In wealthy Singapore, where new vehicle registration is tightly controlled to manage the city state’s traffic and pollution, Tesla Inc is having a moment: surging sales are gobbling up rivals’ market share. The buying frenzy in one of the world’s most expensive places to own a vehicle – Tesla’s most basic Model 3 costs nearly S$200,000 in Singapore, largely due to an ownership levy. The number of new Tesla on Singapore roads has risen more than ten-fold to 487 in the third quarter, from just 30 in the first half, data from Singapore’s Land Transport Authority showed.

“I bought the car because I’m a supporter and shareholder of the company,” said software engineer Tim Shim, who reserved a Model 3 five years ago but received just recently as sales began this year in the city-state. Helped by Tesla fans like Shim, the company became Singapore’s sixth-most popular car brand in September, outselling Nissan, Audi, and Kia.

Experts say there is no single cause for the surge, although Singapore did announce this year up to S$45,000 subsidy for buyers of electric cars. Because Tesla seems to have fared better than other companies at weathering supply chain issues, it may simply be able to deliver more cars than competitors.

“Pent-up demand is relatively large. Now the supply is in place and Tesla is most likely working through a large backlog,” said Niels de Boer, an electromobility expert at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Singapore’s strict limits on car registrations until early 2025 mean Tesla’s market share gain comes at the cost of its rivals.

“A Tesla car is cheaper to own when compared to equivalent class sedans from other famous Western brands like Mercedes and BMW,” said Andy Seo, who switched to Tesla from a Volvo. He said it costs about S$20-S$30 to fully charge a Model 3 near his home. NTU’s de Boer expects the Tesla frenzy to fade longer-term as competition heats up, but said it could help broaden the adoption of electric vehicles. “I think Tesla will help with the shift: this is buying an EV while being cool and trendy,” he said.

Questions

• Compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) cars in the same price range, illustrate the estimation of the monetary value of Tesla Model Basic 3 in the context of the car market in Singapore.
• As the Pricing Manager of Tesla Singapore, discuss two effective strategies to convey the psychological value of the Tesla Model 3 to influence the buyer purchase decisions.