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Tech billionaire Elon Musk's electric vehicle major Tesla is opening its first showroom in India today on July 15, in Mumbai's posh Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) locality, inside Maker Maxity Mall.
As of now, Tesla is speculated to sell its Model Y SUVs in India, with plans of expanding more with other models as the sales increase. The first cars are expected to be delivered from August 1. Here's all you need to know about the vehicle on offer…
Which Tesla cars will be sold in India?
At present, Tesla will sell only one model in India — the Tesla Model Y. The company has already shipped six units of the Model Y SUV from its Shanghai plant to Mumbai, which will be used for display and demonstration purposes, according to a report by Carwale.
Tesla to sell Model Y in India
According to a Reuters report, Tesla will retail its Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk's Tesla is selling its Model Y cars in India starting at about $69,770, its website showed on Tuesday, as the electric car maker prepared to open its first showroom in the financial capital of Mumbai.
India is the world's third largest car market, although electric vehicles comprise a very small slice, as concerns about easy accessibility of charging infrastructure deter many affluent buyers from going electric.
As Tesla gears up for busy roads still ruled by cars fuelled by diesel and petrol, it will go head-to-head primarily with German luxury giants like BMW and Mercedes-Benz in the premium EV segment.
Among India's mass-market players are Tata Motors and Mahindra.
Police guarded the showroom, with the brand’s name etched in black against a stark white wall, where the car, draped in black and grey covers was partially visible on Tuesday through the glass in a gated office complex.
With access tightly controlled, few onlookers or fans lingered near the premises.
Musk has long eyed an entry in India, the world's most populous country and where the rich are splurging on everything from apartments to watches and jewellery, even bathrooms.
India aims to boost the share of EVs in domestic car sales to 30% by 2030, from 4% now, offering tax cuts to foreign automakers committing to some domestic production.
That proved to have limited appeal to Musk, although the efforts were partly designed to lure Tesla.
Tesla's opening coincides with a pre-booking campaign in India launched by Vinfast for its electric sports utility vehicles VF7 and VF6.
Tesla is selling the Model Y rear-wheel drive for 6 million rupees ($70,000) in cash, and its Model Y long-range rear-wheel drive at 6.8 million ($79,000).
The U.S. selling price starts from $44,990, while in China it is 263,500 yuan ($36,700) and in Germany 45,970 euros ($53,700).
