Industry dynamics

Tesla offers insurance subsidies in China that may herald upcoming price cut

Publishtime:2019/08/16 Views:15

For Tesla owners who get deliveries from September 16 to September 30, they can receive a subsidy of RMB 8,000 if they choose to purchase insurance in a Tesla store.

Tesla further cuts wait times for nearly all models in China by 6 weeks-CnEVPost

However, The Paper cited several Tesla salespeople as saying that there are currently a small number of existing cars available for both the Model 3 and Model Y.

While Tesla's offer of an insurance discount does not equate to a cut in vehicle prices, the move has caused some recent buyers to be upset, similar to the price cuts it made previously.

Images circulating on social media show that some owners have formed chat groups to express their resentment over their failure to receive the offer.

The shortened wait times and the latest insurance offer may be related to the significant increase in capacity at Tesla's Shanghai plant.

According to multiple media reports in August, Tesla upgraded its Giga Shanghai production line between late July and early August, and will expand its annual capacity to about 1.1-1.2 million units when the upgrade is complete.

On July 20, Tesla's second quarter earnings report showed that Giga Shanghai now has an annual capacity of more than 750,000 units, making it Tesla's largest factory in the world.

Tesla sold 76,965 China-made vehicles in August, the second highest on record after 78,906 in June, according to data released by the China Passenger Car Association on September 8.

Tesla reportedly eyeing closing some showrooms in expensive locations in China, with greater emphasis on lower-cost suburban stores-CnEVPost

That's up 73.88 percent from 44,264 units a year ago and up 172.76 percent from 28,217 units in July.

In August, Tesla China exported 42,463 vehicles, the highest since production began at Tesla's Shanghai plant. This means that Tesla delivered 34,502 vehicles to Chinese consumers in August.

Tesla reportedly eyeing closing some showrooms in expensive locations in China, with greater emphasis on lower-cost suburban stores