Tesla has once again raised the prices of its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. While Tesla tweaking pricing is not a new phenomenon, 2021 has seen a surprising number of changes, with both price increases and price cuts applied in the first few months.

Electric vehicle news site Electrek has been tracking the changes, noting that the cheapest Tesla is now priced at $38,990, up $500 from the previous list price of $38,490 for the Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus. The Model 3 Long Range AWD jumped from $47,490 to $47,990. The Model 3 Performance was not raised and remained unchanged at $56,990. The $1,200 destination charge is not included in these price increases.

The above changes mark the fifth price change in 2021: in February, the company cut $1,000 from the prices of its Standard Range Plus and Performance models. Aside from the performance models becoming more expensive, these cars are now back to their prices at the beginning of the year.

Meanwhile, the Model Y now offers only two options, with the performance model remaining at $60,990. The Long Range AWD went from $50,490 to $50,990. With the last change, the performance model was also kept at the previous price and has remained stable at this level for some time.

It is difficult to know exactly why Tesla makes so many small price adjustments. Perhaps they are taking into account changes in component costs. They may be reacting to sales volume or some other factor. If this upward trend continues, customers interested in the car may want to consider purchasing it sooner rather than later.

Tesla is about to launch a new version of the Model S. This model will start at $79,990, with the Plaid model at $119,990 and the Plaid+ at a whopping $149,990. Tesla is taking orders for the 2021 models, but it appears that the first cars will not be delivered for several months yet. Tesla's website currently says 10-14 weeks. Tesla claims that this new top-of-the-line model can achieve a top speed of 200 mph, 0-60 acceleration of less than 2 seconds, and a range of 520 miles.