Photo: carnewschina.com
The past 30 days or so have been laden with crummy incidents related to the Tesla Model S - at the end of June, a Chinese customer smashed the windscreen of its showroom fresh Model S, a different car was split in half after a high-speed crash in L.A. on the 4th of July and a fresh owner crashed his brand new pure electric luxury sedan before leaving the Fremont Assembly plant.
A recurring reader of carnewschina.com sent the Chinese motoring publication a set of pictures of what is believed to be the first Tesla Model S road accident in the country. The unfortunate crash happened last Friday in the Chaoyang District of Beijing. It's no wonder if you take into account that only Shanghai and Beijing electric vehicle customers enjoy a government incentive that shaves $15,000 off the sticker price.
Furthermore, Chaoyang is home of the Central business district, many foreign embassies and shopping malls, as well as the most populous district in Beijing thanks to a total population of over 3.6 million. So what exactly happened? Well, the driver of the red Model S allegedly hit a lamp pole at the side of the road while carrying a not so legal amount of speed. The impact further propelled the car into a bus parked nearby.
Fortunately, there were no passengers aboard the bus, while the driver and front passenger of the red Tesla Model S were transported to the local hospital for routine checks that confirmed they have not sustained serious injuries from the impact. The pictures provided hint that all airbags were deployed upon impact, while the right rear wheel broke off. There's damage on virtually every panel of the car except for the roof, and most of us can agree that this particular Tesla Model S is a complete write-off.
All in all, tough luck for the guy that crashed this car. Speaking of which, do you know how much a P85 retails for in China? We don't know how to soften the blow, but it's way more expensive than the Stateside sticker price. Specifically, a Chinese customer has to pay $121,000 at current exchange rates for the Tesla Model S P85 - $81,070 U.S. price, $3,600 shipping & handling, $19,000 customs duties & taxes, $17,700 VAT and the dealership premium. A fully loaded P85 Performance model can go as high as ¥1,087,000 ($175,000).
Furthermore, Chaoyang is home of the Central business district, many foreign embassies and shopping malls, as well as the most populous district in Beijing thanks to a total population of over 3.6 million. So what exactly happened? Well, the driver of the red Model S allegedly hit a lamp pole at the side of the road while carrying a not so legal amount of speed. The impact further propelled the car into a bus parked nearby.
Fortunately, there were no passengers aboard the bus, while the driver and front passenger of the red Tesla Model S were transported to the local hospital for routine checks that confirmed they have not sustained serious injuries from the impact. The pictures provided hint that all airbags were deployed upon impact, while the right rear wheel broke off. There's damage on virtually every panel of the car except for the roof, and most of us can agree that this particular Tesla Model S is a complete write-off.
All in all, tough luck for the guy that crashed this car. Speaking of which, do you know how much a P85 retails for in China? We don't know how to soften the blow, but it's way more expensive than the Stateside sticker price. Specifically, a Chinese customer has to pay $121,000 at current exchange rates for the Tesla Model S P85 - $81,070 U.S. price, $3,600 shipping & handling, $19,000 customs duties & taxes, $17,700 VAT and the dealership premium. A fully loaded P85 Performance model can go as high as ¥1,087,000 ($175,000).
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