Author | Chai Xuchen

Editor | Wang Xiaojun

Attacked by new domestic forces, Tesla has finally fought back.

Without a press conference, without any pre-heating or announcements, on the morning of January 10, Tesla's China official website directly launched the refreshed Model Y. The debut includes a rear-wheel drive version and a long-range all-wheel drive version, priced at 0.2635 million and 0.3035 million yuan respectively.

The new car has received varying degrees of upgrades in appearance, cabin, and range.

In terms of appearance, the new Model Y adopts a rugged shape reminiscent of the Cybertruck, featuring a continuous light strip similar to the latter, complemented by a diffuse reflective light strip at the rear, giving it a more cyberpunk sci-fi feel, making it the most recognizable feature of the new Model Y.

This time, front seat ventilation, heating for both the front and rear seats, ambient lighting, and an 8-inch display for the rear seats are all arranged in the refreshed Model Y; the previously criticized rear seats have been extended by 15mm, and their sun protection and heat insulation capabilities have also been upgraded. The once 'bare shell' Model Y has finally reached the same starting line as domestic manufacturers.

The new Model Y not only improves its exterior design and interior but also shows advancements in performance and range. The 0-100 km/h acceleration is improved to a maximum of 4.3 seconds, achieving an increase in range of over 30 kilometers, with the maximum range reaching 719 kilometers.

It is worth mentioning that 'going all out' at the beginning of the year is almost Tesla's routine. As the absolute king of SUVs in the domestic market, the newly 'squeezed toothpaste' Model Y is likely to influence the direction of the SUV race this year.

Last year was a breakout year for domestic pure electric SUVs, during the 'golden September and silver October' period, the Letao L60, ZEEKR 7X, Zhijie R7, Zhiqi LS6, Avita 07, and Lantu Zhiyin all aimed at the Model Y and made intensive moves. Lantu CEO Lu Fang referred to it as 'six major sects attacking the Bright Summit.'

The logic is simple. Since its debut in 2019, the Model Y has had many minor updates but has never undergone a major facelift. It can be said that the Model Y's six years of strong sales are largely due to Tesla's powerful brand effect and the balanced strength of the product itself.

Therefore, whoever can take a piece from the Model Y's sales of 480,000 units in 2024 will be able to break into the SUV market.

Currently, the new competitors have also presented impressive initial performance; the Zhijie R7 has surpassed 58,000 orders, the ZEEKR 7X has delivered more than 30,000 units, and the Letao L60 has monthly deliveries exceeding 10,000. With the leading models under attack, the pressure on Tesla is significant.

Last year, Tesla's global total sales delivery recorded 1.7892 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 1.1% in a fiercely competitive environment, marking the first decline for Tesla in nearly a decade, indicating that the competitive advantage Tesla has always prided itself on in car sales is beginning to dissipate. Its stock price has also rapidly declined, retreating from last month's high point of $470 per share, falling below the $400 mark.

Although Musk has been hinting since 2022 at various occasions about shedding Tesla's identity as a car company and transforming it into an AI company to enhance Tesla's imagination. However, before Self-Driving Cars and AI Robots become truly widespread, selling cars remains Tesla's foundation, especially in the nearly zero-sum game of the China market.

This giant with a PE of 108 needs to present more convincing technology and viable products to maintain its extremely high valuation. After all, its Market Cap has already far exceeded the total Market Cap of all major Global car companies.

However, at present, the flagship Model S and X contribute limited sales, the Cybertruck is hindered by slow ramp-up of production, the cheaper Model Q has not yet been delivered, and the share of Model 3 may not see significant changes. However, Musk still hopes for a 20-30% growth in sales this year, with the burden of contributing growth largely resting on Model Y.

Fortunately, Model Y still has strong market appeal; despite having numerous formidable competitors, none have managed to shake its position. Tesla's Versailles road comments: "In comparison, the only one that can surpass Model Y is the refreshed Model Y."

Even though the new Model Y is priced over 0.01 million more compared to the old version, does not enjoy financial policy benefits, and will not be delivered until at least March, its popularity remains undiminished. According to Wall Street news, after the new car was released, Tesla store sales surged, with customers flocking in online and offline, and many stores have already exceeded a hundred orders.

The launch of the new Model Y seems to set off a storm, but this SUV battle has yet to reach its climax.

On that day, several industry leaders such as Lei Jun and Yu Chengdong responded successively on social platforms, with car companies like ZEEKR, Leyao, Avita, and Lynk & Co announcing their entry into the battle, creating quite a lively scene.

Yu Chengdong directly responded in his WeChat moments, claiming that the Zhi Jie R7 still maintains a leading advantage, suggesting everyone compare the actual car (with the new Model Y), and stated that Tesla is compensating for the problems and shortcomings of past products.

In the eyes of industry insiders, the Model Y is still a vehicle developed for the Global market. It is worth mentioning that although the new car is equipped with Tesla's latest self-driving Hardware AI4, which has five times the computing power of the previous generation, it only scratches the surface for Chinese users, as its FSD self-driving function has not yet been enabled in China, while first-tier competitors like Huawei and Xiaopeng have already extended their self-driving capabilities nationwide.

At the same time, this year's most anticipated Xiaomi YU7 has yet to make its move. Half an hour after the new Model Y was launched, Lei Jun responded with "Okay" to the copy of the new Model Y "Despite the comparison," and calmly issued a challenge.

Currently, self-owned brands that increasingly understand the demands of Chinese consumers are rapidly winning over the "hearts of the people" in the market. For six years, the Model Y has been compared but never defeated, and it may soon face a real showdown. The auto market in China and even globally may soon experience a significant change.