特斯拉的中国问题

    特斯拉汽车的全球招聘信息说明了一切。

    在仅有510万人的挪威，该公司的Model S轿车是2014年最畅销车型之一。在这里，特斯拉还要招聘约90名员工。而在中国这个人口达到13.5亿的庞大经济体，特斯拉的产品销量低于预期，导致了高层更迭以及最近的重组。在这里，特斯拉只打算再招一个人。

    不到一年前，Model S轿车首次出现在中国消费者面前，当时的情况可不是这样。那时特斯拉制定了很高的销售目标，并为此大举招兵买马（最终组建了600人的队伍），设立专卖店和服务中心，并开始积极建设超级充电站网络，以便免费为用户提供快速充电服务。

    但这些努力并未获得回报。在进入中国市场的第一个年头，特斯拉的表现没有达到预期。2014年，该公司在中国的汽车销量估计为3500辆，低于它自己设定的目标，也不如中国竞争对手比亚迪和北京汽车生产的纯电动汽车以及插电式混合动力汽车。2015年初，特斯拉的汽车销量依然落后。

    特斯拉董事长、首席执行官及最大股东埃隆•穆斯克认为，这主要是因为在中国消费者中有种误解，以为充电是件难事。上个月，在业绩电话会议上，穆斯克说特斯拉正在着手扭转这种观念。

    然而，特斯拉在中国遇到的问题不仅仅是沟通不畅以及未能让中国消费者真正了解Model S轿车在充电方面的表现。

    波士顿研究咨询机构Lux Research研究员Lilia Xie说：“并不只是观念上的误解，这里存在着切实的问题。在很多方面，中国的基础设施对支持电动汽车都不理想。”

    她指出，大多数中国家庭都没有私人车库，而且中国的人口高度集中在城镇地区。也就是说，中国的有车一族通常都把车停在公共停车场、路边或者工作单位，因此很难在中国安装私人充电设备。

    为了消除用户的顾虑，特斯拉为他们免费提供在家充电服务。该公司已在中国设立了200多座超级充电站，而且还在建设新的充电站。它还通过和业主合作的方式在住宅楼安装充电设施。Xie认为，中国消费者普遍对采用新技术心怀疑虑，特别是汽车领域的新技术。这让扭转公众观念的工作变得更为复杂。

    她说：“打进中国市场很难。我觉得特斯拉的预期太高了。”

    车辆估值及汽车市场研究机构Kelley Blue Book高级分析师卡尔•布劳尔指出，特斯拉的2015年全球销售目标是5.5万辆。为此，该公司在中国的月销量需要超过1500辆。

    布劳尔说：“特斯拉正处在紧要关头，不成功则成仁。它既要打开中国市场，又要推出新的Model X轿车。今年，特斯拉在这两方面都必须成功。此外，它还要保证汽车电池工厂Gigafactory的顺利建设，否则股价就可能迅速下跌。”（财富中文网）

    译者：Charlie

    审稿：李翔

    Tesla Motors’ international job listings say it all.

    In Norway, a tiny country of 5.1 million people where the electric automaker’s Model S was one of the best-selling cars in 2014, there are about 90 job openings. In China, a massive economy of 1.35 billion people where weaker than expected sales led to executive turnover and a recent restructuring, there’s just one lone position.

    That wasn’t the story nearly a year ago when the first Model S sedans were delivered to customers in China. Tesla, aiming to meet lofty sales goals, went on a hiring spree (and eventually amassed a staff of 600 people), opened stores and service centers, and began an aggressive rollout of its network of free fast-charging stations known as superchargers.

    Those efforts fell short. Tesla’s first year in China didn’t pan out as expected. The company sold an estimated 3,500 cars in 2014, below its sales goal and behind electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles produced by Chinese rivals BYD and BAIC. Sales continued to lag in the beginning of 2015.

    Elon Musk, Tesla’s chairman, chief executive, and largest stockholder, has placed much of the blame on amisconception among Chinese consumers that charging is difficult there. During an earnings call last month, Musk said the company was working to fix that perception problem.

    However, Tesla’s China problem goes beyond a failure to communicate and educate Chinese consumers about charging the Model S.

    “This isn’t just a misconception, it’s a concrete problem,” said Lilia Xie, a research associate with Boston-based Lux Research. “China’s infrastructure, in many ways, is not ideal for supporting electric vehicles.”

    Most families don’t have private garages and the population is very concentrated in urban areas. That means car owners typically park in public garages, on the street and at work, making it difficult to install private charging infrastructure, Xie said.

    Tesla is offering free at-home charging in an effort to ease concerns and continues to add to its 200-plus network of superchargers. It’s also working with property owners of residential buildings to set up charging infrastructure.

    Changing public perceptions in China is further complicated by consumers’ general misgivings about adopting new technology, particularly with cars. Xie said.

    “China is hard to break into,” Xie said. “I think Tesla’s expectations were just too high.”

    Tesla, which has projected it will sell 55,000 vehicles globally in 2015, will need to sell upwards of 1,500 cars to Chinese consumers each month if it hopes to hit its target, said Karl Brauer, senior analyst with Kelley Blue Book.

    “Between launching in China and launching the new Model X, Tesla is reaching a critical make-or-break point,” Brauer said. “It has to accomplish both goals successfully this year, plus keep its Gigafactory on schedule, or its stock price could drop quickly.”