Tesla has taken the advice.

Facing the highly competitive Chinese market, Tesla has finally listened to the advice. It has only now launched the new large six - seat all - electric SUV model, the Model Y L. Is it too late? Can it still create a shockwave?

01 Tesla Model Y L Quietly Hits the Market

Different from many new Chinese car - making forces, Tesla didn't hold a grand press conference or make remarks about outperforming competitors when launching the new model. However, it still stirred up quite a wave in the electric vehicle industry.

According to Xinpinlue Finance, Tesla officially announced on its official Weibo on August 19 that the Model Y L was launched, with a starting price of 339,000 yuan. The estimated delivery time is September 2025, making it a major piece of news in the new energy vehicle industry in the past two days.

Since Tesla officially announced on July 16 that "We'll see the Model Y L in autumn", there have been occasional reports about the Model Y L in the automotive industry and the market.

Now that the Model Y L is officially on the market, this new model is no longer a mystery... Show cars are about to arrive at stores, videos of cars being transported on flatbed trucks on the road, and various evaluation videos from automotive media have come in densely.

Tesla Model Y L in transit. Image source / Internet

It is reported that the Tesla Model Y L is positioned as a large six - seat luxury all - electric SUV. Tesla has upgraded its exterior details, interior configuration, ride comfort, and space.

In terms of styling, the Model Y L generally continues the design of the current Model Y. At first glance, it looks like a larger - sized version of the latter. In terms of body size, the new car has a length, width, and height of 4976/1920/1668mm and a wheelbase of 3040mm.

In terms of the interior, the Model Y L is equipped with the latest 16 - inch central touchscreen, with a resolution increased by about 30%. In addition, the performance of the front wireless charging pad of the new car has been upgraded, supporting a maximum of 50W + 30W wireless fast charging simultaneously and featuring air - cooling heat dissipation.

In terms of power, the Model Y L uses a dual - motor all - wheel drive system. The maximum power of the front motor is 142 kilowatts, and the maximum power of the rear motor is 198 kilowatts. It can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.5 seconds. It is also equipped with an 82kWh ternary lithium battery, with a CLTC range of 751 kilometers and a comprehensive energy consumption of 12.8kWh per 100 kilometers.

Actually, the market has always shown high attention to the Tesla Model Y L. After all, this new model is a localized model specially launched by Tesla for Chinese car - buying consumers.

Last weekend, when Xinpinlue Finance passed by a Tesla booth in Guangming, Shenzhen and asked a sales consultant when the Model Y L would arrive at the store and when test - drive cars would be available, the consultant replied that they didn't know yet.

Overall, the launch of the Tesla Model Y L is in line with the previously announced "see you in autumn" time, following Tesla's consistent style and rhythm for new car launches.

So, why has Tesla launched the Model Y L now? How competitive is it in the market? Will it create a shockwave for Chinese local car - makers, especially the new car - making forces?

02 Tesla Listens to the Advice

Why has Tesla only now launched the new large six - seat all - electric SUV model, the Model Y L?

In the view of Xinpinlue Finance, a key reason for Tesla to launch a special - edition model for the Chinese market now is that Tesla has listened to the advice, and there are also various other reasons behind it.

Different from the car - making strategies of Chinese local car - makers, especially the new car - making forces, which involve multiple models and rapid updates, Tesla's car - making strategy is quite similar to Apple's product strategy for making mobile phones.

Previously, Tesla adopted a global model for global sales and achieved localized production, sales, and exports at its Gigafactory in Shanghai. In the past, Tesla's two main best - selling models, the Model 3 and Model Y, had a diverse range of buyers, but the main group consisted of young people, such as Tesla brand fans, Elon Musk fans, and those who like technology and trends.

Tesla's current best - selling models well meet the needs of young families, small families, as the first electric vehicle for a family, or as the second car for a family.

China is a very unique and large automotive consumer market. Chinese consumers' car - buying and usage scenarios are different from those in many other countries around the world. Most families in China have only one car, which needs to meet the needs of the whole family.

Therefore, during the era of traditional fuel - powered cars and joint - venture cars, car - makers such as BBA and Volkswagen launched extended - wheelbase "L" models specifically for the Chinese market to meet Chinese consumers' preference for larger - sized and more spacious cars.

Actually, there have always been many opinions and consumers in the market expecting Tesla to launch an extended - wheelbase model, a six - seat, or even a seven - seat model for the Chinese market. However, at that time, Tesla's cars, especially the domestically - produced Model 3 and later the Model Y, were extremely popular in the Chinese market. Tesla was having an easy win, so it definitely wouldn't listen to the advice.

The Chinese electric vehicle market, which seems to be booming, has actually entered a stage of stock development and fierce competition. There have always been views in the market that Tesla's product strength is insufficient and its product updates are slow.

Image source / Tesla Weibo

On the one hand, facing the highly competitive Chinese electric vehicle market, Tesla needs to introduce new models and tell new stories to attract more consumers.

Chinese car - buying consumers have always liked large SUVs, as they look more imposing and prestigious when driving. This is also the reason why new car - making forces such as NIO, Li Auto, and XPeng first focused on the SUV market.

So, in the view of Xinpinlue Finance, on the other hand, Tesla's new launch of the Model Y L is to meet the needs of Chinese consumers, especially those who like the Tesla brand, SUVs, and large six - seat SUVs for their families. It can also meet the needs of Tesla's existing loyal users for replacement and upgrade.

In addition, there are also practical commercial pressure and other reasons behind Tesla's launch of the new Model Y L in the Chinese market.

According to Tesla's second - quarter financial report, Tesla's revenue in the reporting period was approximately $22.496 billion, a year - on - year decrease of 12%, the largest decline in at least a decade. The net profit in the second quarter was $1.172 billion, a year - on - year decrease of 20.7%. During the reporting period, Tesla's global vehicle deliveries were only 384,100 units, a decrease of nearly 60,000 units compared with the same period last year, a sharp drop of 13.5%. It has experienced double - digit declines for two consecutive quarters.

In the second quarter of 2025, against the backdrop of Tesla's global sales decline, China became Tesla's only growth engine. According to data from the China Passenger Car Association, Tesla delivered 129,000 vehicles in China in the second quarter, accounting for 34% of its global sales.

Therefore, Tesla needs to introduce a new killer - model in the Chinese market to increase its sales in China, which is the key to reversing the downward trend of its global sales.

Now, with the launch of the Tesla Model Y L in the Chinese market and its price lower than market expectations, Tesla has listened to the advice and made a balanced and shrewd market strategy.

03 Can the Model Y L Create a Shockwave?

The all - electric SUV market has always been the most competitive segment. In the past, many car - makers such as Li Auto and AITO mainly focused on the range - extended six - seat SUV segment. Now, all car - makers are increasing their efforts in the all - electric six - seat SUV market.

The first player is Li Auto, which re - entered the all - electric track on July 29 and launched its first SUV model, the Li i8. Despite being involved in public opinion and collision controversy, this model still has a certain competitiveness.

The second player is the new SUV, the LeDao L90, under NIO's LeDao brand. It is positioned as a large all - electric SUV, offering 6 - seat and 7 - seat options. Overall, the LeDao L90 has sold well since its launch. Although the official has not announced the number of firm orders, judging from on - the - ground market information and media reports, the LeDao L90 has given the LeDao brand and NIO a great boost.

Another major player is the all - electric version of the Huawei - affiliated AITO M8, which will be launched at the end of this month. On July 29, media reported that the pre - orders for the all - electric AITO M8 exceeded 15,000. With the backing of Huawei, this model still has strong market competitiveness.

There are more than just the above three car - makers launching large six - seat all - electric SUV models in the market. More and more local and joint - venture car - makers are increasing their efforts to launch large six - seat SUV models or range - extended models.

Now that the Tesla Model Y L has arrived, it means that Tesla has also entered this highly competitive segment and will face a number of market competitors.

So, can the Tesla Model Y L create a shockwave in the Chinese automotive market, especially for the new car - making forces?

China is a large - scale automotive consumer market with a very diverse range of car - buying consumers. The age range is wider. Many young people like Tesla, but more young people prefer Chinese local new energy vehicle brands. There are also many consumers who choose joint - venture car - makers or even imported new energy vehicles.

From the perspective of user profiles, Tesla also has a wider age range of car - buying consumers. For example, in industries such as Internet technology, fashion, and finance, there are consumers who like to try new things and pursue a sense of technology, many of whom are young people.

For Chinese car - makers, whether in the global or Chinese automotive market, they still cannot underestimate Tesla's brand influence and market sales appeal.

Tesla's major model updates are slow, but its minor facelifts have also seen improvements and optimizations in many aspects. In the entire Chinese automotive market, Tesla's cars are not the most beautiful in styling and not the most powerful in terms of parameters. They belong to the type of well - balanced models.

Image source / Pexels

Take Tesla's best - selling Model Y as an example. Whether in the Chinese market or the global market, it has long been at the top of the rankings in its segment. Data shows that the Tesla Model Y ranked first with sales of 480,309 units, becoming the champion model in SUV sales in 2024. In the first half of 2025, the cumulative sales of the Tesla Model Y reached 171,491 units, still firmly holding the top position in the all - electric SUV market in terms of sales.

In addition to Tesla's brand advantage, Tesla achieved localized production in the Chinese market long ago. In terms of production capacity allocation, vehicle production, and delivery cycle, the Tesla Model Y and the newly launched Model Y L still have certain advantages.

A senior person in the automotive industry told Xinpinlue Finance that Tesla is a car brand that may not win online discussions but always wins in the offline market. It has brand influence, and the Model Y has long been the sales champion in its segment. Now with the addition of the Model Y L, it is expected to create a certain or even a large shockwave in this segment and for some local automotive brands.

However, the shockwave of the Model Y L will not only affect its competitors. It may also have a certain impact on Tesla's existing best - selling models.

International investment bank Goldman Sachs analyzed that the Model Y L has a positive impact on Tesla's growth prospects. Although this model may have a certain impact on the sales of the Model Y and Model X, it is expected to expand Tesla's influence in key mid - size SUV markets such as the United States, Europe, and China.

How the Tesla Model Y L will perform in the market and how big a shockwave it can create will soon be clear.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Xinpinlue Finance". Author: Wu Wenwu. Republished by 36Kr with permission.