Historically, to push more vehicle sales out at the end of the quarter, Tesla has added certain buyer incentives from time to time. This is one of those quarters, and particularly for the Tesla Model 3 in the United States. It’s not the biggest incentive in the world, but Tesla is now offering 3 months of free Supercharging to Model 3 buyers in the States and Canada — if they receive their cars by June 30.
There is nothing hidden about this. With the June 30 deadline, Tesla is making it clear that it’s got more supply than demand for the Model 3 in the next couple of weeks, and that it wants to push out more cars in order to have better quarterly sales numbers and finances.
That said, there may be little more at play. There’s a new, refreshed version of the Model 3 coming out soon. Tesla may want to empty inventory before that happens. The company could be concerned about demand for the older/original Model 3 dying up once the new version is unveiled. Still … the June 30 deadline implies this is more about Q2 sales (unless Tesla plans to unveil the new Model 3 on July 1).
Tesla also recently got a boost when it comes to selling the Model 3. The new US federal tax credit for the Model Y maxed out at $7,500 from the beginning, but only the higher trim levels of the Model 3 maxed out at that level for the tax credit, while the lower cost RWD Model 3 had a max tax credit of $3,750. That was recently updated (presumably due to changes on Tesla’s end) and the cheapest Tesla on the block is also now eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit (as long as the buyer has that much tax liability in one year).
The only other pure electric cars and trucks that currently qualify for the full $7,500 EV tax credit are the Volkswagen ID.4, Chevy Bolt EV/EUV, Cadillac Lyriq, and Ford F-150 Lightning. That raises its competitiveness compared to other EVs on the US market (like the Hyundai IONIQ 5, Kia EV6, Ford Mustang Mach-E, and Volvo C40/XC40), and it should already be boosting sales.
So, is the free Supercharging incentive a cause for concern — concern regarding dropping demand for the Model 3? Or is this just a little thing to nudge more buyers forward with a purchase just before the financial quarter wraps up?
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