Nothing is going well for Tesla in China: after a series of technical incidents, the electric champion has lost customer confidence in its second largest market in the world. In April, its sales fell 27%. And the trend may not be reversed anytime soon. After strongly annoying Chinese consumers, Tesla has drawn suspicion from the authorities, who had so far coaxed Elon Musk’s business, seen as a way to promote the rise of electric vehicles in China.
The trouble begins in early 2021. Customers complain on social networks after technical incidents: a battery that catches fire, sudden acceleration, or brakes that do not react. The accidents, scattered the previous year, seem to accumulate to the point that in February, Tesla executives are summoned by five different government agencies. The intimate regulator at Tesla “To strictly obey the laws, to fulfill its responsibilities to ensure the quality and safety of its products and to protect the rights of consumers”. The official China New Agency publishes an editorial in the wake: “Tesla can’t downplay consumer questions”.
“The brakes don’t work! “
But Elon Musk’s brand is not known for its modesty. In 2020, after a battery exploded, Tesla blamed the current provided by State Grid, the electricity supplier, before apologizing to the state company. In October 2020, the regulator ordered Tesla to recall 29,193 vehicles imported from the United States for a suspension problem. Tesla runs, but responds to the highway safety administration that “The origin of the problem comes from the abuses of the drivers”. Despite the warning from the authorities in February, Tesla seemed to be sticking to its positions.
But in mid-April, as the industry has its eyes riveted on the Shanghai Auto Show, the only one in the world to behave normally in these times of the Covid-19 pandemic, a woman climbs onto the roof of a You’re here. On her white T-shirt, she had four red sinograms printed: “The brakes do not work”. In front of the astonished visitors, Mme Zhang gives voice to get his message across, his father also suffered a brake problem. The client was sentenced to five days in detention for disturbing public order. Tesla claims with supporting data that his car was exceeding speed limits during the crash. While the video of Mme Zhang at the Auto Show tours the Chinese web, Grace Tao, Tesla’s vice president for external relations, suggests manipulation: “I find her to be very professional. I don’t know… but maybe there is someone behind her ”, she told local media.
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