What kind of people are attracted to the "rough" Tesla?

“In China, who would buy a Tesla?” For years, Chinese car companies have always been trying to answer this question with various approaches.

However, the fact is that regardless of how many external interference factors there are, Tesla's self - willedness has won a group of followers. From the Model 3 to the Model Y and then to the Model YL, no matter how similar the new cars launched by Tesla are and how simple each innovation is, there are always a large number of Chinese users willing to pay for them.

As of 2025, many people still say that although some of Tesla's single technologies may not be the most cutting - edge, its comprehensive product strength in terms of safety, intelligence, performance, etc., as well as its well - established brand image, can make it highly favored by Chinese consumers.

Facing the fierce competition from Chinese brands, which play the ecosystem game, focus on energy replenishment, pile up configurations, compete on price, and even wage public opinion wars, Tesla, which remains unchanged in the face of changes, can be regarded as a “role model in the industry”. Its sales volume is hardly affected by the outside world.

Of course, from the perspective of corporate worldview, Tesla certainly has its own characteristics. Its founder, Elon Musk, and the behind - the - scenes companies like SpaceX have formed a brand moat for it. But if we calmly look at Tesla's product output in recent years, aren't some of the reasons for attracting fans a bit far - fetched?

For example, many times, when it comes to Chinese start - up car companies' detailed innovations, too many people will accuse them of being flashy. But when it comes to Tesla, from the hidden door handles that need to be carefully pulled to open to the later screen - based gear shifting and button - type turn signals, they have become the touchpoints for product updates. The speed at which users adapt to these changes is astonishing.

Now, as the low - cost versions of Model 3/Y with “all possible configurations cut” appear in the public view and may come to China, although we don't know how the potential user group will view Tesla's new car strategy at this moment, judging from the current situation, perhaps Tesla will still be the same old Tesla.

When the “Cheap” Tesla Comes to China

This year is different from the past. It was thought that due to the strong overseas expansion of Chinese new energy vehicles or the slowdown in the demand for pure - electric new cars in various regions, Tesla would face greater sales pressure in the global market.

As a result, when Tesla released its global production and delivery report for the third quarter of 2025, the data showed that Tesla produced approximately 447,000 pure - electric vehicles globally this quarter; the delivery volume reached 497,000, a year - on - year increase of 7.4%, breaking the quarterly delivery record. Among them, the delivery volume of Model 3/Y was 481,000, a year - on - year increase of 9.4%.

In the Chinese market, probably stimulated by the national subsidies, Tesla not only achieved sales of 169,200 vehicles in the Chinese market in the third quarter, a quarter - on - quarter increase of 31%, setting a new high this year. In September, the delivery volume of Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory also exceeded 90,000 vehicles, and the Model Y alone became the best - selling pure - electric SUV in the market.

Since the end of September, the tightening or suspension of car - purchase subsidy policies in various regions has cast a shadow over the entire new energy vehicle market. But for Tesla, the strong demand from Chinese users doesn't seem to be affected much by policy changes. After all, Tesla announced on October 1 that it would continue to implement the car - purchase preferential policy.

In this context, let's turn back to the matter of Tesla adding low - cost models.

In Tesla's plan, this move reflects its ambition to capture the mass market. For the Chinese market, since Chinese users support Tesla so much, in the future, the launch of stripped - down models is like when luxury brands such as BBA introduced entry - level sedans back then, trying to target those who are attracted by the brand.

So, will Chinese users pay for it?

Most likely, yes. As mentioned above, we've already discussed Tesla's position in Chinese users' car - purchase lists. Since a six - seat model like the Model YL with a cramped third - row space can attract a large number of Chinese users to place orders, it only proves one thing: Tesla's potential customers will never let go because of changes in the external environment.

To put it simply, consumers who want to buy a Tesla are only struggling about which Tesla model to choose, rather than considering other options.

Everyone is asking, what's the magic of Tesla? Is it because the price never backfires on users? Is it because the driving experience is unparalleled? Is it because the intelligent configurations, especially the driving assistance functions, far exceed expectations?

I can only say, because it's Tesla. Around me, I've lost count of how many people give reasons like “it drives well” or “it has good intelligent features” when choosing Tesla. In fact, some of them are either pure beginners who are touching the steering wheel for the first time or theoretical people who haven't even opted for FSD driving assistance. You get the point.

Now, leaving aside the discussion about whether the Chinese market will continue to view Tesla through rose - tinted glasses, with the addition of low - cost models, as the market pushes Tesla to transform from a “technology leader” to a “scale monopolist”, before the global market penetration rate of pure - electric vehicles reaches a critical point, expanding the user base through low - cost cars is a clear - headed move for Tesla, whether it's for accumulating users for subsequent software services like FSD or building its own advantage before its competitors.

When Will Tesla Lose Its Allure?

At this moment, many industry insiders believe that the launch of the low - cost Model Y by Tesla is driven by both Elon Musk's long - standing vision of “making electric vehicles accessible to the general public” and the current harsh market reality. This strategic move not only affects short - term sales growth but also has a long - term impact on Tesla's development in the global electric vehicle market.

Moreover, in the United States, the pressure caused by the cancellation of subsidy policies is huge. To make up for the up - to - $7,500 personal car - purchase subsidy gap, the significance of adding low - cost models for Tesla is quite obvious.

As a low - cost model, the Model Y Standard was launched in the United States on October 7, with a starting price of $39,990 (approximately 284,700 yuan), and the planned delivery time is from November to December. The starting price of the Model 3 Standard has also dropped to $36,990. Obviously, these are just the first steps.

Based on Tesla's own plan, we have no intention to question the purpose of Tesla adding new cars. But this time, simply slashing configurations to reduce the price is really hard to justify in 2025.

At the close of U.S. stocks on October 8 (Beijing time), Tesla's stock price fell by 4.46%, and its market value evaporated by $65 billion, approximately 463 billion yuan, the largest decline among large - cap technology stocks, which actually says a lot.

For a model that is not new, can you imagine that the Model Y Standard has had all the configurations you can think of removed from the inside out?

On the exterior, the front through - type light group and the rear diffuse reflection lights are removed. Inside, features such as ambient lights, the sunroof, electric steering wheel adjustment, physical buttons for electric seat adjustment, the rear - seat screen, and seat ventilation are gone. The number of speakers in the audio system is reduced to seven. Even the seat material has been downgraded from a high - end fabric + perforated leather combination to pure imitation leather, the interior ceiling is changed to fabric, and the movable cover of the center console cup holder is removed...

Meanwhile, the suspension is changed to a passive shock absorber, the battery capacity is reduced, and the range drops to 517 kilometers (WLTC standard).

Yes, yes, even so, there are still many people on the Internet insisting that as long as Tesla's mechanical quality remains good and the power consumption level is decent, these low - cost models are still worth buying.

But as someone in China, I want to ask, if these low - cost cars enter the Chinese market, and Tesla's extremely optimized products can still attract a large number of people to pay, can Chinese car companies, which advocate having comprehensive product configurations at low prices, really accept this?

The game between brand premium and configuration choices will determine market acceptance. Tesla's strategy of “cutting configurations to retain the core” by packaging brand value and the advantages of its three - electric technology into low - price products seems like a wise move. However, such a significant reduction in configurations, almost presenting a configuration level similar to that of a taxi, is quite offensive in terms of value.

To be honest, even today, although domestic brands have taken the lead in public opinion, have you noticed that the path of focusing on cost - effectiveness has never been abandoned. Whenever consumers cheer about “luxury foreign brands can no longer use the strategy of high - price, low - configuration models to target Chinese users”, they may not realize that Tesla is still playing the same role as those luxury foreign brands used to. I really don't know what else to say.

This article is from the WeChat official account “Automotive Commune” (ID: iAUTO2010), author: Cao Jiadong, published by 36Kr with authorization.