The Week in Tesla News: First China-Made Sedans Delivered (Sort of), Model 3 Won’t Drive and Another Fatal Crash
The final week of 2019 has been a mixed bag for Tesla. The good: Its Shanghai Gigafactory is so close to making production cars for one of the largest electric-vehicle markets in the world. The bad: Another Tesla has crashed into an emergency vehicle parked on a highway, this time killing a passenger and seriously injuring the driver, and a Model 3 leased by Car & Driver magazine experienced a catastrophic failure that left it undrivable.
Made in China
All Tesla models sold in China have thus far been imported, but with the company’s Shanghai Gigafactory nearly up and running, Bloomberg News reports that 15 employees have received China-built Model 3 sedans. Sourcing Tesla officials, the Global Times China reports the factory assembles more than 1,000 cars every week, with deliveries to non-employees beginning sometime in early January 2020 (which, by the way, begins tomorrow).
Per Bloomberg, the China-built Model 3 also qualifies for exemption from a 10% vehicle-purchase tax by the Chinese government, and it qualifies for a government purchase subsidy of up to the equivalent of $3,600, as well. It’s unclear which variants get the subsidy, but Tesla has reportedly said earlier that the China-built Model 3 would start at the equivalent of roughly $50,000.
Fatal Crash
In Indiana, a firetruck parked and responding to a single-vehicle crash was reportedly struck by a Tesla, killing the passenger in the Tesla and seriously injuring the driver of the electric car. Investigators have not yet determined whether Autopilot was active at the time of the crash; according to the Detroit News, the driver said he used it often, but “due to the impact of the accident he cannot recall whether or not he had it on at the time of the accident.”
If Autopilot were engaged, it would be at least the second time in a month that a Tesla using Autopilot struck a parked emergency vehicle, though, in the separate crash — on Dec. 7 in Connecticut — no one was reported as seriously injured.
I’ll Be Home for Christmas … ‘Cuz My Car Broke
Car & Driver magazine reports its company-leased Model 3 became suddenly undrivable on Christmas Day. The magazine reports that the only hiccup prior to the failure — which a staff photographer evidently learned about via push notification at his parents’ house in suburban Detroit — was a lower charging rate than usual.
The car is now at a Tesla service center, and early reports from Car & Driver are dim. The failure occurred on Christmas Day, and a tow truck arrived within 30 minutes, but Tesla offered no loaner car or even Uber credits at the time — though offers for both came a few hours after the story was published. During the holiday week, it took a few days to learn from Tesla about the problem (“issues with the rear drive unit, the pyrotechnic battery disconnect, and the 12-volt battery,” C&D reports). Car & Driver updated the story today to report that parts are on the way and the Model 3 should be repaired by Thursday.
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