Musk: Tesla Will Produce 10,000 Cars a Week by End of 2019

Elon Musk is making some confusing statements on Twitter again.

Musk tweeted his confidence that Tesla Inc.’s (TSLA) days of “production hell” are over, predicting that the automaker will manufacture 10,000 cars a week by the end of 2019.

“Tesla made 0 cars in 2011, but will make around 500k in 2019,” he initially wrote before adding a clarification in a follow-up tweet. “Meant to say annualized production rate at end of 2019 probably around 500k, ie 10k cars/week. Deliveries for year still estimated to be about 400k.”

In 2018, Tesla nearly tripled its auto-delivery capabilities, delivering 245,240 vehicles during the course of the year. Musk’s confidence that Tesla can build on this momentum came shortly after his company gave investors insight into its plans for 2019.

Musk also said on a podcast that Tesla will have all self-driving features ready by the end of the year. "I think we will be feature complete — full self-driving — this year," Musk said, according to CNBC. "Meaning the car will be able to find you in a parking lot, pick you up and take you all the way to your destination without an intervention, this year. I would say I am of certain of that. That is not a question mark."

The company’s annual report focused a lot on its flagship car. Tesla said the Model 3, the best-selling premium vehicle in the U.S. last year, is now being manufactured at “high volumes.” Confidence is high that production will now grow to 7,000 vehicles per week by the end of the year and 10,000 per week when its factory in Shanghai is ready.

Once the factory in China goes live, Tesla said annualized output of more than 500,000 Model 3 vehicles is the target. This objective is expected to be reached “sometime between the fourth quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020,” indicating that Musk’s Twitter comments may have been optimistic.

Tesla also reiterated its plan to offer a “variant” of the mass-market sedan at a starting price of $35,000.

The Palo Alto, California-based company discussed future vehicle launches in its annual report as well. The automaker said it plans to manufacture a Semi freight truck, a pickup truck, a new version of the Tesla Roadster and the Model Y, which is widely believed to be a compact SUV.

Company executives predicted the Model Y will be much easier and cheaper to produce than the Model 3, in part because three-quarters of the SUV’s components will be shared with the mass-market sedan.

Tesla also unveiled plans to ramp up production of its solar roofs this year and sought to reassure investors that lower tax credits for electric vehicles in the U.S. shouldn’t have a “meaningful impact” on sales in the long run. “Our vehicle models offer a compelling proposition even without incentives,” management said.