Charged: Tesla teaser sparks speculation of mass market model

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From the hotly-debated high-flier Tesla (TSLA), Wall Street’s newest darling Rivian (RIVN), traditional-stalwarts turned EV-upstarts GM (GM) and Ford (F) to the numerous SPAC-deal makers that have come public in this red-hot space, The Fly has you covered with “Charged,” a weekly recap of the top stories and expert calls in the sector.

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TEASER: Tesla posted a teaser video on X that sparked speculation that the electric carmaker could be gearing up to release a new car. The first video posted on Sunday shows a spinning component which many online said could be an internal component of a vehicle, CNBC’s Arjun Kharpal reports. The video ends with the numbers “10/7,” indicating Tuesday’s date. A second video also posted on Sunday shows just the headlights of a car. The teasers have sparked conversation online and among analysts about what Tesla is up to — and two theories have emerged, the author notes. The first is that it could be the next-generation Roadster vehicle that Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been promising for years. The second is that Tesla could be about to unveil a long-awaited mass market model.

Electric Vehicle says Tesla’s second teaser video confirms the product unveiling for Tuesday, October 7 as showcasing the new, cheaper variant of the Model Y. The latest clip shows a dark setting illuminated by two headlights, revealing the front design of a vehicle whose lighting pattern matches that of the cheaper Model Y variant recently spotted uncovered at the company’s factory in Austin, Texas, the publication says.

TESLA DELIVERIES: Tesla stated that, “In the third quarter, we produced over 447,000 vehicles, delivered over 497,000 vehicles and deployed 12.5 GWh of energy storage products – a record for both deliveries and deployments. Thank you to all our customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and supporters who helped us achieve these results.” Tesla reported Q3 deliveries of 481,166 Model 3/Y units, 15,933 of other models. The company also announced Q3 production of 435,826 Model 3/Y vehicles and production of 11,624 of other models.

Tesla’s Q3 deliveries of 497K were well above expectations, UBS tells investors in a research note. Results in the U.S. were likely aided by pulled forward demand given the expiry of the $7.5K U.S. consumer EV tax credit, while deliveries were also likely stronger in China and Europe quarter over quarter, the firm says. UBS, which has a Sell rating and $215 price target, wonders whether there could be some “sell the news” action, as it is likely that Q3 deliveries could be a local peak.

Morgan Stanley also said Tesla Q3 deliveries of about 497,000 beat the sell side consensus expectation of 443,000 by 12% and came in at the high end of the buy side expectation range of 450,000-500,000. The “strong” Q3 delivery beat was likely driven by a demand pull-forward ahead of the expiry of EV consumer tax credits and marked the first year-over-year increase in deliveries this year, noted the firm, which kept an Overweight rating and $410 price target on Tesla shares.

GERMAN SALES: Tesla’s German sales fell 9.4% in September, though overall sales of battery electric vehicles were up 31.9% year on year, Reuters’ Simon Ferdinand Eibach and Jesus Caler report. The number of Teslas sold in the January-September period dropped 50.3% to 14,845 units compared with the same period last year, German road traffic agency KBA says.

RIVIAN DELIVERIES: Rivian announced production and delivery totals for the quarter ending September 30. The company produced 10,720 vehicles at its manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois and delivered 13,201 vehicles during the same period. Rivian narrowed FY25 delivery guidance to 41,500-43,500 vehicles. The previous FY25 delivery outlook was 40,000-46,000 vehicles.

REDESIGN: Rivian is reworking its vehicle doors after employees and customers raised concerns over potential safety issues with the current design, Emily Chang and Ed Ludlow of Bloomberg report, citing people familiar with the matter. The company plans to add a manual release that is more visible and located near the electrically powered interior handles in the rear doors of the R2, a lower cost SUV planned the deliver in the second half of 2026, sources told Bloomberg.

CHINESE AUTOMAKERS DELIVERIES: Nio (NIO) announced its September and third quarter 2025 delivery results. The company delivered 34,749 vehicles in September, reaching a new monthly record and representing an increase of 64.1% year-over-year. The deliveries consisted of 13,728 vehicles from the company’s smart electric vehicle brand Nio, 15,246 vehicles from the company’s smart electric vehicle brand Onvo, and 5,775 vehicles from the company’s small smart electric car brand Firefly. The company delivered 87,071 vehicles in the third quarter, reaching a new quarterly high and representing an increase of 40.8% year-over-year. Cumulative deliveries reached 872,785 as of September 30. On September 20, Nio’s premium SUV, the All-New ES8, was officially launched, with user deliveries starting shortly after.

Li Auto (LI) announced that it delivered 33,951 vehicles in September, bringing the company’s third-quarter deliveries to 93,211. As of September 30, Li Auto’s cumulative deliveries reached 1,431,021.

XPeng (XPEV) announced its vehicle delivery results for September and the third quarter. In September, XPeng delivered a record 41,581 smart EVs, a 95% year-over-year increase and up 10% over the prior month, exceeding the 40,000 monthly deliveries milestone. For the third quarter of 2025, XPeng delivered 116,007 smart EVs, a 149% year-over-year increase. Cumulative deliveries for the first nine months of 2025 reached 313,196 units, representing a 218% increase from the corresponding period in 2024. In September, the 10,000th New XPeng P7 officially rolled off the production line, making XPeng P7 the fastest model in the company’s lineup to achieve 40 JPH on a new production line. In September, XNGP achieved a monthly active user penetration rate of 83% in urban driving. The company has rolled out its VLA-powered XNGP with door-to-door full scenario ADAS capabilities, starting with the New XPeng P7 and G7 Ultra models.

Zeekr (ZK) announced its delivery results for September. In September, Zeekr Group delivered a total of 51,159 vehicles across its Zeekr and Lynk & Co brands, reflecting increases of 8.5% year-over-year and 14.1% compared to the previous month. Specifically, the Zeekr brand delivered 18,257 vehicles, while Lynk & Co delivered 32,902 vehicles. This achievement was made possible by the trust and support of over 2.1M cumulative users. On September 8, Lynk & Co launched its first mid-to-large hybrid sedan, the Lynk & Co 10 EM-P, featuring smart electric AWD, centimeter-level LiDAR, and the Nvidia Thor chip powering the G-Pilot H7 intelligent driving solution. The Lynk & Co 10 EM-P’s debut also introduced the Lynk Flyme Auto 2 smart cockpit system with AI-powered, human-like interaction. This winning combination of high-performance features and AI-powered smart cockpit positions the Lynk & Co 10 EM-P for a showing in the hybrid market. On September 29, Zeekr unveiled its new luxury SUV, the Zeekr 9X. Built on the SEA-S architecture, the Zeekr 9X debuts the SEA super hybrid system and G-Pilot intelligent driving assistance, setting new benchmarks for range, charging, and performance.