FILE PHOTO: Tesla sees India’s 100% import tariffs on cars making customers anxious, as it still assesses entry in the “very hot” market.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Tesla sees India’s 100% import tariffs on cars making customers anxious, and the carmaker is still assessing when to enter the “very hot” market even as those concerns linger, its chief financial officer said on Tuesday.

Tesla has long wanted to sell in the world’s third-largest car market, but high tariffs, which its chief Elon Musk has said are among the steepest in the world, have been a deterrent.

Even so, Tesla has in recent weeks finalised some showroom space in India and posted more than two dozen jobs, signalling it is getting closer to a launch. Commercially available custom records show that in March, Tesla imported a Model Y car to India from Germany at a shipment value of $46,000.

“The same car which we’re sending is 100% more expensive than what it is. So that creates a lot of anxiety. People feel OK, they’re paying too much for the car … That’s why we’ve been very careful trying to figure out when is the right time (to enter India),” Vaibhav Taneja said in an earnings call.

“India is a very hot market,” he added.

Tesla posted dismal first quarter earnings on Tuesday, with net profit plunging by 71%.

Tesla has been lobbying India to lower import tariffs on cars, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s officials are in talks with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to lower the 100% levies under a bilateral trade deal.

The United States has asked for elimination of tariffs on cars, but New Delhi is unlikely to bring down taxes to zero immediately even as it considers further cuts.

Any duty cuts that make imported cars cheaper have seen strong opposition from local carmakers such as Tata Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra.

Musk said this week he is planning to visit India this year, after Modi and the billionaire had a conversation about collaboration in technology and innovation.

Last year, Tesla came close, with Musk planning to visit India where he was expected to announce an investment of $2 billion-$3 billion, including in a factory to manufacture EVs. But he cancelled the trip at the last moment.