Tesla gearing up for new Model 3 but struggling to meet production targets

Tesla Motors missed its vehicle delivery target for the second consecutive quarter and is on track to fall short of its annual target, suggesting the US electric car maker is still wrestling with production issues as it looks to transform itself into a mainstream, high-volume manufacturer. Elon Musk's self-driving evangelism masks risk of Tesla autopilot, experts say Tesla, led by Silicon Valley star Elon Musk, delivered 14,370 vehicles during the second quarter, missing its target of 17,000 vehicles, it said in a statement on Sunday. The company blamed an unusually large number of vehicles still in transit to customers and an "extreme" production ramp that led to almost half of the quarter's vehicles being made in the last four weeks. Tesla said it expects to deliver about 50,000 vehicles during the second half of the year. Having delivered only 29,190 vehicles in the first two quarters, even if it hits that target, it would leave the company just short of the low end of its earlier expectation of 80,000 to 90,000 deliveries this year.