ELON MUSK: Tesla Will Never Put More Than 6 Models On The Market

Tesla will not have more than six models on the market at any given time, CEO Elon Musk said at Business Insider's IGNITION event in New York on Tuesday.

Asked if Tesla plans to expand the way automakers like Ford and GM have, offering dozens of models, Musk said Tesla would max out around half a dozen.

There has to be a "real difference" between the models, he explained.

Ford, by contrast, has more than 20 models on the market now, including five sedans and five crossovers/SUVs.

There are about 25,000 Model S sedans on the road now, and the Model X is due to hit the market late next year.

After that will come the long-awaited "affordable" Tesla, which will cost about $35,000 and be the size of a BMW 3-Series (the Model S is closer to a BMW 5- or 7-Series). At IGNITION, Musk said that price tag makes it "kind of" a luxury car, but argued years of savings on gas, as well as Tesla's financing options, would make it affordable. That price range "is actually the sweet spot of the market," he said.

Musk also said Tesla plans to build an electric pickup truck like Ford's F-150, probably in about five years.

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