Tesla's sales in China crashed: Historical decline in October!

US electric car manufacturer Tesla's domestic market sales in China went into free fall in October. The company is trying to balance this sharp contraction in the Chinese domestic market with record exports from its Shanghai factory.

THE WORST PERFORMANCE IN THE DOMESTIC MARKET IN THE LAST 4 YEARS

According to the announced data, Tesla was able to sell only 8,817 vehicles in China in October, with a huge decrease of 66.1 percent compared to the same period last year.

While this figure was recorded as the lowest level since July 2022, when 8,461 vehicles were sold; It was also the worst "October" month performance recorded since 2020.

SALES HAVE BEEN DECREASING FOR 5 MONTHS

Compared to the sales of 64,837 units in September, the one-month decrease amounted to 86.4 percent.

Thus, the brand's sales in China remained below the 10 thousand threshold for the first time since July 2022, and the downward trend continued for the fifth month in a row.

THE ROUTE HAS BEEN COMPLETELY CONVERTED TO EXPORT

Despite this defeat in the domestic market, exports from Tesla's Shanghai factory increased by 66.3 percent, reaching 59,012 units.

While 87 percent of the vehicles leaving the factory in October were sent abroad, this rate was the highest export share in the history of the Shanghai facility. (In September, this figure was at 30,529 units.)

According to the data of the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), the wholesale sales figure, which reflects the total of the domestic market and exports, increased by 10.3 percent on an annual basis with the strength of exports, reaching 67,829 units.

'ZERO INTEREST' AND DISCOUNT BUTTON WAS PRESSED

Wanting to revive the falling demand, Tesla launched a five-year "zero interest" financing campaign for certain Model 3 and Model Y versions as of October 30.

Within the scope of the campaign, the minimum down payment amount was halved from 79,900 yuan to 39,900 yuan (approximately from 601 thousand 647 TL to 300 thousand 447 TL).

TESLA PRICES

Price discounts are also applied within the scope of the campaign, which is valid until the end of November.

While the starting price of the rear-wheel drive Model 3 in China decreased from 235,500 yuan to 225,500 yuan (1 million 698 thousand TL); The price of the rear-wheel drive Model Y was reduced from 263,500 yuan to 259,500 yuan (1 million 954 thousand TL).

Tesla currently produces only these two models (including the new 6-seater Y L) ​​in China.

WHAT IS THE SITUATION IN THE GENERAL MARKET?

Looking at the first 10 months of 2026 (January-October), Tesla's domestic sales in China decreased by 15 percent and remained at 390 thousand units.

In the same period, exports jumped to 421 thousand units, a tremendous increase of 101 percent.

The company's total wholesale sales this year reached 811 thousand units, an increase of 21.4 percent.