Tesla cuts prices on Model 3, Model Y by up to 10% in Europe, elsewhere
Tesla has followed up on recent price cuts in the US with significant price drops on the Model 3 and Model Y in Europe, up to 10% depending on the model and market. Price cuts also reached Israel and Singapore.
After raising prices significantly throughout 2021 and 2022, Tesla finally has been letting some air out of their car prices since the start of this year. We saw big price drops in the US and in China in January and various discounts and incentives as well.
This led to the conclusion that Tesla was finally seeing a plateauing of demand – at least at the high prices the company was charging.
Price drops reinvigorated that demand, and Tesla’s vehicles have been breaking sales records and showing up in lists of the most popular cars in the world and in various countries.
And yet, the company has still seen fit to continue to cut prices.
The biggest change we’re aware of is the Performance Model 3, which got a €6,000 discount from €59,990 to €53,990 in France and the Netherlands. The same discount is applied in Germany, where it costs €1,000 more.
While we don’t track every trim level and model in every European country, Tesla prices are usually similar within a region. So, European customers can expect a 5-10% discount on most trim levels in most countries. It looks like higher trims got larger cuts and lower trims smaller ones, in general.
One exception is Norway, where the Long Range Model Y actually went up in price slightly, by 10,000 NOK, just under €900.
Prices were also cut in some markets outside of Europe, such as Singapore and Israel.
Tesla said that these cuts have been possible due to production scaling:
Our mission is to accelerate the transition to renewable energy. Our masterplan has set a clear pathway to achieve that mission: the transformation of cost-intensive small-series products to cheaper mass-series vehicles.
Gigafactory Berlin recently reached a production landmark of 5,000 vehicles per week, which is a rapid improvement from 3,000 vehicles per week at the end of last year.
Tesla’s Q1 earnings call is Wednesday, April 19. We’re sure we’ll hear more on the call about how the company’s deep price cuts since the beginning of the year have affected margins and demand.
Electrek’s Take
These price cuts have caused interesting reaction from Tesla fans, with a lot of considerations going into everyone’s opinion of what’s happening here.
On the one hand, it’s better for customers if products are cheaper, and these products have gotten significantly cheaper. On the other hand, prices were going up for so long that we’re really just getting closer to where we started from, rather than getting unheard-of low prices.
Then there are the angry customers who recently bought a Tesla just before the price drops, and see the residual value of their car tank by thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars overnight. This isn’t the greatest thing to see, but if the price of other cars you might replace your car with also went down, did you really lose any money?
Then there’s the consideration of Tesla’s margins, which are extraordinarily high. This gives them the option of starting a price war, which other automakers don’t have. As Tesla cuts its prices, other companies may need to follow suit. So this can be good for non-Tesla shoppers as well.
But a lot of Tesla owners are also Tesla shareholders, who of course want the company to keep selling as many cars as it can, and making as much money as it can on those cars it’s selling. This leads to concerns over demand – is Tesla cutting prices because they are having trouble selling cars? If so, why are they breaking sales records? If they’re breaking sales records, why are they cutting prices?
And how does this all relate to inflation and supply chain challenges? We’ve seen supply chains get less impacted, and the resulting inflation from this imbalance of supply and demand has started to cool. But this could also be a matter of consumers getting more wary about where they spend their money in an uncertain economy.
Throw in the many changes to the EV tax credit and you’ve got a stew with perhaps a few too many ingredients in it.
Frankly, I say we all just simplify this and take the good news at face value: Prices are lower, and that’s good for people who buy cars. That describes most of the people reading this. So, we get to save some money. Yay.
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Thanks to a clever, fully electric swing system and “boom up” power assist features, the big PC365-11 hybrid excavator from Komatsu promises better performance and serious fuel savings compared to conventional diesel machines.
Komatsu says its PC365-11 hybrid excavator uses a “boom-up” power assist feature that captures and stores kinetic energy during different operation cycles, then taps into that power to provide an extra energy boost when needed. The result is 15% more productivity and a 20% improvement in fuel efficiency when compared to non-hybrid excavators in ~40 ton class.
“The PC365LC-11 was engineered for excellence in multifunction applications by leveraging its innovative electric powertrain system to boost job site productivity while reducing fuel consumption,” says Matthew Moen, Komatsu’s product manager. “To highlight these performance enhancements, we’re emphasizing the concept of ‘multifunction plus’ as the defining feature of this machine.”
How it works
Komatsu’s hybrid system replaces the conventional hydraulic swing function with a fully electric swing motor that draws power from an ultracapacitor (as opposed to a battery) energy storage unit. As excavator slows or stops swinging, something like a regenerative braking system captures the kinetic energy that would normally be lost as heat and stores it in the capacitor. Once there, the stored energy can be quickly released to power the swing motor or assist the engine, delivering up to an extra 70 hp when needed to support heavy lifting or digging cycles.
And, thanks to Komatsu’s proprietary software, all of this energy capture and reuse happens automagically during normal work, without the need for external charging. The fuel savings happen because removing the hydraulic load from the ICE engine allows it to run at an ultra-low idle, while the productivity comes from the greater power and overall speed of the electric operations vs. conventional hydraulics.
Electrek’s Take
Trust me when I tell you that Komatsu didn’t wake up one day and decide to build a capacitor-based hybrid crane. One of their customers had the idea and came to them, promising orders. That’s what Komatsu does – from undersea remote control dozers to lunar mining rigs (above), if you bring Komatsu an order, they will absolutely find a way to fill it.
As for PC365-11 hybrid excavator, it’s packed with clever tech, overall – offering significant fuel, emissions, and TCO reductions without dramatically changing the operational logistics of an existing fleet’s operations. That’s all the sales pitch it needs.
SOURCE: Komatsu, via Equipment World.
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For serious fleet buyers, safety isn’t a “nice-to-have,” it’s an absolute must – and Kia’s new PV5 electric van meets that need with a positively stellar, five-star safety rating on the tough European NCAP safety test.
The new “do-it-all” Kia PV5 showed strong performance across a number of key safety categories, including Occupant Protection, Safety Assist/Crash Avoidance, and Post-Crash Safety. The PV5’s robust suite of standard ADAS technologies that includes AEB, Lane Support System, and Speed Assistance System also helped the new electric work van to deliver top marks in the NCAP’s “real world” test scenarios.
“The PV5 opens a new chapter in practical, electrified mobility, offering generous space and modular versatility for everyday use,” explains Sangdae Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of the (relatively) new PBV Business Division at Kia. “Achieving the top Euro NCAP five-star rating is clear validation of its safety performance and will serve as strong momentum as Kia expands its PBV lineup across Europe.”
The Euro NCAP tests highlighted the strong performance of a number of the PV5’s ADAS features, specifically calling out the following:
- Demonstrated strong responsiveness in vehicle-to-vehicle scenarios
- Provides additional protection for pedestrians behind the vehicle
- Avoided collisions in most pedestrian and cyclist test cases
The Kia PV5 slots into familiar territory for US buyers, landing roughly in the same size class as the Ford Transit Connect or Ram ProMaster City, with ~180 cubic feet of interior cargo space available, which is plenty to make it attractive for last-mile delivery and trade work in tight urban markets.
Globally, the PV5 is offered with a number of battery options, including a smaller 43.3 kWh Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) pack, as well as larger Nickel-Cobalt-Manganese (NCM) packs at 51.5 kWh and 71.2 kWh. The longest-range versions are good for about 250 miles of estimated range – more than enough for Kia to make a case for it as a practical, city-focused alternative to much larger (and pricier) electric vans.
Larger vans, by the way, that may not have that 5 star Euro NCAP rating.
Kia PV5
SOURCE | IMAGES: Kia; photo by Scooter Doll.
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Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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