Another batch of Right-Hand-Drive Tesla Model 3s is accumulating at the Port of San Francisco Pier 80 as we can see in the spotted photo below — but there is something distinct about this picture, we can see ‘Transport Mode‘ written in big red font on the center touchscreen, yes this mode is activated when the Model 3 electric cars are shipped from the port to another region or country.
RHD Model 3 Demand
Tesla (TSLA) is aggressively registering the RHD Tesla Model 3s this quarter, according to the latest report by Model3Vins.com, Tesla registered around ~13,440 Right-Hand-Drive Model 3s in July alone, the latest batch of 16,442 total Model 3s registered has 3,950 RHDs included.
This means that the demand for RHD Model 3s is skyrocketing since the car has started shipping to the UK a few months ago, it has only been around 3 months since Tesla registered their first batch of Model 3 VINs.
Tesla is starting deliveries to Australia and New Zealand based customers in August, we do not have the exact number of orders but looking at Tesla’s RHD Model 3 registration numbers it is discernible that the demand is high in that region as well.
According to Model 3 registration data from the UK, there have been around ~7,333 RHD Model 3s booked from the United Kingdom till now, this number is based on the owners reporting their receipt numbers to after placing the order with the down payment, according to sources if we add the unreported UK Tesla Model 3 orders, the number would be around ~10k.
Transport Mode
The above photo of the SF Port Pier 80 was posted to the Tesla subreddit by u/Vedaprime but he says it’s not the picture he took himself, the original source wants to remain anonymous due to obvious reasons, but this picture gave us the hint on how Tesla vehicles are shipped using the Transport Mode.
Since the loading and unloading of the cars to and from the vehicle transport vessel requires some amount of driving, the cars are put in ‘Transport Mode’ to limit the acceleration/speed and center touchscreen options in order to avoid misuse from the Tesla or port employees.
Another purpose of the Transport Mode restriction must be to avoid over discharge of the battery pack and the 12v battery, although upon arrival at the Port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, all the European and UK Model 3s are instantly given charging via 300 chargers installed on the spot.
It is also good to see that the Model 3 interior components like the center console and steering wheel are properly covered to avoid damages during the transit.
Model 3 Owners Manual on the Tesla website has full instructions on how to activate Transport Mode and tow your Model 3 (specific pages below) — we need your feedback if you have ever put your Tesla Model 3 into Transport Mode and if it shows the same message as the screen of this Model 3 is showing? Please let us know in the comments section below.
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