TMTPost -- Tesla Inc. doubles down price cuts for vehicles and its Full Self-driving (FSD) capability subscriptions as the in-house autonomous technology seems closer to be available in China.
Credit：Tesla
Tesla cut prices of its models in the United States, China, Germany and other major markets from Friday to the weekend. In U.S., Tesla trimmed the Model Y, the Model X and the Model S by US$2,000 on Friday. The cheapest version of the Model Y now costs US$42,990, down to the lowest start price of the sport utility vehicle. The Model Y Long-Range and Performance variants are listed at US$47,990 and US$51,490, respectively. The price of the Model X was dropped to US$77,990, its lowest yet, and its Plaid variant is priced at US$92,900.
Tesla China website showed Sunday that all models on sale in the country were reduced by RMB14,000. The newly revamped Model 3, which is the first major upgrade since the midsize electric vehicle (EV) was first revealed in 2016, is now priced at RMB231,900 (US$32,000) , down from RMB245,900 previously--back to its launch price last September. The Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD), Long-Range and Performance variants now cost RMB249,900, RMB290,900 and RMB354,900, respectively, with the former down to the cheapest its been in at least five years. The Model S Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive (AWD) and Plaid variants were discounted to RMB684,900 and RMB814,900, respectively. The price of the Model Dual Motor AWD fell to RMB724,900, and the Plaid variant to RMB824,900.
In Germany, Tesla lower Sunday the price of the Model 3 RWD variant to 40,990 euros (US$43,670.75) from 42,990 euros, the first reduction since February.Many other countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa also saw price cuts, Reuters cited a Tesla spokesperson.
In addition to the vehicle price, Tesla significantly axed Sunday the prices of its FSD software by more than one third. In U.S. the price of FSD now costs US$8,000, down from the preivous price of US$12,000. The price in Canada dropped to CA$11,000 from CA$16,000. About a week ago, Tesla just slashed FSD monthly subscription price by half to US$99.00 a month after Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his company would keep increasing FSD prices as the system gets better. Musk on Saturday revealed Tesla may soon launch FSD in China. The chief replied to an X post by a user that FSD launch in China “may be possible very soon.”
The worldwide price cuts came as Tesla is striving to boost sales amid cutthroat competition especially in China. , the largest EV market across the world as well the most competitive one. Tesla initiated the year 2024 with a new round of price cuts in China, cutting prices even on its recently updated version of Model 3 sedan. It lowered prices on all the variants of new model 3 and two versions of Model Y on January 12. The price competition extended into last month. Nine auto companies including Tesla, BYD Co. Ltd announced new promotional policies or price cuts on March 1. Later that month, signs of easing price war emerged. Tesla hiked the price increase for all Model Y cars in the United States by US$1,000 on April 1, and a hike or about 2,000 euros for the same model in a number of European countries on March 22. Tesla then confirmed it would raise price for Model Y made in China by RMB5,000 from April 1, a sign that the company began to reverse some of efforts earlier. Considering the insurance subsidy for Model Y will expire on March 31, the price adjustment actually represents an up to RMB23,000 of increase, an official at Tesla China told National Business Daily, a Chinese national financial and economic daily newspaper.
The latest round of price cuts followed by the worse-than-expected delivery Tesla unveiled at the beginning of this month. Tesla posted its first decline in quarterly deliveries in nearly four years and missed Wall Street estimates. The EV maker delivered 386,810 vehicles, deceasing 8.5% from a year ago, versus analysts’ delivery projection of 454,200 units. The last time the company recorded a sales drop was in the second quarter of 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic forced it to shut down production.