Tesla Debuts Electric SUV From Its New Shanghai Factory In Record Time

(RTTNews) - Luxury electric car maker Tesla launched its Model Y electric sports utility vehicle from its new Shanghai factory on Tuesday. The electric SUV, which was launched in a record time, is the company's first car built outside the United States.

The $2 billion Shanghai factory started delivering cars in just 357 days, a record for global automakers in China. The first 10 customers from the public received their China-made Model 3 sedans on Tuesday.

Speaking at a ceremony to mark the first deliveries, CEO Elon Musk announced that Tesla will also make the Model Y, its lower-priced SUV, at its new Shanghai factory, and plans to open a design center in China with the aim of creating an "original car" for sale in markets around the world.

"Ultimately the Model Y will have more demand than probably all of the other cars of Tesla combined," he said.

Musk also danced on the stage at the ceremony in the Shanghai factory and posed for photographs with the 10 customers who took delivery of the cars on site.

"I think this would be very exciting. I think China has some of the best art in the world. And I think it's something that would be appreciated on a worldwide basis," he added. "I think it should be done, and we're going to do it."