Tesla cut prices across its entire lineup in China on Monday, at the same time making Midnight Silver a free paint option on the entry-level Model Y Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD).
Just a few days later and Tesla has already reversed that decision, announcing through their official Weibo account that customers will once again have to pay for the optional paint colour.
“Thank you all for your enthusiasm. The Model Y rear-wheel drive version is no longer provided with cold light silver paint as standard, please refer to the contract below for details,” Tesla said on Weibo. (translated from Chinese)
Tesla’s website has already been updated with the change, now showing customers must pay ¥8,000 (~$1,500 CAD/$1,100 USD) to upgrade to Midnight Silver, the same price it was before it was made free.
In their statement on Weibo, Tesla did not provide an explanation for the sudden change, but it could be related to a surge in orders for the electric SUV and the country’s electric vehicle incentive.
When Tesla lowered the price of the Model Y RWD to ¥299,500, it once again became eligible for the incentive which requires the vehicle to be priced under ¥300,000.
The lower price also led to a rush of orders for the electric SUV, according to local media outlets citing local salespeople, some of whom worked until the early morning hours to deal with all the new orders from customers.
Now that Tesla has made Midnight Silver a ¥8,000 option, this raises the price of the Model Y RWD in this particular colour above the threshold to ¥307,998 (~$57,900 CAD/$42,700 USD).
Also on Monday Tesla brought back their referral program in China, rebranding it as ‘Treasure Chest’ rewards. Instead of earning free Supercharger mileage, owners now earn credits which can be redeemed for merchandise, accessories, and also Supercharger credits.
First look and new details of Tesla’s ‘Treasure Chest’ referral program in China [Update]
