Tesla will show us the Model X prototype by the end of the year

Tesla revealed plans to end production of the Tesla Roadster this December in a filing that it submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. However, the remaining inventory of Tesla Roadsters will continue to sell in the first half of 2012. Tesla also said that it will unveil a prototype of the Model X crossover by the end of 2011, according to InsideLine. Tesla said that the Model X is functional like a minivan but will have the appeal of a sports-utility vehicle.

It also said that the electric powertrain designed for the Tesla Roadster offers the “foundational technology for the Model S, the Model X and for electric powertrain components” that Tesla has “has begun selling to Daimler and its affiliates that (Tesla) intends to sell to Toyota." In late 2010, Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed that the Model X, a battery-powered crossover, will be introduced in 2014 – roughly two years after the midsize Model S sedan is scheduled to be launched in the middle of 2012. Last summer, Tesla told investors (before the IPO) that it plans to make four derivatives from the Model S platform. The midsize sedan is the initial car.

A convertible, a van, and a crossover/SUV will follow. Tesla implies in its latest SEC filing that the Model X is the product of combining plans for the van and the crossover. The filing also states that Tesla needs funds to develop the Model X and so it plans to offer 5.3 million shares more to the public. Tesla has shipped about 1,650 Tesla Roadsters to over 31 countries. With regards to the Model S sedan, Tesla said that several “drivable prototypes” have already been completed and that deliveries will start in mid-2012. [via - 4wheelsnews]