Tesla denies halting orders from mainland

Tesla has not stopped accepting orders from customers in the Chinese mainland for its Model S and Model X cars, but the risk of tariffs may complicate delivery, a customer service staff of Tesla told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Media reports on Monday citing research firm JL Warren said the US-based electric carmaker had stopped accepting orders from the mainland for customized versions of its Model S and Model X electric cars due to China’s announcement of retaliatory tariffs on US goods.

“Given the risk of tariff changes, we do not recommend that customers buy customized versions of the Model S or Model X. Instead, we recommend buying vehicles in stock. However, if a customer insists on ordering a customized car we do take orders, which we will deliver in about four months,” the staff told the Global Times.

China is the fastest-growing market for Tesla, which doubled its local sales to $2 billion in 2017, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Tesla was scheduled to benefit from a reduction in tariffs on imported cars announced by China in May. However, the announcement on July 15 of the imposition of tariffs by the US government on $50 billion of Chinese goods led to retaliatory tariffs by China on US goods, including electric cars.

Chinese buyers of customized Tesla cars will be required to deal with any tariff adjustments on their own, said the Tesla representative.