Electric vehicle giant Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has begun shipping their cars to customers with a 50% charge for “safety reasons”. As a gesture of goodwill, they're also offering buyers 150 free Supercharging kilometers to make up for any inconvenience caused.
According to Reddit user u/W-001, Tesla gave the following message through email when delivery was imminent: “Due to a new industry policy, your vehicle must be shipped with a max 50% charge–meaning your Model 3 charge status may be lower than our usual standard at your delivery appointment.”
“We are giving you 150 km of free Supercharging for the inconvenience. You will be able to redeem your Supercharging credit a few days after delivery in the Loot Box in your Tesla app.”
The message doesn't give clear information about the "industry standard" or where it applies. It seems like the standard is from a country other than the United States, especially since the message mentions kilometers instead of miles. The original poster confirmed this by saying that they're getting a Rear-Wheel-Drive Model 3 from China.
According to another user in the r/TeslaMotors subreddit, the policy is a Chinese standard that requires vehicle companies to deliver EVs with less range to alleviate excessive risk. It appears that there could be exceptions, but the Chinese government must approve the additional range ratings.
Shares of TSLA are down 0.71% in afternoon trading on Wednesday.