Today, Tesla has registered the Model Y with the Ministry of industry and information technology of China, and Tesla’s factory in Shanghai may have started to produce Model Y. Because the vehicles on the record photos of the Ministry of industry and information technology have China-made badge, and Model 3 produced by the factory has the same badge.
If Tesla wants to mass-produce cars in China, all cars need to obtain approval from relevant Chinese authorities. Not only does the vehicle need to be registered with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, after the vehicle is deemed suitable for use as a passenger car, the department will also approve its manufacturing technology.
At the end of 2019, in order to produce Model 3 in China, Tesla has gone through this process once. After the Shanghai Gigafactory was completed, Tesla made Model 3 the first vehicle to be mass-produced in the factory. At the end of 2019, after obtaining production approval, Tesla officially launched the production line of the Shanghai factory. In January 2020, the China version of Model 3 was delivered to Chinese consumers.
Model Y will also go through a similar process. Tesla’s official website shows that the company will start producing Model Y in China as early as 2021, which means that Tesla may start delivering the first batch of Model Y to order holders in early 2021. Tesla plans to produce a long-range version and a high-performance version of Model Y in China. Both versions provide an all-wheel drive.
Tesla will produce Model Y in the second phase of the Shanghai plant, which is significantly larger than the part of the first phase of the factory responsible for the production of Model 3. Model Y may surpass Model 3 in the future and become Tesla’s most popular model among consumers.
