For better or for worse, Elon Musk has confirmed a reveal date for the much-anticipated Model 3. “35k price, unveil in March, preorders start then,” he tweeted.

Of course, as every car buff knows, the “unveiling” of a new model happens a long time before cars are actually ready for delivery, and in Tesla’s case, that time lag can be pretty long indeed. Musk also tweeted that production will start “in about 2 years,” and that it is dependent on a “fully operational Gigafactory.”

Model 3, our smaller and lower cost sedan will start production in about 2 years. Fully operational Gigafactory needed.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 2, 2015

Will Tesla meet its self-imposed deadline? Will the Chevy Bolt and/or a next-gen LEAF be any real competition for Model 3? Will the pundits debate these questions for the next two years, and will the TSLA stock price bob up and down as the launch date seems more or less likely to be met? Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, Model X appears to be on schedule, with a whole day to spare. Musk tweeted that the first deliveries will happen on September 29th.

Source: @elonmusk
Image: Climate State – CC BY-SA 2.0