Tesla Model S Meets The Great Wall
Heading into the 2nd quarter of the year, Tesla (TSLA -3.55%) said it expected to sell 7,500 cars in a shareholder letter to investors.
"We expect to deliver about 7,500 Model S vehicles in Q2 as we move toward our goal of more than 35,000 Model S deliveries for the year. We also plan to produce 8,500 to 9,000 cars in the quarter, representing a 13% to 19% increase over Q1."
RHD Tesla Model S Does Some Promo Work in the UK...Of Course it Was Raining At the Time
We can now put the virtual checkmark beside that outlook statement as a surge of imports into China, plus a strong last month of U.S. sales, looks to have put the U.S. electric vehicle maker over the top.
Tesla made its first deliveries into China in late April after reportedly importing 53 cars during the month. May was followed up by a further 532 Model S sedans arriving in the country -- including one car that was smashed by its disgruntled owner after just receiving the keys.
And while June numbers have yet to be tallied in China, first hand accounts from the ground say that June was an even busier month for deliveries. Pencil in at least 1,200 deliveries for China during the quarter.
Of course exact numbers won't be known until Tesla reports in August, but we are confident in our own projections tracking North American sales for the 2nd quarter at around 4,250 (3,900 US/350 Canada) is accurate within a couple hundred units (historical accuracy has ranged from +/- 75 to 350 units as a matter of disclosure).
Advanced numbers (via registrations) from Europe have Tesla delivering approximately 1,200 cars in the first two months of the quarter.
Our Early Projections For Tesla Model S Sales For Q2 2014
Additionally, Tesla finally started much delayed deliveries of right hand drive cars into the UK on June 7, and we expect at least 1,200 more units found there way into Europe for June. Further RHD sales into Hong Kong, Japan and Australia are expected in volume during the third quarter.
