Porsche and Jaguar electric vehicles loom in Tesla’s rear-view mirror
Sales for the Model S and Model X are slowing, though Tesla says demand is high and battery-cell supplies have constrained deliveries
When the call came, Robert Wickel wasted little time.
The subject? Reservations for Porsche’s all-electric Taycan were coming, even though the vehicle would not enter production until next year. Buying Tesla’s Model S, available for the past six years, had always been an option but lacked the allure of the first battery-powered car from the German sports carmaker.
“Tesla’s Model S triggered curiosity to give it a try, but there were several unknowns starting from unclear delivery times to a patchy service network,” says the 46-year-old Munich resident, who has been driving Range Rovers, Audis and Porsches and joined the list to place an order. The Taycan “is a serious car with the quality promise of a leading car manufacturer – I know whom I’m buying from and what can expect in case I need support”.
The Taycan, developed under the project code-name Mission E, is but one of a bulging wave of Tesla fighters about to roll off the production lines of premium European carmakers including Jaguar, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, starting, well, just about now. Count it as another headache for Tesla chief executive Elon Musk, whose tweets about taking the company private are reportedly under review by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is also reportedly in talks to participate.
To date, Tesla has ruled the roads for electric car buyers, with little direct competition in the market from US$60,000 and up. Those days are over: Jaguar is already delivering its I-Pace all-electric sport-utility vehicle, with comparable entry-level prices to the Model S sedan and Model X SUV. The new Jaguar comes with a pedigree of luxury, racing and engineering prowess. In some markets the waiting list is now a year long.
Britain’s Autocar magazine took a direct comparison of the Tesla Model S sedan and the new Jaguar. The result was about what many had expected.
“The I-Pace provides a more appealing space in which to pass the time, and a far more engaging driving experience on the way,” the reviewer wrote. The Tesla is “still impressively capable given its age, but quality is variable and chassis not close to the standard now set by Jaguar”.
The new rivals could be behind some of the softness that Tesla has experienced in Europe. Sales in all major markets there that do not offer significant rebates slid during the first half of the year, data from forecaster IHS Markit show. The drop was as much as 30 per cent in Germany and Britain, the IHS data shows. Tesla does not report pan-European sales numbers, although the IHS estimates are consistent with delivery data kept with national governments. Tesla does report revenue for Norway, where sales peaked in the fourth quarter of 2017. Customers there are also in quiet revolt after waiting for months to get spare parts and repairs.