This $4,500 electric car is reportedly outselling Tesla’s Model 3 in China by almost two to one

• Sales of SAIC Motor’s budget EV were almost double that of Tesla’s Model 3 in China in January, the BBC reported.
• The four-seat Hong Guang Mini has top speeds of 62 mph and costs less than $4,500.
• China, the world’s largest car market, is seen as crucial to Tesla’s future.
• Visit the Business section of Insider for more stories.

State-owned Chinese automaker SAIC Motor is reportedly massively outselling Tesla in the country with its electric vehicles that sell for just 28,800 yen ($4,465).

SAIC Motor sold 25,778 Hong Guang Minis in China in January, compared to 13,843 sales of Tesla’s Model 3, the BBC reported, citing data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

China, which is the world’s largest car market and accounts for more than a fifth of Tesla’s revenue, is ramping up its efforts to boost electric vehicle sales as it tackles the country’s pollution problem.

The four-seat Hong Guang Mini, which has top speeds of 62 mph and an estimated cruising range of 120 miles, is being made as a joint venture between SAIC Motor, Liuzhou Wuling Motors, and General Motors.

Its sales could make it the second-best-selling electric car in the world after Tesla’s Model 3, the BBC reported.

The cheapest version of Tesla's Model 3 in China costs more than eight times than the Hong Guang Mini's entry-level model.

Tesla began selling its 249,900 yen (just under $39,000) Shanghai-made Model 3 vehicles in December 2019.

The company is trying to make a more affordable electric car.

In September, CEO Elon Musk said the company would make a $25,000 "fully autonomous" electric car in three years.

The head of Tesla China said the company's Shanghai research and development center, where it will develop the vehicle, would be running by the end of 2021.

Tesla started deliveries of its Shanghai-made Model Ys in January after reducing the pre-order price by 30%.

The Hong Guang Mini isn't Tesla's only rival in China.

As demand for electric vehicles has grown in the country, thanks in part to generous government subsidies, Chinese start-ups Nio, Li Auto, and Xpeng all announced surging sales in 2020.

Nio and Xpeng have both said their sales doubled in 2020 compared with 2019, and Li Auto sold 32,624 cars in 2020, its first full year of trading.

Tesla has also come under scrutiny from Beijing. Government officials met company representatives in February after reports about battery fires, unexpected acceleration, and failures in software updates.

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives has said Tesla could sell 1 million vehicles in China in 2022 because of "eye popping demand" in the country, which could account for 40% of its global sales.

The country is the "heart and lungs" of Tesla's demand growth, he added.

In 2020, around 21% of its revenue came from China, Tesla wrote in an SEC filing, and the company's sales in China more than doubled to $6.66 billion that year.

Do you have a tip you want to share? Contact Grace Dean via email (gd [email protected]). Always use a nonwork email.