Tesla and other Chinese EV automakers tried to put an end to the price war
Not a Tesla App
Several days ago Tesla and 16 Chinese automakers declared a truce in their long-standing price wars. The pact, designed to stabilize the largest EV market in the world, was signed at the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) in Shanghai.
A Unifying Pact: No More Price Disruptions
The “letter of acceptance for maintaining fair market order in the automobile industry” encompassed four essential commitments from the automakers, with the key one being to stop disrupting the competitive market order with abnormal pricing.
The agreement was signed by some of the biggest players in the Chinese domestic market, including Tesla, BYD, Nio, Li Auto, Xpeng, China FAW, Dongfeng Motor, SAIC, Changan Automobile, BAIC, GAC, China National Heavy Duty Truck, Chery, JAC, Geely, and Great Wall Motor.
Although the agreement was self-regulated and not legally binding, its significance could not be understated.
Sources from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology asserted that regulating promotional activities, including avoiding reckless price cuts, is necessary for the health and growth of the Chinese auto industry.
This move appeared to signal the end to the price war, which had led to uncertainties in the market and delayed expansion plans, such as Tesla's Giga Shanghai expansion.
An Unexpected U-Turn: The Withdrawal of the Price Pledge
However, the CAAM has decided to retract the pledge made by the 16 automakers to refrain from "abnormal pricing."
The pledge, carefully coordinated by CAAM, was viewed as a ceasefire in the heated price war that had been affecting the profitability of the EV industry. The aim was to promote stability and healthy competition in the market.
Tesla's Move: A Sales-Boosting Strategy
Complicating the situation further, Tesla unveiled a global program on Friday. The program offers additional incentives to potential buyers through referrals from existing customers, a sales strategy long employed by traditional automakers.
While this move could be viewed as a savvy business decision aimed at boosting sales, it comes at a time when the EV industry in China was moving towards maintaining a fair market order. This has raised questions about whether Tesla's new initiative could reignite the pricing wars and undermine the market's stability.
CAAM's Response: Fostering Fair Competition and Independent Pricing
Reacting to this development, CAAM posted a statement on its website on Saturday, acknowledging that the pricing pledge had infringed upon China's antitrust law. As a result, it decided to withdraw the pledge from a list of commitments that the automakers had initially signed under the guidance of an official from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Despite the withdrawal, CAAM has stated that it will continue to encourage the 16 companies and other association members to strictly adhere to the antitrust law and engage in fair competition through independent pricing. This raises the question of what the future will look like for the EV market, not only in China but worldwide, as industry leaders navigate the complexities of pricing, competition, and market stability.
A New Era in the EV Industry
This development underlines the complexity of the global EV market. It also stresses the delicate balancing act required between ensuring market competitiveness, upholding antitrust laws, and creating a stable and sustainable industry that benefits consumers, manufacturers, and the wider society.
The unexpected withdrawal of the pledge, coupled with Tesla's new referral program, may redefine the landscape of the EV industry. As we progress, watching how automakers balance competitive pricing and maintaining market order will be intriguing.
Now that the Model Y Juniper refresh has officially been announced in the Asia-Pacific markets, the initial vehicles from Giga Shanghai are starting to make their way to showrooms throughout the region.
And that means lots of new pictures. Let’s take a look at some of the latest close-up shots of the 2025 Model Y.
Light Bar Close-Up
Our first up-close look at the new front end of the new Model Y. This car is likely en route to a showroom prior to the start of Tesla’s big sales push for the Chinese Lunar New Year, and this is one of the closest and cleanest shots of the new front end.
The sharp new front of the Juniper
@DriveGreen80167 on X
The new front light bar is very visible, even when it’s off. It’s more than a thin strip of lights. The headlights are located directly below the light bar at either end. You can also see the new squared-away sharp lines - starting from the lightbar gaps and going up the hood. The new design looks far more aggressive and sharp when viewed at this angle.
Wheels
And the new wheels are pretty interesting, too - especially since they don’t seem to have full aero covers on them. We’re wondering if Tesla intends to introduce aero covers for these wheels later - or if they’ll just stay uncovered. They look pretty good - but the black hubcap in the center stands out against the rest of the wheel. Time will tell whether the clean black finish holds up with use.
We're a big fan of these new fan-blade wheels
@DriveGreen80167 on X
Either way, they’re pretty good looking - but we’d prefer to see them in an all black finish - similar to the Shadow Gemini’s that are currently available. Hopefully, once the Model Y refresh arrives in North America and Europe, that option will be available in addition to the Crossflow wheels.
Interior
The refreshed Model Y also brings a ton of changes to the interior. In addition to the Launch Edition exclusive dash, we also get a good shot of the new ventilated seats, as well as the return of the turn signal stalk.
The best interior shot we've seen so far
@DriveGreen80167 on X
The new Model Y also has the same new center console as the Model 3 Highland - with the two-part slider. For now, it seems like the Launch Edition will include rubber pedal covers - nothing fancy like the metallic ones available on the Performance variants yet.
Rear End Close-Up
On the rear end of the vehicle, we get a close-up view of the new reflective light bar. Tesla claims this is an industry-first, and it does look very cool. The actual light is located on the inside edge of the piece that overhangs the reflective portion. The reflective portion itself is painted to match the vehicle - and isn’t a glossy surface, but rather matte.
Gotta love that new reflective light bar
@DriveGreen80167 on X
In the next image, we can also see that the rear camera is mounted in a new location. It doesn’t have the camera lip that the 2024 Model Y has been shipping with, as the camera is now mounted on the very edge of the new raised bumper. This also means the camera is much higher up than it previously was. This location change likely means that the new Y will require some additional training time for both FSD and Actually Smart Summon, as well as the new front bumper camera.
This is going to be an interesting change - we’re not sure how this new camera location will handle snow, rain, and road muck, but this is likely the main reason for it being moved up and away from the road.
The updated camera positioning is noticeably higher
@zhongwen2005 on X
We’re excited to see the new Model Y in person. This refresh has been a long time coming and there are many details that are still waiting to be discovered.
Customer deliveries are supposed to begin in just a couple of months - May at the earliest - in the Asia-Pacific region. We’re hoping to see the refresh arrive in Europe and North America by summertime and then see the launch of the Performance variant shortly thereafter.
A rendering of what the Tesla app may look like with the Tesla Diner added
Not a Tesla App
Tesla has been planning to create its own drive-in diner with Superchargers since at least 2022, when it filed paperwork for the one-of-kind supercharger location. In 2023, Tesla’s then Senior Director of Charging Infrastructure, Rebecca Tinucci, said during a presentation that you "can't forget to do cool s***."
The slide presentation showed off an illustration of a retro-looking Tesla Diner restaurant with a rooftop patio and an old-school drive-in movie screen behind it. People could be seen lining up to get inside, hinting that whatever the restaurant serves is worth the wait.
Since then, Tesla has begun and practically completed the construction of its Tesla Diner project. The location includes two 45-foot outdoor LED screens that will play short films, and it’ll also serve food up to 77 guests while their vehicle is being charged.
As the completion of the diner approaches, Tesla has now revealed several other bits of information in the latest Tesla app update. Thanks to a decompile by Tesla app iOS, we see that Tesla’s diner will closely tie in with the Tesla app itself.
Integrated With the Tesla App
Several phrases were found in Tesla’s latest app update, which includes things like show_diner, Diner Home Screen, profile_settings_diner_description, and View menu & amenities. It sounds like you’ll be able to view the diner’s menu directly from the Tesla app, but if we had to guess, there will be a lot more to it than that.
Following Tesla’s seamless integration with Superchargers, we expect the diner experience to be similar. You may soon be able to order food directly from the app and have it charged automatically to your card on file, letting you skip the payment portion completely.
Since Tesla knows which Supercharger stall you’re connected to, we also expect Tesla to take full advantage of this and bring the food directly to your vehicle without you needing to specify your location. So imagine this, you’ll pull up to a Supercharger and plug it in.
Tesla Diner UI
An image was also found in the app update that hints at where the Tesla Diner options will be located. The image found is the same ratio and similar size to other images found in the main menu of the Tesla app. In addition, the phrase “profile_settings_diner_description” could be the string used for the text that will show up in this menu. Since this menu is used to guide users to Tesla pillars such as products, charging, referrals and more, we expect the diner menu to only show up if you’re geographically near the Tesla diner.
What’s round and shiny but still not yet open? Tesla diner
Supercharger stalls, landscaping, and more are already in place at the Tesla Diner. The fact that Tesla is now including code related to the diner in the Tesla app indicates that Tesla may be ready to open up the diner to the public very soon.
For now, the location remains quiet, but it will soon become a 24-hour diner with a steady flow of traffic as Tesla owners visit to enjoy a unique charging and dining experience.
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