Tesla has officially commenced production of the facelifted Model Y at its Shanghai plant after completing the full regulatory process in China.
“Production of the new Model Y has officially started at Gigafactory Shanghai. Deliveries coming soon,” Tesla Asia wrote on X today and Tesla China posted the same brief content on Weibo.
The facelifted five-seat Model Y was launched in China on January 10, with two variants, the Launch Series, made available. Tesla’s Chinese website had previously indicated that deliveries of the updated Model Y were expected to begin in March, pending regulatory approval.
On Monday, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released new documents, which included the Model Y in a catalog of vehicles eligible for purchase tax reductions. This marks the completion of the full regulatory process for the model’s sales in China.
An update on Tesla’s Chinese website now shows that deliveries of the new Model Y will begin in late February, with the current Launch Series available for sale until February 28.
Tesla’s Shanghai factory, which produces the Model 3 sedan and Model Y, serves both local customers and acts as an export hub. Delivery wait times for all three variants of the Model 3 currently remain at 1-3 weeks.
Tesla China sold 63,238 vehicles in January, including 29,535 for export, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). Of those, 33,703 units were sold in the domestic market, a 15.49% decline from 39,881 in the same period last year and a 59.36% drop from 82,927 in December.
The Model Y accounted for 25,694 of the January sales, while the Model 3 contributed 8,009 units, according to data from CnEVPost.
In 2024, the Model Y sold 480,309 units in the Chinese domestic market, representing 73.10% of Tesla’s 657,102 total sales in the country. The Model 3 contributed 26.90% with 176,793 units sold.
