#Tesla slashes price of Model Y SUV as coronavirus hurts demand

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk stands next to the Model Y.
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Tesla on Monday slashed the price of its Model Y SUV by $3,000, just four months after its launch, as it looks to keep up its strong sales numbers amid the global pandemic.

The Model Y now starts at $49,990, down nearly 6 percent from its previous price of $52,990, according to Tesla’s website.

The discount comes just two months after Tesla cut the prices of two other vehicle models. The Model X SUV, which was previously selling for $84,990, in May had its price reduced to $79,990. Tesla’s cheapest car, the Model 3 sedan, had $2,000 knocked off of its original price tag and now retails for $37,990.

Tesla company earlier this month crushed vehicle delivery expectations, delivering 90,650 vehicles in the current quarter, down just 4.9 percent from the year-earlier period, despite factory shutdowns due to the coronavirus. Analysts had been expecting the car company to delivery just 72,000 cars due to the closure of its Fremont, Calif., factory, which resulted in CEO Elon Musk publicly sparring with California officials.

Tesla’s stock has been similarly supercharged, climbing more than 200 percent since early March. The company is now the most valuable carmaker in the world with a market cap of $326 billion.

With Post wires