Recently, Tesla came back into the spotlight when several tech bloggers claimed that the US carmaker launched a revised version of the Model 3 produced by the Shanghai Gigafactory in the Hong Kong market, instead of supplying this new model to Chinese mainland customers.
In response, Grace Tao, Tesla's vice president of external affairs, said in Weibo that the speculation is a misunderstanding, and that the right-hand-drive vehicles currently sold in the Hong Kong market are imported from the United States, and that the Shanghai factory is not mass producing right-hand-drive vehicles right now.
She added that the test vehicle and the production vehicle are also completely different concepts.
The revised Model 3 is said to have swapped the chrome trim on the current model for a sportier black, and added a power tailgate and energy-friendly heat pump air conditioning. The interior is said to be optimized as well.
Tao had responded on Weibo back on November 8, stating that the Shanghai factory uses a different supply chain than the US, hence the inconsistent launch of the revised model. It's common in the auto industry for products made in different regions to have different specifications, she said.
But then she deleted the Weibo post and didn't respond again until today.
