[no_fear]

Originally Posted by avira_tk

I'm not sure how this is directed at me, I support the Chinese policy, and factory of the world was a compliment, not sure how you interpreted it as slur.

No offense taken and not interpreted as slur. I was offering my counter argument to your statement as I did not understand that you were complimenting China's approach. My apologies, and all is good.

[f1fan5]

I'll be simple. Cars are taxed heavily for a reason. Both imported luxury cars and mass market cars will be taxed the same way if imported. Luxury cars are taxed for obvious reasons. Mass market cars are taxed because otherwise the foreign OEMs will just dump their imported cars and will not set up any local manufacturing hub. And when will many OEMs like to setup manufacturing plants in India? When there will be enough demand. When will there be enough demand? When after a few years our economy will be much bigger hence more disposable income in the hands of the people. Till then we should use what we manufacture ourselves and people who can afford it buy their imported cars. And not make our country a foreign import dependent automobile market. We are not that good at electronics manufacturing but we are quite good at automobile manufacturing (both 2 wheelers and 4 wheelers). We also have a healthy automobile export business. Let's not lose that. You can read about how there isn't a single car manufaturing factory left in Australia. Although they had very different reasons behind it still its a good read.

[sameerg]

Are we reading too much into Elon's tweet? It's not like he tweeted organically asking for duty cut. Someone asked him when is tesla coming to India, and he replied saying sth like import duties are too much right now, hopefully they will reduce.

Seems to me like a simple question and answer interaction on Twitter. Am not aware of what Hyundai said but doesn't seem like musk making a statement asking for duty cuts.

Ps: not a tesla fan boy,

[starke]

What everyone should understand is that Elon isn't a 100% perfect businessman with the know-how of everything, He can be wrong or true, but every outcome is not a one-man army, but a collective decision making. We should ignore his tweets as it does not really always project the TSLA Inc strategies.

Coming to the tax cut, to push electric mobility in India to meet the emission targets of both local (NGT) or global (Paris agreement) we don't need Tesla's or EQS or any premium EVs, what we need is mass-market EV adoption. A 5-10 Lakh budget-oriented car with an adequate range of 200 to 250 kms.

A similar strategy in our FAME policy, a tax cut can be set based on the energy capacity of the battery as well as the segment/price. The market is entirely different from US/EU with India, so giving a tax cut to Tesla doesn't make any sense at all.

To conclude, China is actually the biggest EV market in the world, before we criticise their cheap products which are actually selected by our own India based resellers to get maximum profit out of it, we can't blame Chinese products as a whole. There are plenty of EV technologies in the Chinese market which are of good quality and value for money which will help us to improve our electric mobility share. Here the battery side should be kept at tax cut as this is something which India doesn't have and will not have in another 5 years (What we have is all resellers and assy line which doesn't makes sense) and all other parts to be made locally in India (aligned with FAME)


There should be tax cuts on EV, but should enhance the mass adoption, not for the premium segment minor percentage to do 0-100 in 2 seconds in our Indian roads.

[landcruiser123]

I think there should be duty cuts to for the first few thousand vehicles per brand. This will allow brands to test the waters and early adopters will (hopefully) buy the EVs.

If there is a warm response from the market, the brands will start exploring options for domestic production as they would not want their car prices to double overnight once they hit their quota.

[sidharthg]

I also disagree with Elon. As much as he is a genius boy, this request is quite bizarre! Considering the cost of a Tesla car, it will anyway will be out of reach for most of the people. Even at US$35000 for Tesla Model 3 or Y, they would cost more than Rs. 40 Lacs easily.

We should focus on building Made in India tech. In fact, the govt should consider cutting taxes considerably on Made in India EVs with more than 80% localization or stage wise incentives. This will definitely propel the industry and help in faster adoption of EVs.

We really need to get out of the Chinese Shadow and its dumps! We need to carve our own way I guess!

IMHO, the current subsidies being granted are way too less. The cars need to be cheaper, the GST on EVs should not be more than 18%, the volumes at the moment are so less, that it will barely put a dent on Ex-Chequer's collection even if they reduce GST. In fact, the increase in volumes will only add to the kitty.

[aashishnb]

On a lighter note, why is Elon getting all fussed up about.
Ola is building such a massive factory just for you - go ahead and outsource your manufacturing to them

[Shresth_EV]

Originally Posted by starke

To conclude, China is actually the biggest EV market in the world, before we criticise their cheap products which are actually selected by our own India based resellers to get maximum profit out of it, we can't blame Chinese products as a whole. There are plenty of EV technologies in the Chinese market which are of good quality and value for money which will help us to improve our electric mobility share. Here the battery side should be kept at tax cut as this is something which India doesn't have and will not have in another 5 years (What we have is all resellers and assy line which doesn't makes sense) and all other parts to be made locally in India (aligned with FAME)

Rightly said. You can boycott them, but you cannot ignore them.

Our electric bus fleets are already dominated by BYD, surpassing Tata electric buses in sales due to superior specs for price. I have personal insight into this because my father is in UPSRTC at SRM post and most of the tenders floated for ebuses were fulfilled by BYD units.

People mock Chinese for copypasta but the way I see it, is don’t fix what ain’t broken. They save massively on design and divert the saved funds to to other components that actually matter (battery/motor/BMS/charger). I recently saw this Ecosport copy from BYD, Yuan Pro EV. At near same price as Nexon EV (converted from RMB), you get 50kWh battery, and the vehicle itself is almost same size as a creta.

So its larger than Nexon in space. While sure, build quality and crash safety is still a looming question, as with most Chinese vehicles, but you gotta admit that they nail some things bang on. So what they copied?

Originally Posted by sidharthg

I also disagree with Elon. As much as he is a genius boy, this request is quite bizarre! Considering the cost of a Tesla car, it will anyway will be out of reach for most of the people. Even at US$35000 for Tesla Model 3 or Y, they would cost more than Rs. 40 Lacs easily.

We should focus on building Made in India tech. In fact, the govt should consider cutting taxes considerably on Made in India EVs with more than 80% localization or stage wise incentives. This will definitely propel the industry and help in faster adoption of EVs.

We really need to get out of the Chinese Shadow and its dumps! We need to carve our own way I guess!

IMHO, the current subsidies being granted are way too less. The cars need to be cheaper, the GST on EVs should not be more than 18%, the volumes at the moment are so less, that it will barely put a dent on Ex-Chequer's collection even if they reduce GST. In fact, the increase in volumes will only add to the kitty.

GST on EVs is 5%. But imported EV components are still charged in 18-28% bracket.

————————————————————————

My personal take on the main issue in the thread is that people are missing some points

1. Elon didn’t explicitly ask for duty cuts on twitter, but Reuters did say that Tesla was lobbying for it (means the company in official backdoor channels with government, not the stupid threads on Twitter cesspit)

2. The lobbying is for a temporary period. Not a permanent duty cut. For the un-initiated, even the present EVs subsidies/tax cuts by GOI/state governments are temporary. Most are set to expire by 2023, unless extended like FAME II was.

I agree to the gentleman who said about allowing import of only set amount (let’s say until first 1000 units, pay 20% import, for more than that, back to usual import slabs)

3. You must look at the bigger picture. Tesla’s present lineup may not be the most budget friendly, but the upcoming $25K “model 2” is what the masterplan in Asia is all about. In USA, it’s the cybertruck. In Asia, it’s this.

I’d go as further as to say that the only reason Tesla is entering market right now with model 3 (a relatively more premium model) than entering Indian market when they have that car ready to launch, is creating a premium image beforehand.

Apple always sold premium devices until 2016 with iPhone SE. They waited to create an image and then used that image to sell less premium products. Selling a premium phone is difficult for Xiaomi. Much less for Samsung or apple. Bottom-Up doesn’t work well because of image issue ingrained in people. Top-down works well — it worked for Tesla. It worked for apple. It worked for Samsung.

I believe their factory strategy would play out similar to Apple. Foxconn-GoI talks started way back in 2015 but mass production of devices didn’t start until 2019. Still, it’s the lower end models being made — XR, 11 and SE. Flagships still don’t.

They may be cribbing right now but that’s just how we crib for negotiation with vendors, don’t we?

GOI demand : Make a factory and assemble here

Tesla demand : Let us sell EVs at lower import duty than ICE vehicles for temporary period

We already know testing of Model 3 is underway, they already know they’d be importing and selling the Model 3. We shouldn’t pretend as if Tesla is still hopeful that GoI will give in to the demands.

This temporary period they’re requesting is most likely the timeline they’d want to launch the $25K model. Only then, they’d make a factory. The time frame for this model is 2023 acc to 2020 Tesla Battery Day.

Tesla will not build a factory before 2023. Tesla will not build the model 3 in that factory (if/when it is finished) either. All this cribbing is for the $25K model. That is the business model of all higher end products in India. The most bleeding edge products are imported. The products positioned lowest are assembled.

[CarJunki]

There is no possibility of competent BEV at lower price points today in Indian market. The current products available are not confidence inspiring.

So unless there is some cost and technology leader willing to plonk money without any sort of visibility into the market dynamics, this market is not going to get competent products. Consumers will continue to suffer with poor products and offerings.

Does India need low emission vehicles? Yes, sure and more than low emission India needs product at lower end of total cost of ownership. Petroleum-powered automobiles are not helping with this.


Duties and all such structures should be uniform for the entire industry.

[pradeepkc]

I for one support EV duty reduction to domestic rates in EV and EV Parts upto 1 Lakh units. That would definitely create a good competitive environment and kick start the supply chain. Especially for EV, we don't manufacturer most components like cells, ICs, sensors, display etc. If anything, I will say that SIAM, Ola and Tata is scared of the competition. They know Tesla's EV engineering know-how and manufacturing efficiency is far ahead of them.

[nimblemaster]

I'm an Elon fan, but for a change, I agree with Mr. Bhavish from Ola here. He's fought a lot of battles with international money and international players, like Uber, thorughout his company's existence.
If India has to flourish, it must be on the backbone of manufacturing and bringing work into India, and not mere imports, which arrive through a reduced import duty structure. Reducing the duty won't serve any purpose other than to increase the number of imported vehicles in the country. That would in turn, fill the coffers of billionaires like Mr. Musk and the owners of Hyundai, who in their self interest, are calling for the change in the tariff structure.
Rather, Indian manufacturers like Tata should be promoted, so that may be able to compete with Tesla on the global stage. India already does this with a mere 5% GST on electric vehicles, subsidies and reduced road taxes.
As for Tesla, if they are serious about India, they must set up factories here and tie up with local vendors to ensure they fall in line. The costs will automatically reduce since the tariff structure won't hit them as hard and the Indian economy benefits too. What say Mr. Musk?

[AROO7]

[quote=anjan_c2007;5112213]Elon Musk had just a few days ago expressed concern on import duties for imported EV's saying it was amongst the highest in the world. He had contented that duties on EV's and ICE vehicles were the same and this treatment meted out to clean energy vehicles was unjust.

It is pointless incentivizing Tesla at the moment based on the fact that Tesla or for that matter EVs that will run in India can actually be termed as clean energy vehicles. Because the major source of electricity generation in India is still through Thermal plants.

Here is the sector-wise breakup-
https://powermin.gov.in/en/content/p...ance-all-india

Add to this the EVs produce more in their manufacturing cycle than conventional cars further diluting the argument.

Here is another link that covers the above argument in brief-
https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/tech/e...electric-cars/

To be honest it feels more like Elon Musk is trying to cash in on the opportunity.

[officer416]

Originally Posted by pradeepkc

I for one support EV duty reduction to domestic rates in EV and EV Parts upto 1 Lakh units. That would definitely create a good competitive environment and kick start the supply chain. Especially for EV, we don't manufacturer most components like cells, ICs, sensors, display etc. If anything, I will say that SIAM, Ola and Tata is scared of the competition. They know Tesla's EV engineering know-how and manufacturing efficiency is far ahead of them.

I don't think Tata has any reason to be scared of Tesla. It's like saying Maruti Suzuki is scared of Mercedes Benz expanding in India. In fact Tata has the same advantage that Tesla had in US. Nexon EV is proper EV in India that is gaining sales, with 650 units sold in June.

Tata has dealerships and service centers all over India with most dealerships getting equipped with Fast Charging thanks to collaboration with Tata power. Tesla focus on opening its own showrooms and no way it will open as many showrooms or service centers like Tata.

Tesla doesn't sell spare parts in the market, it limits what owners can purchase extra from them, forget about body parts as only Tesla approved body shops get access to parts, that too against the VIN of the vehicle and they have to order the parts as Tesla never avails them surplus.

Build quality of Tesla is strictly average especially for Model 3 and Model Y, the panel gaps are ridiculous and its been years now that they are making Model 3 yet they cannot fix the gap between the taillights. Paint quality is mediocre at best with paint chipping like no tomorrow. Elon himself said that once Giga Berlin is ready the paint quality and build quality will improve significantly. I don't think buyers in India no matter how big fanboys they are will want a 50 lac car with rattles. When I drove mine from the store, the rear seat was rattling like my swift did when I bought it.

People waiting for $25000 Model 2 are just dreaming at this point. Tesla launched a standard range model 3 @ $35000 but never listed it on their website. You had to go through the Tesla store to get one as it was off menu. But the discontinued that because it wasn't profitable for them. They use it as a marketing gimmick to get people excited and upsell customers to higher priced variants. That $25000 Model 2 will be $30000 plus when it comes in 2025. They are already behind on Roadster, Tesla Semi, Cybertruck. The solid state/tabless still aren't ready, no wonder they cancelled the Plaid+ with promised range of 1000 miles.

The technology that they have better is the heat pump and the octa valve. Heat pump is a boon in winters as it doesn't suck that much battery to maintain heat. Check out Lucid designed motor, its more compact than Tesla and well engineered.

Also for people saying EV's are expensive in India because of taxes, that's not true, EV's are expensive because of the technology at this point of time and the supply constraints when sourcing batteries. Batteries are a hot commodity right now and also very expensive. Elon himself talks about it every other day that we need to get the battery pricing down in order to make EV's more affordable. He hasn't been able to do so yet, nor anybody else. If you see the constant price increases in across Tesla models you will see that its no different than what Indian OEMS are doing. While reducing features from the car, most recently removing lumbar support from Model Y's. Just because data showed the that customers don't use it, I mean seriously?

By the time Tesla will think of setting up factory in India Tata and other OEMs will be far ahead of the curve as Indian buyers are different. Tesla is a premium brand, can't expect them to do numbers like Tata and Hyundai in India. Wait till Suzuki jumps into EV space, its going to be the same story what is with ICE vehicles right now.

One member posted that Model 2 is being developed for Asian markets, unfortunately it is being developed keeping the European market in mind. Elon stated himself that it will be designed by the team in Giga Berlin for European market because Europeans like their hot hatches . Indians won't be keen to buy a hot hatch for 20+ lac, unless he is a enthusiast.
Secondly, there is no guarantee that Tesla will have a Giga factory here in India when China is so close, Norway has the highest numbers of Teslas on the road, still Tesla never even considered it as a place to setup a manufacturing facility.

If Tesla wanted they could have done contract manufacturing with Jeep in India or enter a deal with Ford. Tesla already sells them credits in Europe to mitigate the European emissions penalty, so they have strong relationship with lot of manufacturers. CKD would be a good option as well.

[Shresth_EV]

Originally Posted by officer416

People waiting for $25000 Model 2 are just dreaming at this point. Tesla launched a standard range model 3 @ $35000 but never listed it on their website. You had to go through the Tesla store to get one as it was off menu. But the discontinued that because it wasn't profitable for them. They use it as a marketing gimmick to get people excited and upsell customers to higher priced variants.

That $25000 Model 2 will be $30000 plus when it comes in 2025. They are already behind on Roadster, Tesla Semi, Cybertruck. The solid state/tabless still aren't ready, no wonder they cancelled the Plaid+ with promised range of 1000 miles.

Firstly, even if you would put a 1000cc engine in a 330i, it doesn’t make it much cheaper than with base engine. Only marginally. That model 3 didn’t even have a different battery pack. Tesla simply soft locked the capacity to only give 220mi range.

It was not listed because it was not a “good look” for the brand due to being less than the “250mi/400km” range promise.

Secondly, when you’d look at a physically smaller car, prices will already come down due to material. It has been explicitly said that the said “model 2” will be smaller than model 3. The same way a 2 series is objectively cheaper but also less feature rich than a 3 series.

Thirdly, the cost reduction is of course, meant to come from production optimisations like 4680, stamping, and at car level, smaller battery for 400km range, by virtue of smaller vehicle size. Would a higher trim venture into $30K pricing? Surely.

Lack of 4680 is the reason for not meeting 520mi target set by plaid+. Plaid+ was never said to go 1000mi. It’s the roadster which was claimed to go 620mi. There was never a 1000mi claim.

As for cancellation of Model S Plaid+, it’s not just the 4680 issue, but the second and more important reason being the product placement of Roadster. How do you upsell a $200K 2+2 roadster over a $120K full size sedan?

1. The Model S would hover too close in performance to Roadster. The tri-motor plaid powertrain is very similar to what was originally described for Roadster.

2. The model S would still have advantage of being more practical on trunk and interior space, besides the lower cost.

One member posted that Model 2 is being developed for Asian markets, unfortunately it is being developed keeping the European market in mind. Elon stated himself that it will be designed by the team in Giga Berlin for European market because Europeans like their hot hatches . Indians won't be keen to buy a hot hatch for 20+ lac, unless he is a enthusiast.

Yes, that’s me. It is going to be developed for Asian as well as EU markets, because they’re not the same car. You’re not upto speed here.

GigaShanghai and Berlin will make separate models

In fact, the news about this cheaper “model 2” came out from China first, even before Tesla battery day in Sep2020 when it was confirmed that such a model would exist in future. The linked job posting information was released in China in Jun2020.

The dots were connected later, that the original job posting must’ve been for the mystery “25K EV” Tesla showed on a slide at battery day.

Secondly, there is no guarantee that Tesla will have a Giga factory here in India when China is so close, Norway has the highest numbers of Teslas on the road, still Tesla never even considered it as a place to setup a manufacturing facility.

There’s a difference between GigaFactory and Assembly plant. There was never a hint that Tesla would make batteries in India. Or motors. It was always GoI ministers’ statements on PLI schemes and “OpEd” articles which said it.

In fact, present trajectory doesn’t look like preparation for a giga factory at all. It will be an assembly plant. There a lot of RHD markets in our proximity. There will soon be various types of subtle bullying of Tesla in China due to local players like Nio and XPeng.

People on hand say the Tesla valuation is too high for gross car sales compared to VW/Toyota and setting up factories is seen as “not needed here, we already have it in X location”.

At this point, when you yourself accept that so many models are in pipeline with no light of day, more factories only eases up the pressure.

[officer416]

Originally Posted by Shresth_EV

Firstly, even if you would put a 1000cc engine in a 330i, it doesn’t make it much cheaper than with base engine. Only marginally. That model 3 didn’t even have a different battery pack. Tesla simply soft locked the capacity to only give 220mi range.

It was not listed because it was not a “good look” for the brand due to being less than the “250mi/400km” range promise.

Firstly, it wasn't just about the battery pack, but interior and exterior were missing lot of features as well. It was a barebone car that was announced as an "affordable" variant but because margins were low so it was cancelled. In fact that cars had the most pre-orders when they were open. It was never about "Good Look" because when you get to pick between Standard Range, Standard Range+, Long Range and Performance, you can see the range right there on the menu. They always wanted to sell the Standard Range+ to the customer. That's like saying if Apple lists a 64 gig model of the iPhone along with 128, 256 or 512 variants that's not a good look for Apple. Not everybody is looking for top variant. People want options and when it was there people were opting for it because for most people it was good enough. That's why they pre-ordered it in the first place.

Secondly, when you’d look at a physically smaller car, prices will already come down due to material. It has been explicitly said that the said “model 2” will be smaller than model 3. The same way a 2 series is objectively cheaper but also less feature rich than a 3 series.
Thirdly, the cost reduction is of course, meant to come from production optimisations like 4680, stamping, and at car level, smaller battery for 400km range, by virtue of smaller vehicle size. Would a higher trim venture into $30K pricing? Surely.

Secondly, the pricing will come down but not drastically. A $25000 variant will be just like another $35000 Model 3 variant that will take forever to launch and will be killed off silently. Even if I take your example of BMW 2 series and BMW 3 series, the difference between two cars is of Rs 4,70,000. That comes to over $6000. If we take into the account inflation, rise of input cost and most importantly a significant increase in demand for batteries throughout the world, the cost will only rise further. 4680 alone won't bring down the cost, the only way cost can come down is experimenting with different battery chemistries. In electric vehicles its not the shell that is expensive, its the battery technology.

Also Giga Press is already in action in US and Model Y is using stamped components. It was launched at $51,000 and currently retails at $53,990. Yeah, no cost reductions were ever passed to customers.
In fact this was raised to Elon on twitter by a user,

Ryan
@Ryanth3nerd 31 May
I really don't like the direction @tesla is going raising prices of vehicles but removing features like lumbar for the Model Y. On top of rumors of FSD increase to $14k without any real added features to FSD unless you're a beta tester.

Elon Musk
@elonmusk 1 Jun
Moving lumbar was removed only in front passenger seat of 3/Y (obv not there in rear seats). Logs showed almost no usage. Not worth cost/mass for everyone when almost never used.
Prices increasing due to major supply chain price pressure industry-wide. Raw materials especially.

Lack of 4680 is the reason for not meeting 520mi target set by plaid+. Plaid+ was never said to go 1000mi. It’s the roadster which was claimed to go 620mi. There was never a 1000mi claim.

I made an error with writing 1000 miles, I wanted to write 1000km, give or take the range will be around 850 to 900 km, but knowing Tesla they will aim for 1000 km range. When Lucid announced that their Lucid Air sedan can do 517 miles on a single charge, Elon was quick to respond Tesla is working on a 1000 km battery technology. At one point he even reduced the pricing of Model S to $69,000 when Lucid announced their pricing just to counter them. Now the same Long Range Model S retails for over $77,000.

During his trip to Germany he mentioned "Our longest-range vehicles have over 600 kilometers of range, and there's more we could actually do," Musk said. "We even have some under development long term that could do 1,000 kilometers."

As for cancellation of Model S Plaid+, it’s not just the 4680 issue, but the second and more important reason being the product placement of Roadster. How do you upsell a $200K 2+2 roadster over a $120K full size sedan?

1. The Model S would hover too close in performance to Roadster. The tri-motor plaid powertrain is very similar to what was originally described for Roadster.

2. The model S would still have advantage of being more practical on trunk and interior space, besides the lower cost.

Tesla Roaster will be completely different to what was showcased during the launch. Just like a customer who wants to buy a Lambo Huracan will not buy a Lambo Urus, similarly Roadster customer won't buy Model S. Also same question was asked to Elon on twitter and this was his response:


Toby Li @tobyliiiiiiiiii Sep 23, 2020
Replying to @Tesla
So if Model S Plaid has all the specs a Roadster would have, what would be the incentive to buy a Roadster? I'm just really curious here

Elon Musk
@elonmusk Sep 23, 2020
Roadster will be better

Also Roadster is coming with a SpaceX package, which they have to introduce to earn extra revenue as well from current booking holders. The amount of free Roadsters they have to give away to the referral program winners, it will be a good option to get some money from those free roadster holders. He mentioned roadster will have insane performance and can even lift off for short duration.

Elon Musk 21 May 2021
Yes, with the SpaceX rocket thruster option package. It will be safe, but very intense. Probably not wise for those with a medical condition – same as a hardcore roller coaster.

The Model S Plaid+ was solely cancelled because the 4680 cells weren't ready. In fact this is what Elon said in the earnings call in April 2021.

"We're not quite yet at the point where we think the cells are reliable enough to be shipped in cars, but we're getting close to that point.”

A little after that, he gave his estimate for when that would happen.

“And basically, this is just a guess because we don't know for sure, but it appears as though we're about 12 – probably not more than 18 months away from volume production of the 4680. Now, at the same time, we are actually trying to have our cell supply of partners ramp up their supply as much as possible. So this is not something that is to the exclusion of suppliers. It is in conjunction with suppliers. So we want to be super clear about that. This is not about replacing suppliers. It is about supplementing the suppliers.”

The Plaid is still using the old 18650 cells, businesses can make as many PR statements as they want, but matter of fact is not everybody falls for that. People can see through it when things don't align. No wonder people say there is regular time and then there is Elon time which he follows. It's not the first time he has made claims and then backed off. We are still waiting for FSD and Robo Taxis that should have been here years ago. I love the guy but sometimes he gets way too ahead of himself.

Yes, that’s me. It is going to be developed for Asian as well as EU markets, because they’re not the same car. You’re not upto speed here.

GigaShanghai and Berlin will make separate models

In fact, the news about this cheaper “model 2” came out from China first, even before Tesla battery day in Sep2020 when it was confirmed that such a model would exist in future. The linked job posting information was released in China in Jun2020.

The dots were connected later, that the original job posting must’ve been for the mystery “25K EV” Tesla showed on a slide at battery day.

Unfortunately with all due respect you are not up to speed here. Tesla or Elon never mentioned that a hatchback will be manufactured in China. He said both factories will develop original products. But for Europe he specifically mentioned this:

It's not easy to park a Tesla Model X in Berlin, Elon Musk recently learned, which led the CEO to hint at a compact model for European markets.

"In Europe it would make sense to do a compact car, perhaps a hatchback or something like that," Musk said at a conference Tuesday, adding that cars in the US tend to be larger.

"If you're trying to park in a dense urban environment, having a car that actually fits in parking spaces is important," he said. "I was driving around Berlin and in quite a bit of trouble finding a parking space where we could fit."
Musk also hinted that Tesla could soon hire designers and engineers in Europe as its factory in Germany nears completion. The company also plans to eventually produce batteries there alongside cars.

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/25/elon...r-europe-.html
https://www.businessinsider.in/theli...w/79396386.cms

What you are referring to is a render that was posted on WeChat which was like an ad to hire designers. It was never mentioned anywhere that a compact car is planned for China, not even in the article you posted. Hatchbacks don't do well in China, but Golf and Corsa are best selling cars in Europe and UK.

https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-is-h...tric-vehicles/

Such renders have been floating for Cybertruck too but it never looked anything like the renders.

There’s a difference between GigaFactory and Assembly plant. There was never a hint that Tesla would make batteries in India. Or motors. It was always GoI ministers’ statements on PLI schemes and “OpEd” articles which said it.

Gigafactory is an assembly plant too, Tesla is not producing any batteries at Giga Shanghai and is sourcing batteries from local suppliers. Tesla Fremont Factory produces batteries as well but isn't called a Gigafactory. So having assembly line regardless if they produce batteries or not is irrelevant. As I said in my previous post, the could have gone the CKD route and take over factory from Ford or contract manufacturer their cars.

In fact, present trajectory doesn’t look like preparation for a giga factory at all. It will be an assembly plant. There a lot of RHD markets in our proximity. There will soon be various types of subtle bullying of Tesla in China due to local players like Nio and XPeng.

People on hand say the Tesla valuation is too high for gross car sales compared to VW/Toyota and setting up factories is seen as “not needed here, we already have it in X location”.

At this point, when you yourself accept that so many models are in pipeline with no light of day, more factories only eases up the pressure.

A factory in India would have been ideal, but if they are not aggressive in Indian market, they won't succeed.