China’s electric car start-ups accelerate plans to grab market share, but mainland Chinese buyers can’t look beyond Tesla
- Chinese EV makers dream of unseating Tesla by raising capital and developing models with longer driving ranges, but they are yet to strike a chord with consumers
- Tesla has managed to eke out profits only for a few quarters in its 10 years as a publicly listed company
Notwithstanding challenges like the Covid-19 outbreak that briefly slowed down sales of new-energy vehicles, Chinese start-ups are pressing ahead with their plans to grab a share of the mainland’s growing NEV market and unseating Tesla from its lofty perch.
However, mainland consumers remain far from convinced, as analysts say the market is yet to see a real Chinese-made electric car model that can stem the early dominance Tesla, whose Model 3 outsells its nearest competitor by three to one.
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Vehicle number 10,000 rolls off the assembly line for Chinese electric carmaker XPeng
“Competition is getting heated, but Tesla enjoys an overwhelming advantage,” said Chen Jinzhu, chief executive of Shanghai Mingliang Auto Service, which sells car insurance and deals in second-hand vehicles. “The grim reality is that Chinese drivers would choose Tesla now as the cars are priced attractively.”