Tesla’s efforts to conquer the Chinese market have been halted. Allegedly, China is demanding that Tesla’s cars (285,000), which are sold in the country, go through a safety check process.
The competent authority (State Administration of Market Regulation) announced that the decision refers to vehicles manufactured in China (Model 3 and Model Ys) and 35,665 imported vehicles.
Namely, the problem is the possibility of automatic activation of the autopilot, which poses a safety risk because it can lead to a car accident. Fortunately, most security fixes can be done through online updates.
Tesla apologized for the current situation, saying it would upgrade the software for free.
The biggest impact will be on Tesla’s crossover (Model Y), which has a range of 369 miles (594 kilometers), as the main vehicle in conquering the Chinese electric vehicle market, which was also confirmed by Elon Musk.
Tesla hopes that the production of the Model Y could surpass other vehicles. Demand for this crossover could increase as China allowed families to have more children. This was also confirmed by China’s Passenger Car Association, which predicts increased demand for roomier cars.
The starting price of the Chinese Model Ys is $ 53,000.
Source: Bloomberg