Tesla Will Stop Production of the Model S and Model X to Build Robots

We’ll soon be saying farewell to Tesla‘s Model S and Model X.

This week, the company’s CEO Elon Musk announced that production of both electric cars would eventually halt this year at the company’s plant in Fremont, Calif., so the factory could be retooled to build humanoid robots instead.

“That is slightly sad, but it’s time to bring the S and X programs to an end, and it’s part of our overall shift to an autonomous future,” the billionaire said on an earnings call on Wednesday. “If you’re interested in buying a Model S and X, now would be the time to order it.”

The Model X currently starts at US$99,490, while the Model S starts at US$94,490. Both have options that can take the price into six figures. In exchange, you will get a car in the Model X that was first unveiled over a decade ago, in 2015, while the Model S was first shown in 2012 and has been on the market since.

Each model has been updated over the years, but they’re also both pretty ancient by auto-industry standards, which has never really bothered Musk, who has said the industry conventions of annually introducing cars for a new model year don’t make any sense.

Ever since the debut of the Model 3 in 2017 and the Model Y in 2019, Models S and X have been eclipsed in sales and in importance to the company. Tesla delivered nearly 1.6 million Models 3 and Y last year globally, compared to 50,850 of its other cars, including Model S, Model X, and the Cybertruck.

Still, those numbers obscure the importance that Model S and Model X have to the company. The Model S, in particular, is one of the greatest cars of all time, quicker than most sports cars of its day and almost as comfortable as a Bentley, with an all-electric range of up to 265 miles (approximately 426km) originally. The Model S offered all that with a base price of just US$57,400.

The automotive press went wild, and so did many consumers, propelling Tesla’s legend to new heights following the uneven release of the Tesla Roadster. The Model X was more outlandish with its gullwing doors, but shared lots of parts with the Model S. For years, the cars were status symbols but also seemed to get worse with each new update, especially with the introduction of the Model S’s yoke steering wheel.

And now they are dead, in favour of humanoid robots, which Musk believes are the future. Sales are such that, practically speaking, it won’t make much of an impact, but the old Tesla is now truly dead, too.

This story was originally published on Robb Report USA.