Tesla made its grand India entry on July 15 with a showroom launch in Mumbai, which was inaugurated by Mumbai chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. However, what’s caught everyone’s attention is the steep price of its Model Y rear-wheel car – ₹58.89 lakh starting (about $70,000) – the highest price among major markets including EU and China. Its Model Y long-range rear-wheel drive is costlier at $79,000.
The company said it will start taking orders on its website and the car’s deliveries are set to begin in the third quarter. The US automaker will be targeting a segment in India that comprises just 4 per cent of overall sales as Electric Vehicles (EVs) have still not caught on in terms of popularity in the country.
In India, the world’s third-largest vehicle manufacturing country in the world, Tesla will be competing with German luxury auto giants such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz instead of Tata Motors and Mahindra, local mass EV makers.
Also Read: CM Fadnavis inaugurates Tesla's first showroom in India
With plans to open a factory in India shelved, Tesla will have to make do with importing cars here, even though Musk has criticised India for steep tariffs and related duties that exceed 100 per cent.
The company now grapples with exceeding manufacturing in global factories and declining sales, leaving it with no choice than to try its luck in India, despite the duties and levies.
In the United States, the car’s starting price is $44,990; in China, it’s 263,500 yuan ($36,700); and in Germany, 45,970 euros ($53,700).
India and the US remain engaged in talks to lower the levies under a trade deal that they say will be finalised before August 1.
The firm's Full Self-Driving (FSD) capability is on offer at an additional cost of 600,000 rupees, with promises to enable operations in the future that require minimal driver intervention.
Maharashtra CM Fadnavis said during the launch that he wished to see R&D and manufacturing done in India. “I am sure at an appropriate stage Tesla will think about it," he said.
The company has another showroom planned in Delhi next.
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