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Tesla’s China website gets overwhelmed due to Giga 3-made Model 3 pre-orders

(Credit: Vincent Yu/Twitter)

Published

6 years ago

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Earlier today, Tesla China revealed the price of the Model 3 Standard Range Plus variant that will be produced in Gigafactory 3. Starting at RMB 328,000 (~$47,400), the locally-made vehicle is RMB 49,000 (~$7,000) cheaper than the US-made Model 3 SR+’s price, which was listed at RMB 377,000 (~$54,500). The savings for the locally-made vehicle are significant, though Tesla noted that the expected delivery time for the Gigafactory 3-produced electric sedan is 6-10 months.

While the price of the Made-in-China Model SR+ still puts the vehicle in the same price range as that of competitors like the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class (the China-made versions of which are also sold at around the RMB 330,000 or ~$47,700 range), the electric sedan from Silicon Valley has notable advantages in the way that customers would save on license taxes and fees. Rated at 460 km (285 miles) per charge under NEDC standards, Tesla’s Gigafactory 3-produced Model 3 will likely be the company’s bang-for-your-buck vehicle for the Chinese market.

Immediately after pre-orders opened, Tesla enthusiasts in China noticed that the company’s official website was significantly getting slower. It did not take long before Tesla’s official Weibo account posted an update apologizing for the slowdowns in its official site. According to the electric car maker, the first order for the Made-in-China Model 3 was completed within 3 minutes after reservations were opened, and more orders followed soon after.

“The first order (was) completed within 3 minutes of the reservation opening. Due to extreme high demand of the Chinese-made Model 3 on the official website of Tesla, the traffic is too large; please be patient. Or please visit stores,” Tesla wrote.

Eventually, Tesla’s China website seemingly got overwhelmed with traffic, displaying 404 errors for users attempting to access the site. Tesla enthusiast @arcandrally, who tried to access the Model 3 configurator in China, observed that Tesla.cn started diverting online traffic to experience stores as a temporary solution.

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While a number of Chinese social media users expressed their disappointment at the higher-than-expected starting price of the Gigafactory 3-produced Model 3, the vehicle’s launch was nonetheless met with widespread support from the Tesla and electric car community. Overall, it appears that the large amounts of traffic that drowned Tesla China’s website shows but a hint of the interest surrounding the vehicle from the country’s car buying public.

https://twitter.com/arcandrally/status/1134305262691467264

At the center of Tesla’s push in China with the locally-made Model 3 is Gigafactory 3, whose factory shell is now all but complete. Following the construction of the factory shell, the facility is set to undergo ground hardening in June. These will be followed by pipeline communication, equipment stationing, equipment commissioning, and trial production runs, which could start as early as September barring any unexpected issues.

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Elon Musk

Shark Tank’s O’Leary roasts Tim Walz over Tesla stock hate session

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2 days ago

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March 21, 2025

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Shark Tank personality and legendary investor Kevin O’Leary roasted former Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz over his comments regarding Tesla shares earlier this week.

Walz, a Minnesota Democrat, said that he recently added Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) to his Apple Stocks app so he could watch shares fall as they have encountered plenty of resistance in 2025 so far. He said that anytime he needs a boost, he looks at Tesla shares, which are down 36 percent so far this year:

Walz, among many others, has been critical of Tesla and Elon Musk, especially as the CEO has helped eliminate excess government spending through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

However, Kevin O’Leary, a legendary investor, showed up on CNN after Walz’s comments to give him a bit of a reality check. O’Leary essentially called Walz out of touch for what he said about Tesla shares, especially considering Tesla made up a good portion of the Minnesota Retirement Fund.

As of June 2024, the pension fund held 1.6 million shares of Tesla stock worth over $319.6 million:

O’Leary continued to slam Walz for his comments:

“That poor guy didn’t check his portfolio and his own pension plan for the state. It’s beyond stupid what he did. What’s the matter with that guy? He doesn’t check the well-being of his own constituents.”

He even called Walz “a bozo” for what he said.

Of course, Walz’s comments are expected considering Musk’s support for the Trump Administration, as the Tesla CEO was a major contributor to the 45th President’s campaign for his second term.

However, it seems extremely out of touch that Walz made these comments without realizing the drop was potentially hurting his fund. While we don’t know if the fund has sold its entire Tesla holdings since June, as a newer, more recent report has not been released yet, it seems unlikely the automaker’s shares are not still making up some portion of the fund.

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Elon Musk

Tesla gets an upgrade on ‘upcoming material catalysts’

Published

3 days ago

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March 19, 2025

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tesla model y in white
(Source: Tesla)

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) received an upgraded rating on its shares from Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald, who recently took a trip to Austin to visit the company’s data centers and production lines ahead of several high-profile product launches set for this year.

It was a bold move, especially considering Tesla shares are under immense pressure currently, fending off negative news regarding the company’s sentiment and potentially lower-than-expected delivery figures due to the launch of a new version of its most popular vehicle, the Model Y.

However, the bulls on Wall Street are still considering Tesla to be a safe play, especially considering its robust presence in various industries, including automotive, energy, and AI/Robotics.

Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Andres Sheppard said in a note that, during a recent visit to Tesla’s Cortex AI data centers and the production line at Gigafactory Texas, it was clear there is a lot of potential and runway for Tesla in 2025:

“On 3/18, we visited Tesla’s Cortex AI data centers and the factory’s production lines ahead of the company’s introduction of its Robotaxi segment (targeted for June in Austin, followed by CA later in 2025). With Tesla’s shares now down ~45% YRD, we upgrade Tesla to Overweight (from Neutral) ahead of upcoming material catalysts. Our $425 12-month PT is unchanged. Our Thoughts: Attractive Entry Point Ahead of Material Catalysts.”

Sheppard went on to mention the catalysts, which he believes are the Robotaxi rollout in Austin in June, along with the continued rollout of Full Self-Driving in China, the eventual rollout of FSD in Europe, and the introduction of the affordable models in the first half of this year, and those were just on the automotive side.

There are several others, including Optimus, growth in the energy division, and in the longer term, the Semi.

In terms of potential weaknesses, Sheppard expects the likely removal of the EV tax credit and some of its growth to be offset by tariffs as the two big things that stand in the way of even more growth for the company.

Tesla is up over 5 percent on Wednesday, trading at $236.86.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla stock surges on Wednesday, but there’s still more room to go

Published

1 week ago

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March 12, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) surged over 7 percent on Wednesday, canceling out some of the losses it has felt this week.

It has been a less-than-ideal start for Tesla in 2025, as the company has wiped out all of its gains felt from the victorious election campaign of President Donald Trump. The stock is down 34 percent so far this year.

The losses have mostly been felt due to reports of decreased demand due to pushback against CEO Elon Musk and his support of President Trump, as well as investor concern over the CEO’s personal use of time between the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and Tesla itself.

In a note this week from Wedbush, analyst Dan Ives wrote:

“Musk needs to step up as Tesla CEO at this critical juncture. In a nutshell, the word ‘balance’ has been missing with Elon Musk and his ability to run Tesla as CEO….while instead focusing all of his energy and time driving his DOGE initiative within the Trump Administration. Since Trump’s White House 2nd term kicked off in January, we have seen Musk and Trump connected at the hip with Musk essentially living at the White House and Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. There has been little to no sign of Musk at any Tesla factory or manufacturing facility the last two months and perception has become reality for Tesla shares. Trump getting elected President was a huge moment for Musk and Tesla in our view as this will create the fast track for an autonomous federal roadmap…however the DOGE efforts have now intertwined Tesla into this brewing political firestorm.”

Wednesday’s slight bump for Tesla shares is likely related to the support the company received from President Trump yesterday, who purchased a Model S sedan at the White House and pledged to pay for it with a check.

President Donald Trump buys a Tesla at the White House – Here’s which model he chose

The move was one that signaled a buying spree from high-profile Republicans, including Sean Hannity, among others, who announced their support for Musk and Tesla:

Tesla shares closed at $248.09 on Wednesday, up 7.59%.

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