Elon Musk teases big Tesla news amid Model Y release date rumours

The entrepreneur posted a series of cryptic tweets from his newly named 'Elon Tusk' Twitter account

Tesla teased an image of the Model Y in 2107 (Tesla)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has teased a major announcement for the electric car maker, prompting speculation that a new vehicle may be unveiled this week.

The serial entrepreneur, who has inexplicably changed his name to Elon Tusk on Twitter, posted a series of cryptic tweets on Wednesday that revealed there would be a Tesla event taking place on Thursday, 28 February, in California.

Tesla has not made a new product announcement in 16 months, when it unveiled the new Roadster and semi-truck. During their unveiling in November 2017, Mr Musk also hinted that a Model Y utility vehicle was also being developed.

In July 2018, Mr Musk revealed in an interview with Bloomberg that the Tesla Model Y was on track for a launch this year.

"We've almost finished the design in the studio of Model Y, and we will probably debut the prototype, you know, roughly in March of next year," he said.

In a May earnings call, Mr Musk gave more titbits about the Model Y, describing it as a "manufacturing revolution" and "incredible from a manufacturing standpoint."

The new vehicle fits into the second part of Mr Musk's "master plan", which he outlined in July 2016.

Part of the plan involved moving beyond cars to offer customers a greater variety of transport options.

"Expand the electric vehicle product line to address all major segments," the plan stated.

One of these vehicles would be an electric utility truck, which some speculative renders suggest could look like a compact pickup truck.

Media outlets in China have previously reported that Tesla is planning to unveil the Model Y at the Auto Shanghai motor show in April.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment on plans for the Model Y.

The latest Tesla news comes amid controversy surrounding Mr Musk, who could be held in contempt if another of his tweets is found to have violated a settlement deal with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

By tweeting about Tesla's manufacturing output without getting approval, he may have breached a 2018 court agreement that any tweet with the potential to affect Tesla's stock price must be pre-approved.