That Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s Model S will be available in Australia is a known fact, but the fact that was unknown until now was that the vehicle will cost around $95,000 on the continent. That’s according to a report from Gizmodo citing sources familiar with the matter. However, the pricing of the car has not been announced officially.
More concerned with competition
Customers are already pre-ordering the Model S and signing a contract for delivery in the near future. In Australia, the price of the Model S is higher than what is being charged for the car in the North America. The price of the Model S in North America is $81,000. In Australia, customers will have to pay extra due to heavy taxes, such as the 10% Goods and Services tax, the luxury car tax and Stamp Duty. Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s Model S 85kWh price could be more than twice that of the base model–somewhere around $200,000.
The electric car maker is not worried about the price difference in Australia but is more concerned about the price related to the BMW M5 hot rods. Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) wants to convince customers in Australia that although the price point of $200,000 is very high for an electric car, its performance and options will outperform the M5 sports sedan, which costs around $230,000 in Australia, says the report.
Tesla plans Supercharger network in Australia
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has also set up its action plan to build a Supercharger network in Australia by early 2015. This would allow Model S owners to charge their cars for free. Mat Peterson, founder of educational app developer Shiny Things, said that Tesla has confirmed its Supercharger network expansion in the United Sates. Apart from Australia, the company is also planning to spread its Supercharger network throughout the U.K. and Asia. The EV maker recently unveiled a map suggesting 14 Supercharger locations in Asia.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has always set a competitive price, which was evident when the company entered in China. Elon Musk, CEO of the automaker, posted on his blog that instead of gouging customers globally, the company will sell its car for the same price at which it is being sold in the United States, with only the local import and duty taxes applied.
