Tesla Cars Won't Be Cheap-Even With Imaginary Zero Tariffs

Tesla currently makes the Model 3 and the Model Y as its most affordable cars but neither compete price wise with Mahindra or Tata EVs or any EV in the premium segment

With imports, Tesla will test the market for now while it expands its footprint to India

Source : Somnath Chatterjee

 Tesla is in the premium space and its cars compete with high-end car brands while not quite being the affordable EV that everyone in India is hoping for. The most affordable Tesla is the Model 3 and that will still cost a lot if it goes on sale without any tariffs while with duties, it will rival the likes of the BMW 3 Series in India.

Tesla currently makes the Model 3 and the Model Y as its most affordable cars but neither compete price wise with Mahindra or Tata EVs or any EV in the premium segment or even the mass market as they are luxury EVs. While Tesla is firming up plans for India with its first showroom, the imported Tesla cars would be pricey for sure although it will attract buyers from the premium and luxury space. The more affordable sub 21 lakh will not happen anytime soon right now as the Model 3 assembled in India cannot cost that for sure.

Hence, the expected pricing will mean more than domestic players like Tata or Mahindra, the competition for Tesla would be EVs from BMW and Mercedes-Benz along with BYD. With imports, Tesla will test the market for now while it expands its footprint to India where the luxury space is still quite small when compared to the rest of the auto segment. As of now, all eyes are on the Tesla launch in India with imported cars but it remains to be seen how Tesla plans to move ahead in growing its market share in India.