Tesla has hit the ground running in Thailand, racking up more than 5,000 Model 3 and Model Y orders within just three days of launching the two electric vehicles (EVs) in the country (via The Nation Thailand).
The automaker touted the warm welcome it has received on its Thai website. According to executives at Tesla’s Thai unit, the company will begin delivering the first 1,500 orders in the country in February.
Tesla launched its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in Thailand on Tuesday, opening its order configurator to local buyers after months of reports claiming the company was headed to the Asian country. The EV pioneer is offering the Rear-Wheel-Drive (RWD), Long Range, and Performance trims of each vehicle in the Thai market.
Tesla’s Model Y is priced at ฿1.95-2.5 million ($56,186-72,033 USD) in Thailand. The more affordable Model 3, meanwhile, costs ฿1.75-2.3 million ($50,423-66,270). Placing an order for either vehicle requires customers to put down a ฿4,000 ($115) deposit.
The Thai government has a ฿2.9 billion ($83.5 million) subsidy program for EVs that offers discounts of up to ฿150,000 ($4,320) per vehicle on import duties for models that cost less than ฿2 million ($57,607), and up to ฿800,000 ($23,043) per vehicle for models that cost more.
Tesla hasn’t officially joined the federal subsidy scheme yet. However, Thailand’s Excise Department said on Friday that it is in talks with Tesla about the program. Thailand has already paid out ฿81 million in subsidies to qualifying EVs since the initiative was launched.
