Teslarati 
Key Points
- 🚗 Tesla’s Giga Shanghai has achieved a significant milestone by building its 1 millionth Model Y crossover.
- 🏭 Giga Shanghai, which opened in 2019, initially produced only the Model 3 sedan and later expanded to include the Model Y crossover in the Phase 2 area.
- 🌍 Model Y production began in early 2021, making the achievement of 1 million units in just about 30 months quite remarkable.
- 🌐 Giga Shanghai serves as Tesla’s primary vehicle export hub, supplying markets across multiple continents, including the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and Canada.
- ⚙️ Despite facing challenges such as Covid-related production halts and supply chain issues, Giga Shanghai remains an efficient and productive facility.
- 👏 Elon Musk has praised the staff at Giga Shanghai for their ability to overcome difficulties and produce high-quality vehicles.
An image from Tesla China has confirmed that Gigafactory Shanghai recently achieved yet another notable milestone. As per a photo from the electric vehicle maker, Giga Shanghai has successfully built its 1 millionth Model Y crossover.
The milestone is particularly impressive, especially considering that the factory itself only opened in 2019. At the time, only the Model 3 sedan was being produced. The Phase 2 area, which produces the Model Y crossover, had to be built and launched later.
Tesla’s Model Y production only really started in early 2021, which is just about 30 months ago. But while the ramp of the vehicle’s production was quick, the facility ended up facing multiple challenges over the years. Last year, for example, Giga Shanghai’s production was halted due to Covid restrictions in China. Supply chain issues also caused headwinds to the facility’s operations.
Gigafactory Shanghai currently serves as Tesla’s primary vehicle export hub, with the facility catering to multiple markets across several continents. These include the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Asian countries like Thailand. Earlier this year, the facility also started providing Model Y units to Canada.
While Tesla has already built several other vehicle factories since Giga Shanghai, the China-based facility is still a hallmark of efficiency and productivity. Today, the factory is the company’s largest facility by output. The fact that it only produces two cars — the Model 3 and Model Y — makes this accomplishment even more impressive.
Elon Musk has given Giga Shanghai due praise over the years. In a recent visit to the facility, the CEO praised the factory’s staff for producing cars that are of the highest quality.
”It’s been incredibly impressive how you’ve been able to overcome so many difficulties and many challenges. It warms my heart, you know. And I tell people throughout the world — the cars we produce here are not just the most efficient in production, but the highest quality,” Musk said.
