the quality of its products.
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