China cools on Musk: 'Two cars for the price of one Tesla'

Tesla is getting crushed in China, its most important market outside the United States and one that it had dominated for years.

- Alexandra Stevenson

When Liu Jie, 32, decided to buy an electric car in October, Tesla was one of her top choices. But after test-driving a few Chinese cars, she went with a sports sedan from Xiaomi, a consumer gadget maker better known for its smartphones, kettles and robot vacuums.

"Xiaomi is more fashionable," Liu said last week in Beijing. "Tesla, for me, it's a little bit normal. You can see the Tesla Model Y everywhere."

It's not personal, buyers said. Tesla is still considered a top brand, and Elon Musk, Tesla's chief executive, is admired in China. Beijing rolled out the red carpet when he broke ground on the company's first overseas factory in Shanghai. Musk is credited with igniting China's local electric vehicle industry.