Tesla Losing Ground in China, Consumers Prefer BYD and Xiaomi

According to the research, several factors that make Tesla no longer a top choice are its limited models and price.

Then, Elon Musk's involvement in politics is believed to play an important role as a reason for the Tesla brand's decline.

In the US, the figure dropped from 38 percent last year to 29 percent. Meanwhile, in Europe, it also plummeted to 15 percent, compared to 20 percent in 2024.

Globally, in 2024, 22 percent mentioned Tesla as their top BEV choice, but this has dropped to 18 percent this year.

Photo : Carscoops

“In Europe, Audi and BMW have surpassed Tesla in terms of brand consideration,” wrote the UBS researchers.

When it comes to features and price, Chinese manufacturers are arguably the champions. In China, the latest Xpeng sedan offers a number of interesting driving technologies and is sold at half the price of a Tesla Model 3.

Other manufacturers like Xiaomi equip their cars with Urban NOA (Navigate on Autopilot) in the price range of 200,000 yuan (around Rp 454.4 million). 

Tesla offers a similar feature, FSD (Full Self Driving), but it is priced higher and its delivery often stalls in China.

The Phenomenon of Chinese Cars in Indonesia

Japanese and South Korean manufacturers in the country are faced with a flood of new products from China. Competitive prices with abundant technology are the advantages offered.

Photo : KatadataOTO

In the era of electrification, Japanese manufacturers are starting to think about various survival strategies to face the onslaught of cars from China.

Moreover, Chinese manufacturers are now starting to enter the HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle) segment, which was previously dominated by Japanese brands like Toyota and Suzuki.

Most recently, the Chery Tiggo 8 CSH was introduced as the cheapest PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) in Indonesia (Rp 499 million). This is a far cry from other PHEVs like the Toyota RAV4 GR Sport PHEV (Rp 1.1 billion).