How much does it cost to transport a Tesla Model 3 from China?

Produced in the Chinese factory in Shanghai, the Tesla Model 3s dedicated to Europe travel by boat, and the cost is very high!

The car is a consumer good like any other. It must therefore be produced, then delivered to the customer. However, its size and weight somewhat complicate logistics, which Tesla itself describes as a “nightmare”.

This is why Tesla built a factory in Europe, in the Berlin countryside, in Germany, initially to assemble the Model Y and Model 3 dedicated to the old continent. However, issues related to human resources, ramping up production, and other factors currently limit manufacturing to only the Model Y.

The Model 3 are still imported from Shanghai, where they are produced, which significantly impacts delivery times, the carbon footprint (a cargo ship is among the worst in terms of polluting emissions)… and cost.

In 2022, Tesla signed an annual contract with shipowner Hyundai for an amount of $422 million, about 392 million euros. At that time, the only data related to the volume of cars to be transported had been communicated. However, since then, we now know the number of registrations in Europe in 2022.

Last year, exactly 91,475 units of Tesla Model 3 were sold in Europe. Therefore, we can deduce that the transportation cost per car is €4,285!

We now better understand why, besides a VAT of 13% compared to 20% in France, the Tesla Model 3s are much cheaper in China: a Propulsion version starts at 259,900 Yuan, or about €33,200. That is €9,790 less than in France… That said, Model Ys produced in Europe are not cheaper either. Proof that prices follow a supply and demand logic… just like any other consumer good.

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