Long queues to check out the Tesla Model 3 in store

Announced almost two years ago there has been a lot of interest in Telsa’s first mass-produced small car the Model 3, to the point where almost half a million people have laid down the $1,500 deposit to secure a place in the queue for one when they are produced.

But just what will the car look like? What will it feel to sit inside?

Strangely, even when production started Tesla chose to begin deliveries to those at the top of the list without even putting display units into their retail stores.

They are on the roads – we saw one just this week in Los Angeles – and as someone who actually put down the cash it’s really interesting to see in the flesh.

So today, at Century City Westfield in LA it was almost no surprise to see a huge queue of people outside the Tesla store to see one of only two display cars in a retail store.

Palo Alto is the only other Tesla location with a Model 3 on display, and with money down people are keen to sit inside, and others keen to get their first look and perhaps get their own space in the queue.

The demand is strong, but whether that results in sales is another thing – the timeframe between reserving a place in the queue and taking delivery could be three to four years, and with so many other amazing cars available at the roughly $60,000 price-tag of the Tesla Model 3, many may not be prepared to wait.