Tesla will unveil its long-awaited, much-anticipated Model 3 mass-market vehicle in Los Angeles next week.

Hype around simply seeing the car for the first time has been huge; Tesla shares have undergone a major recovery over the past month, after the stock cratered at the beginning of the year.

The company is now trading well above $200 a share after dropping below $150.

Share-price volatility is nothing new for Tesla. Outside the narrow considerations of the stock, the business itself is spectacularly up-and-down. Making cars is tough, and Tesla is still learning how to make cars.

It's unlikely that the Model 3 "reveal" (that's what these first looks are called in the auto industry) will disappoint anyone. Based on the Model S P85D and the Model X launches last year, it's clear CEO Elon Musk has learned how to be a showman. These were parties rather than press conferences.

We already have the basic profile of the vehicle: It will deliver 200 miles of range on a single battery charge, cost about $35,000 in base form before tax credits and incentives, possess some of that patented Tesla performance, and provide the basic structure for additional vehicles, with a small sedan and a compact SUV to be the first examples.

But with the Model 3, Tesla will also be doing something new and unfamiliar.

Tesla will be compromising.

Tesla MotorsComing soon.

No quarter

With the original Roadster, the Model S, and especially the Model X, Tesla held almost nothing back. The Roadster rebranded electric cars as hot, fast, and sexy. The Model S proved that they could also be luxurious — and hot and fast and sexy. The Model X raised the stakes on the Model S, with exotic "falcon wing" doors, sculptural seats, a massive front windshield, and "Bioweapon Defense Mode" air filtration delivering hospital-grade breathing for passengers.