Tesla China is going full blast in December, with new vehicle insurance registrations for the week of December 18-24 reaching 18,500 units. The results represent a 1.09% increase from the new vehicle insurance registrations that were tracked during December’s third week.
Tesla does not report its weekly domestic sales in China, though a general idea of the electric vehicle maker’s performance in the local automotive market can be inferred from vehicle insurance registration data. Fortunately, insurance registrations are tracked by industry watchers in China. These include Li Auto, a China-based EV maker.
And as per Li Auto’s data, Tesla China saw 18,500 registrations in the week ending December 24. For context, Tesla China saw 18,300 insurance registrations in December’s third week. In the second week of the month, 15,400 insurance registrations were tracked, and in December’s first week, the number was 17,400 units. This suggests that from December 1-24, Tesla China seemingly saw about 60,200 local vehicle registrations, as estimated by CNEV Post.
The results of Tesla China’s local performance this December bodes well for the electric vehicle maker. There are still seven days left before the end of the month, so the company still has more time to deliver as many vehicles as possible to local customers. Considering that the company offers both the upgraded Model 3 and the Model Y refresh in China, current consumer interest among local car buyers may be quite notable.
Customers who order the Giga Shanghai-produced Model 3 and Model Y would have to take delivery of their vehicles in early 2024, however. As can be seen in Tesla China’s configurator, both the Giga Shanghai-made Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover are currently listed with an estimated delivery date of 2-6 weeks.
Tesla China’s domestic push comes amidst the company’s efforts to deliver 1.8 million vehicles globally this year. Achieving this target hinges heavily on Giga Shanghai’s production, which also happens to be Tesla’s highest-output factory. In the company’s Q3 2023 Update Letter, Tesla noted that Giga Shanghai has an estimated annual production capacity of over 950,000 vehicles.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.