Tesla is updating its model lineup both in China and the US due to tariffs and demand issues.
Tesla removed the “order” button from its China website for the Model S sedan and Model X SUV, which are higher-end Tesla EVs that are built at its factory in Fremont, Calif. The move comes after China raised its tariffs on US imports to 125% from 84%.
Chinese customers can still purchase the vehicles from existing inventory in the country. Though Tesla only sold around 2,000 Model S and Model X EVs in China, the move highlights the precarious situation Tesla and other automakers find themselves in amid a trade war world.
Tesla stock was lower Friday but is up around 5% over the past five days in a volatile week for the markets fueled by President Trump’s erratic changes in trade policy.
While Tesla’s sales in China rebounded in March with the launch of the refreshed Model Y, Tesla’s total retail sales in China for the first quarter hit 134,607 units, up only 1.7% year over year but down 31.6% sequentially compared to Q4 2024, per the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) as translated by CNEVPost.
In the US, Tesla’s issues with Cybertruck demand have finally led it to reveal a new, cheaper trim level.
The Cybertruck Long-Range variant is now available for order in the US, with a starting price of $69,990, which is $10,000 cheaper than the Cybertruck All-Wheel Drive, which was previously the base model.
The $10,000 price reduction results in a pared-back and less capable Cybertruck, however. The Long-Range Cybertruck only has a rear-drive motor, 350-mile range, only 7,500-lb. towing capacity (down from 11,000 compared to the AWD), and a 0-60 mph time of 6.2 seconds, compared to the AWD’s 4.1 second time.
Inside, the Long-Range comes with cloth seats versus “tactical” leather, no rear-seat touchscreen, and no retractable tonneau cover. It also loses adaptive air suspension, the rear lightbar, and various power outlets in the bed.
The introduction of the cheaper trim Cybertruck comes as Tesla tries to gin up demand for the truck, which has been losing sales momentum. Per Cox Automotive, Tesla delivered just 6,406 Cybertrucks in Q1, less than half of the 12,991 trucks it sold in the fourth quarter of last year.
Declining Cybertruck sales come as overall EV sales in the US went up 10% in Q1 2025, per Cox. Tesla has resorted to price cuts for the Cybertruck and had cut shifts previously at Giga Austin as inventory ballooned higher. Meanwhile the Cybertruck has been hit with a deluge of recalls, most recently for trim pieces that come off the truck because of defective adhesives.
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