Tesla Finally Enters India With $70,000 Model Y

• Tesla opened its first showroom in India today.
• The only model available is the Model Y crossover, and it comes at a premium.
• The base rear-wheel drive EV starts from approximately $70,000, $25,000 more than in the U.S.

Tesla has officially entered the Indian market, nine years after CEO Elon Musk first teased the move. Nearly a decade later, Tesla’s global strength is faltering, with delivery numbers dropping everywhere, so entering the world’s fourth-largest car market makes sense.

However, with a small footprint, zero Superchargers and a luxury-priced Model Y, it will take some time until Tesla’s presence in India makes a dent in its global delivery figures.

Tesla’s Indian lineup includes just two Model Y versions.

Photo by: Tesla

Starting at the equivalent of roughly $70,000, the base rear-wheel drive Model Y sold in India is imported from China. That’s about $25,000 more expensive than the United States-spec version without the $7,500 federal tax credit applied, so it’s a huge difference. Meanwhile, the long-range rear-wheel drive trim, which is not yet available in the U.S., costs the equivalent of $80,600.

As a result, Tesla will go head-to-head with the likes of BMW and Mercedes-Benz, aiming for a piece of the luxury car market, where the Model Y doesn’t exactly fit in.

Tesla’s first showroom in India, dubbed an “Experience Center,” opens today in Maker Maxity Mall in Banda Kurla Complex, which is the central business district of Mumbai. The 4,000-square-foot showroom will be followed by a second location in Delhi later this month.

Indian wannabe customers can order a Chinese-made Model Y starting today for registration in Delhi, Gurugram and Mumbai, with deliveries of the base spec expected to begin in the third quarter, while the long-range variant is expected to arrive in the last quarter.

According to TechCrunch, Tesla plans on importing cars from its German factory after the India-EU free-trade agreement is signed, but it’s unclear whether the move will affect pricing.

Besides trying to capture customers’ attention with an expensive electric car, Tesla also has to build charging stations. Currently, there are zero Superchargers in India, but the company said it would install four stations in both Mumbai and Delhi, which will include DC fast chargers and Level 2 Destination Chargers.

“It’s not meaningful from a volume standpoint yet,” said Jay Kale, a Mumbai-based analyst at Elara Securities, for Bloomberg. “But it plants the brand. Over time, as charging infrastructure improves and the lineup expands, Tesla could scale.”

Despite rumors about a possible manufacturing plant in India, Tesla has no such plans. That said, the company has ramped up its hiring efforts in the region and seems to be playing the long game. With EVs making up just 5% of India’s car market, and luxury cars amounting to just 1% of said market, it will be a rough ride for Tesla in India.