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Tesla Model Y Standard Range Will Sell Like Hot Cakes In China

Tesla is now offering the Model Y standard range in China. The implications of this are significant as the cost is greatly reduced from the Model Y long range. Let's look into this more!

Looking at Tesla's China website, we can see that the Model Y is being offered in the standard range version in China. The implications of this are profound.

Why Was Model Y Standard Range Brought Back?

Considering that the U.S. version of the Model Y standard range was removed, why has China brought it back? The version in the U.S. only had 244 miles listed for its range. Let's take a look at what the Model Y standard range offers for China:

Price:$44,523 (276,000 CNY) - $2,440 subsidy
Range:326 miles (525 km)
Speed:0-60 mph (0-100 kmh) in 5.6 seconds
Battery:CATL's LFP (lithium iron phosphate) battery

After the subsidy, the made in China Model Y standard range is about $7,000 more expensive than a U.S. Tesla Model 3 standard range.

I believe that the Model Y standard range is being brought back because Tesla has figured out a way to get much more range than it was before and can offer it at a lower cost, which will drive volumes of purchases to increase. It just makes business sense if they can truly pull off the 326 miles of range.

What Does the Model Y Long Range AWD and Performance Versions in China Look Like?

Made in China Model Y Long Range AWD

Price:$53,600 (347,900 CNY)
Range:369 miles (594 km)
Speed:0-60 mph (0-100 kmh) in 5.0 seconds
Battery:LG Chem battery

Made in China Model Y Long Range Performance

Price:$58,222 (377,900 CNY)
Range:298 miles (480 km)
Speed:0-60 mph (0-100 kmh) in 3.7 seconds
Battery:LG Chem battery

The acceleration and speed of the Made in China Model Y Long Range Performance is much better, but it has a little less range than the other models.

Look for Increased Sales in China for the Model Y Standard Range

Due to the greatly decreased cost of the Model Y standard range, look for there to be a bump in China sales of this vehicle.

Nio's ES6 SUV starts at just over $55,000 and is going to have to find a way to reduce costs if it is going to compete with Tesla's Model Y standard range. Nio's ES6 SUV is about $11,000 more expensive! I think NIO is a great company, but it has its work cut out for it.

I also wonder if the reason the Model Y standard in China has the 326 miles of range is because of the batteries from CATL or some other improvement made to the vehicle. The range is over 80 miles more than the previous U.S. version that was removed from Tesla's website.

What do you think about the new made in China Model Y standard range? Will it sell like hot cakes? Are there any comparable vehicles to it?

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Jeremy Johnson is a Tesla investor and supporter. He first invested in Tesla in 2017 after years of following Elon Musk and admiring his work ethic and intelligence. Since then, he's become a Tesla bull, covering anything about Tesla he can find, while also dabbling in other electric vehicle companies. Jeremy covers Tesla developments at Torque News. You can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram to stay in touch and follow his Tesla news coverage on Torque News.

Comments

DeanMcManis (not verified)    July 9, 2021 - 3:55AM

The Chinese LR and Performance Model Ys do not use CATL's LFP batteries. Only the SR model does, which is the biggest reason why it has a lower price, in addition to RWD. The upmarket versions use LG's ternary lithium-ion batteries. Soon the upmarket Model Ys will use LG's NCMA batteries. They could have stuffed more LFP batteries into the battery case, but likely the real reason why the mileage is higher on the China Model Y SR, is that they use the NEDC rating method which is unrealistically high compared to the EPA's mileage test numbers.