The Tesla electric car has created buzz around the world. Before exploring the question of when will Tesla Cars arrive in Malaysia, let’s take a look at the who and what behind Tesla. Also, be sure to check out our post all about electric cars in Malaysia here.
About The Company – Tesla Motors
Named after the famous electrical engineer and futurist, Nikola Tesla (b. 1856 – d. 1943), Tesla Motors is a company dedicated to manufacturing completely electric and eco-friendly cars that are as stylish, powerful and luxurious as some of the most conventional cars in the market.
Tesla was founded in 2003 by Marc Tarpenning, Ian Wright, Martin Eberhard, JB Straubel and Elon Musk (Co-Founder of Pay Pal). The company was created with a goal of commercializing the T-Zero AC Propulsion electric cars for the masses. Tesla maintains that its ultimate goal is to produce electric and eco-friendly cars for the general public and the company has been able to get funding from prominent investors like Larry Page (Google Co-Founder), Sergey Brin (Google Co-Founder) and Jeff Skoll (ex-President of eBay).
SEE ALSO: Watch How Fast the Tesla Model S Drives Compared to the BMW M5
About Tesla Cars
Tesla cars run on AC motors, and, for those who don’t know, Nikola Tesla was the inventor of the AC motors.
Tesla Roadster was the first automobile Tesla Motors released way back in 2008. This model uses a 70 pound induction motor and can still accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in four seconds. The amazing thing about the Tesla Roadster is that it has a top speed of 130 mph making it much faster than electric cars produced by other companies. The company has now stopped production of the Tesla Roadster, as it plans on launching a new model soon. Tesla Roadsters, when in production, was sold in over 30 countries worldwide and models are still available in some parts of Asia, but not Malaysia, and Europe until stocks run out.
Tesla Model S is the company’s second car and was launched in 2009. Like the Tesla Roadster, the Model S uses a lithium-ion battery pack to store energy, although the specifications vary. While the Roadster was manufactured to be a sports car, the Model S is a sports sedan. The latest offering from the company is the Tesla Model X, which is a sport utility vehicle and the first prototype of the Model X was revealed on 9th February, 2012.
All Tesla vehicles are manufactured in and shipped from the company’s manufacturing plant in Fremont, California. So far Tesla Cars are sold only from select locations in the U.S.A., Europe and Asia.
SEE ALSO: Tesla Model S Have the Coolest Touchscreens [photo essay]
Where are the Tesla Stores Located Around the World?
Below we’ve listed the Tesla Stores by country location. Unfortunately, there are no Tesla stores in Malaysia.
North America
- Canada
- United States
Europe
- Austria
- Belgium (coming soon)
- Denmark
- Germany
- France
- Great Britain
- Italy
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Asia Pacific
- Australia
- Hong Kong
- Japan
So, When is the Arrival of Tesla Cars in Malaysia?
Back to our original question regarding when will Tesla Cars arrive in Malaysia. Unfortunately, Tesla Cars are not yet available for sale in Malaysia; there are no Tesla dealers or resellers in Malaysia. They also will not specially export cars to Malaysia. When I emailed Tesla Motors to enquire about purchasing a Tesla Car in Malaysia, they replied with the following message:
“Hello,
Thank you for your interest. We currently do not sell vehicles in your market. Additionally, we do not support exportation. All of our cars are market specific due to many variables including homologation and charging. Customer experience is a big part of our business, so we are careful to only sell in markets where we can provide great service and an amazing customer experience. We are currently focused on building out our existing markets before considering any new ones. If we were to open a location in your area, it would be a Tesla owned and operated store. Please stay tuned to our website for updates about future Tesla owned locations.
Regards,
Tesla Motors” – Saturday, 18 May 2013
The closest Tesla Store to open near Malaysia was actually in Singapore. Sadly, Tesla Motors shut the Singapore store, supposedly due to financial reasons. Hopefully, Tesla Motors will take action to open a store in Malaysia, as Malaysia does offer full tax exemption on electric cars below 2,000 cc.
Tesla Motors already gave Malaysia a taste of the Tesla Roadster by bringing and displaying the car in Malaysia. With the Malaysian government showing a keen interest in promoting energy efficient and eco-friendly cars, hopefully, Tesla could target the Malaysian market next.
If Tesla Motors sold their cars in Malaysia, would you buy one? Why or why not? Post a thought in the comments below.
Tesla Model S – Official Walkthrough Video
MORE TESLA ARTICLES:
- Watch How Fast the Tesla Model S Drives Compared to the BMW M5
- Tesla Model S Has the Coolest Touchscreen [photo essay]
- How Does The Tesla Car Work?
- Tesla Motors Might Open Factories in Asia
MORE ELECTRIC CAR ARTICLES:
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I’d love to buy one, if Tesla’s superchargers are everywhere in the whole country, haha. Without the gigantic gear box like those in normal gas/diesel powered vehicles, it makes me feel that this car is more user-friendly than others.
Yes, because it reminds us of a higher technology that we humans are capable of – without the need to dig up our earth for petroleum that’s anyway limited and bulldozing everything along the way.
I would love to have Tesla in Malaysia…its worth every penny. If you were to give me a million to buy either a lambo or ferrari, i guess a smart move would be to purchase this ride.
I’d love to have a Tesla too!
I pre-ordered a Tesla Model S in 2009. It is due for delivery to UK in Spring 2014. I’m now living in Malaysia and would like to ship the new car from UK to Malaysia.
The big question – does anyone have any idea what the import duty will be?
Hi there – I think there is exemption of import and excise duty for electric cars in Malaysia up through 2013 year end – not sure if this will be extended or not. Here is an article also mentioning this: http://www.nbc.com.my/blog/hybrid-electric-cars-continued-to-be-cheaper/
However, I think your best bet for the most reliable answer is calling Malaysia’s customs department (03 7884 3927 / 3965 / 3934). An associate of mine does this for MM2H clients who wants to import cars to Malaysia. From my understanding, it’s a bit of process though, as they require all your car details to be processed on paper. Then they will send you a doc indicating the costs and taxes.
Would only ever buy an Electric Car in Malaysia, when the charging infrastructure and support system is solid. Would not want to be stuck on the highway with no charging station or batt swap station in sight !
Yes, that would be a true nightmare – especially during rush hour!
The Tesla Model S has a range of 500km and it tells you exactly how many kms you have left. You never need to worry about running out of juice! You can recharge it from any plug point in your house or office or anywhere else.
The only concern you should have is that there is no official Tesla store or dealership in Malaysia yet. Until there is, there will be a question mark over what you do for servicing and repairs.
To charge this car battery, it needs a own station which called supercharger station. You can’t simply charge it at your home or office. That is what Tesla Motors consideration.
No it doesn’t. Please do your research before making comments on the web. You can charge a Tesla from any electricity point, including those in your home and office. There is a range of possible charging equipment, one of which is the Supercharger which charges the car incredibly fast.
i’m afraid my son will pour out his bottle milk and may be electrocuted inside this electric car (instead of electric chair)
Well, let’s hope they’ve anticipated all those scenarios to prevent anything like that!
This is a cool car. Has anyone seensthe touch screen in the car? It like twice the size of an ipad!
yes – it’s overkill.
You probably won’t like the title of our article about that then, which is linked above!
Yep! We have photo-driven article about that here: http://leapingpost.com/2013/05/27/tesla-has-the-coolest-touchscreen-in-a-car-yet/