zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Trucks
/
People In China Are Apparently Paying $240,000 For American Tesla Model Xs
People In China Are Apparently Paying $240,000 For American Tesla Model Xs-April 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:13:15

It appears that Tesla’s own operation in China cannot satisfy demand, creating a market for overpriced and under equipped American-spec cars to be imported by grey market privateers and sold for a fat markup.

reports that at least one private Tesla seller in Tianjin has imported 16 P90Ds from the U.S. and is listing them at 1.54 to 1.58 million yuan (about $240,000.) With the official list price of the car in China at 1.15 million yuan (about $170,000) that’s a pretty massive dealer bonus, even after they buy and ship the car from another hemisphere. The P90D lists for about $115,000 here in America.

That same dealer apparently told Forbes’ China correspondent “he had sold all his red models and only had the white ones left.”

On top of the substantial extra cost people in China are paying to get these cars when the Tesla store runs out of stock, they’re getting a suboptimal product. The U.S.-spec cars infotainment systems are in English, gauges are in MPH, navigation doesn’t work, and oh yeah—the factory warranty is immediately voided.

Suffice to say, these must be Tesla Cult diehards buying these things. Or they just don’t know what they’re getting in to. Seems like the company should start shipping more vehicles to the People’s Republic to cash in.

Interestingly, reported a similar phenomenon in 2014 with the Model S. They talked to a dealer who had a grey-market car marked up by more than $10,000 over what it would have sold for at a Tesla store and a lot more on the way.

We sent Tesla a message to ask about their plan to deal with private operations circumventing their sales system, if one exists. Will update if we hear back.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Trucks
2016 Honda Pilot: This Is It
2016 Honda Pilot: This Is It
A complete photo gallery of the 2016 Honda Pilot has leaked ahead of the SUV's world debut slated for tomorrow. Looks more "CR-V on steroids" than ever before, and the proportions remind me of the newly minivanified Nissan Pathfinder. Rumor has it this new model will get an improved direct-injection...
Apr 9, 2026
How Bob Marley's Long Lost Land Rover Was Rescued From Certain Death
How Bob Marley's Long Lost Land Rover Was Rescued From Certain Death
Reggae legend Bob Marley's 1977 Series III Land Rover pickup was almost as cool as the man himself. Yet it spent some thirty years waiting in vain for somebody to stir it up and satisfy its soul. See what I did there? You should also see this beautiful restoration video...
Apr 9, 2026
Tom Brady Didn't Want His Free Chevy Colorado
Tom Brady Didn't Want His Free Chevy Colorado
GM gifted Super Bowl XLIX MVP Tom Brady a , probably because they've had . But Brady passed off his prize to teammate Malcolm Butler, turning a simple publicity stunt into a convoluted one and looking classy doing it. Chevy crapped out this awkward press release to try and not...
Apr 9, 2026
There's No Way You're Mistaking The 2015 Ram 1500 Laramie Limited
There's No Way You're Mistaking The 2015 Ram 1500 Laramie Limited
Somebody slipped pictures of the 2015 Ram 1500 Laramie Limited out before the truck's slated debut; check out the refreshed truck from every angle right here! Spoiler alert: the improved aesthetics begin and end with a "RAM" badge the size of an ocean liner's registry tag. You can just imagine...
Apr 9, 2026
'Off-Road' Kia Trail'ster: Lots Of Headlights And Skidplate Like A Sled
'Off-Road' Kia Trail'ster: Lots Of Headlights And Skidplate Like A Sled
Somebody left this great front-quarter image of the electric just laying around the internet, so we grabbed it for you. Looks like, well, a Kia Soul with fender flares and plenty of extra lights... which actually came out pretty nice! We'll have to wait for details on the AWD system...
Apr 9, 2026
How One Missing Signature Got Us Imprisoned By The Chilean Army
How One Missing Signature Got Us Imprisoned By The Chilean Army
Middle of the night. A hotel bar at the feet of the Andes Mountains is silent, save three tour guides huddled 'round a fourth pour of watery beer and a coffee-stained map. "This pass will get us around most of the border patrol," said our local fixer, his finger on...
Apr 9, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved