Tesla loses more sales in China as buyers opt for cheaper, tech-laden domestic models

Deliveries by Tesla’s Shanghai factory plunged in April, reversing a short-lived turnaround a month earlier, in the latest sign of the US carmaker’s grim situation in the world’s largest electric-vehicle (EV) market.

The company’s Gigafactory 3 handed 58,459 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles to customers in mainland China and abroad last month, representing a 25.8 per cent drop from March, according to data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) on Wednesday. Deliveries slipped 6 per cent from a year earlier.

“Tesla’s hopes for a sustained rebound in China have faded since competition is getting fiercer,” said Eric Han, a senior manager at Suolei, an advisory firm in Shanghai. “Its Chinese rivals, banking on their new models and aggressive pricing strategies, have lured more consumers.”

The Gigafactory’s first-quarter deliveries – comprising sales to local customers and exports – hit the lowest level in three years, slumping 22 per cent from the same period in 2024 to 172,754 units.

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In February, the plant in Shanghai’s Lingang free-trade zone reported sales of 30,688 units, a decline of 51.5 per cent from January and 49.2 per cent from a year earlier. The February figure was also the lowest since July 2022. But deliveries in March jumped 157 per cent to 78,828 unit after it ramped up production of a refreshed Model Y.

Nearly all Tesla’s major rivals in mainland China posted sizzling sales in April, buoyed by their new models and latest technologies displayed at the Auto Shanghai trade show, the world’s largest such event.

South China Morning Post