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Hundreds line up to reserve Tesla's new Model 3 electric car

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — In a scene that was repeated across the country, about 300 people lined up in front of the Tesla showroom here Thursday ready to plunk down a $1,000 deposit on an electric car they hadn't yet seen.

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — In a scene that was repeated across the country, about 300 people lined up in front of the Tesla showroom here Thursday ready to plunk down a $1,000 deposit on an electric car they hadn't yet seen.

The crowds at Tesla stores reflected anticipation ahead of the unveiling of Tesla's Model 3, its first mass-market electric car. The two- and three-hour waits to make a reservation were an indication that Tesla's gamble may pay off when it comes to luring middle America into considering its electric cars — even at a time of low gas prices. 

"This has to be a first for the automotive industry: lines of people waiting to place an order for a car that won't be available for over a year," says Jessica Caldwell, analyst for online buying-service Edmunds.com. "This is the type of buzz that you see with Star Wars movies or new iPhones or even cronuts."

She added that it is an early, hopeful sign that Tesla can branch out from its environmentally inclined, well-heeled buyers now into the mass market.  "If there's ever been any evidence that Tesla is primed to make the leap to mainstream car buyers, this is it," she said in a statement.

Expected to be priced at about $35,000, about half the cost of the current cheapest Tesla, the Model 3 will be comparable in price to entry-level luxury cars from BMW, Lexus and Acura. But it will also likely have lower profit margins than Tesla's two current models, requiring the automaker to vastly raise sales volumes in order to turn a profit.

The car, expected to be smaller than the current Model S sedan, was being unveiled later at a late-night event outside Los Angeles. Like other Teslas, its big drawing card will likely be a range per charge that exceeds 200 miles. Tesla said on its website that those who placed orders Thursday at its stores will get their cars sooner than those who were reserving on the website starting later in the day. The reservation required a $1,000 refundable deposit.

Those in line outside the Tesla store in the open-air mall here said they were drawn as much by the cult of Tesla CEO Elon Musk as the cars themselves. Musk is CEO of both Tesla, based in Palo Alto, Calif., and Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, the rocket maker in Hawthorne, Calif.

"I want a Tesla. I trust Tesla. I love Elon Musk," said Abby Urnovitz of Los Angeles as she waited toward the back of the line. She said her cousin, a Tesla engineer, vouched for the new car.

Chris Byrth, also of Los Angeles, says he had been waiting in line for two hours to make his reservation. He was worried that the wait was making him late to work. But he says he couldn't resist the lure of the new Tesla.

"This car is at the point where it is affordable," Byrth said. He noted that he was already thinking about a new car — and most of the other models he had under consideration are in a similar price range. "Everything that Tesla puts out is in high demand."

And Eugene Kotsiyevskiy of Marina del Rey, Calif., says he can't wait to leave his Nissan Altima behind for a new Tesla. "I'm into cars — electric stuff," he says. Plus, he is a fan of everything that Musk is doing. "When he give rides in the SpaceX rocket, I will do that, too." 

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