While the West is still in the midst of the corona virus crisis, the recovery has already started in China – from which Tesla apparently profited strongly in March sales and against the industry trend. And as it turns out, the company wants to serve a larger part of the Chinese market from local production with immediate effect: Since Friday, the Tesla website for China has been offering three locally produced variants of the Model 3, including performance, instead of just one.
5200 euros for Tesla with more range
One of them is even particularly efficient and is currently not officially available in Western markets: the Tesla Model 3 with a large battery and only rear-wheel drive (LR RWD), which is a few kilograms lighter than the four-wheel drive variants AWD and Performance and has a slightly longer range Has. In the first half of 2019, it was removed from the Tesla program, but allegedly it could still be ordered with tricks in individual cases.
In China, the rear-wheel drive model with a large battery is now normally available, with a specified range of 668 kilometers, delivered from June 2020. In addition, there is still the standard range plus (SR +) variant as the only one to date in the local area Gigafactory was created; Performance and AWD were imported from the United States. After deducting subsidies and tax benefits, Chinese customers pay 339,000 yuan (US $ 45,000) more for the Tesla Model 3 LR RWD than the SR +, according to the website.
Also Model 3 Performance from China
Finally, the Model 3 Performance is now shown on the website as being produced in China, which also qualifies it for grants such as SR + and LR RWD. It is expected to cost the equivalent of 54,000 euros, but will only be delivered in the first quarter of 2021, according to Tesla. There was no longer an import alternative with an earlier delivery date on the website for China, just as there was no earlier model 3 with a large battery and all-wheel drive (LR AWD) from the USA.
Tesla obviously has some plans in China, but this does not have to be related to the current crisis environment in the West. The first reports of a comeback of the Model 3 LR RWD in China were made in mid-February, and according to Reuters, Tesla received approval in early March for the production of local Model 3 with a large battery including performance.
Batteries for Tesla already from China?
An interesting question is where the battery cells for the many Model 3 variants come from: If, as agreed in 2019, they are already supplied from China by CATL and LG Chem, Tesla could sit out the crisis in the USA much longer with local production than if they still have to be taken from the battery gigafactory in Nevada, which is currently in emergency operation.
–
