SHANGHAI – Tesla is preparing to roll out a revamped version of its smash hit Model Y from its Shanghai plant, according to people familiar with the matter, as domestic rivals accelerate product launches amid heated competition.<\/p>\n
The US electric carmaker is currently conducting preparation work in China for its refreshed Model Y sport utility vehicle and mass production may start as soon as mid-2024, the people said.<\/p>\n
The 2024 version of the Model Y will have much more obvious exterior and interior changes than the most-recent update in October, which added a new wheel design and ambient lighting, the people said, declining to elaborate.<\/p>\n
The first batch of the newest Model Ys will be made during the second phase of Tesla’s Shanghai facility, which will suspend production for around a week during the New Year holiday for a partial upgrade, one of the people said. More adjustments will have to be made prior to mass production, they added.<\/p>\n
A representative for Tesla in China declined to comment.<\/p>\n
Established in 2019, Tesla’s Shanghai factory now produces over half of the electric carmaker’s global deliveries. First rolled out in 2020, the Model Y has proven extremely popular, now ranking among the best-selling EV models worldwide. In China, deliveries of the Model Y accounted for almost 75 per cent of Tesla’s overall sales in the country, data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence shows.<\/p>\n
Tesla’s domestic rivals, including established automakers like BYD and newer entrants such as Xpeng, are unveiling a slew of new vehicles to increase share across various market segments. Shenzhen-based BYD is poised to surpass Tesla as the new worldwide leader in fully electric car sales – likely in the current quarter.<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, Tesla revamped its six-year-old Model 3 sedan with a sleeker look and longer range to attract customers.<\/p>\n
China’s total sales of new-energy vehicles, which includes plug-in hybrids and pure-electric cars, climbed 40 per cent in November from a year earlier – and 8.9 per cent from October – to 841,000 units, according to data released by China’s Passenger Car Association earlier this month. BLOOMBERG<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SHANGHAI – Tesla is preparing to roll out a revamped version of its smash hit Model Y from its Shanghai plant, according to people familiar with the matter, as domestic rivals accelerate product launches amid heated competition. The US electric carmaker is currently conducting preparation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":32173,"menu_order":0,"template":"","acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n