Tesla Motors delivered 7,785 Model S sedans during the third-quarter, slightly less than the 7,800 it had forecast for the quarter.
Tesla originally planned to deliver 9,500 cars in the third quarter, but lowered the estimate to account for a plant shut down to install new equipment in July. Tesla said the shut down took longer than expected, affecting third-quarter deliveries.
During the quarter, the automaker achieved the most deliveries in a single day – 907.
The electric car maker lowered its delivery forecast for 2014 to 33,000 cars (it had expected to deliver 35,000 cars).
The company also said that the new tech announced a few weeks ago, the dual motor option and the autopilot capabilities, have further accelerated Model S demand. To meet this demand, Tesla is expanding its production capability so it can make “more than 2,000 vehicles per week by the end of 2015.”
Tesla reported earnings of 2 cents a share, excluding one-time items, versus earnings of 12 cents in the same quarter a year ago and expectations of a loss of 1 cent. Sales rose to $932 million, compared with analyst expectations of $892 million and $603 million in the year-ago period.
Separately, Tesla was one of four car makers to earn a 5-star rating in the latest set of European crash tests by independent regulators. The European New Car Assessment Program, or Euro NCAP, awarded its highest rating to Tesla’s Model S in a batch of six tests.
Achieving five stars from Euro NCAP isn’t uncommon. Eight of the past 20 cars tested received that rank. But the Model S—one of the few cars recently tested by Euro NCAP and sold in the U.S. and Western Europe—is unique in that it also has received a 5-star rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the U.S.
“The Model S is one of just a few cars to have ever achieved a 5-star rating from both,” Tesla said in a statement. The company claims it has the only car this year to receive both a five-star Euro NCAP rating and five stars in every NHTSA subcategory, including frontal impact, side impact, and rollover.
