Tesla's Big India Entry Sold Only 600 Cars

Tesla

Happy Wednesday! It's September 3, 2025, and this is The Morning Shift — your regular roundup of nan apical automotive headlines from astir nan world, successful 1 place. This is wherever you'll find nan astir important stories that are shaping nan measurement Americans thrust and get around.

In this morning's edition, we're looking astatine Tesla's inauspicious commencement successful India, arsenic good arsenic Acura's all-crossover future. We'll besides look astatine really Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis are succeeding successful nan U.S. market, arsenic good arsenic really nan 3 are failing their workers backmost location successful South Korea.

Tesla

Tesla yet collapsed into nan notoriously impenetrable Indian car market, which nan institution hoped would supply a caller income watercourse — particularly arsenic Tesla's efforts successful Europe and North America person stagnated, if not worse, nether CEO Elon Musk's latest bottommost turn. 

Unfortunately for Tesla, that hasn't proven to beryllium nan case. India has only offered Tesla astir 600 sales, and nan institution can't moreover get that galore vehicles to customers. From Bloomberg: 

Tesla Inc.'s long-awaited introduction into India has delivered underwhelming results truthful far, pinch tepid bookings fueling caller doubts astir nan company's world maturation outlook.

The Elon Musk-led electrical conveyance shaper has received orders for conscionable complete 600 cars since launching income successful mid-July, a number that's fallen short of nan company's ain expectations, according to group acquainted pinch nan matter. That's astir nan number of vehicles Tesla delivered each 4 hours globally during nan first half of nan year.

Tesla now plans to vessel 350 to 500 cars to India this year, of which nan first batch is slated to onshore from Shanghai successful early September, said nan people, who asked not to beryllium identified discussing confidential matters.

Now I'm nary mathemagician, but to my oculus 350 is conscionable complete half of 600. Is Tesla saying that hardly complete half of its Indian customers will person nan car they ordered wrong nan aforesaid almanac twelvemonth they ordered it? Maybe logistical issues for illustration this are contributing to nan debased sales. 

Acura

Acura erstwhile planned to spell all-electric, but nan institution is now slowing its rotation connected that front. While nan institution is now looking into hybrids, there's 1 point Acura is reportedly nary longer looking at: Cars. From Automotive News:

Acura is slowing its modulation into an all-electric carmaker and has decided to adhd hybrids to nan lineup to span nan spread for consumers who aren't fresh to make nan EV leap.

...

Acura besides announced nan extremity of accumulation of its TLX sedan, leaving nan Integra arsenic nan sole action for nan shrinking group of buyers looking extracurricular crossovers. But pinch nan Integra's expected discontinuation successful 2028, Acura will subordinate nan ranks of crossover-exclusive premium brands specified arsenic Lincoln and Buick. 

While an electrical NSX was antecedently expected to get successful 2027 aliases 2028, nan revised near-term merchandise roadmap nary longer includes a placeholder for nan halo sports car. Nevertheless, astatine nan Monterey briefing, Katsushi Inoue, American Honda's head and elder managing executive officer, said executives afloat understand nan value of nan nameplate and are "just postponing it."Some analysts judge a sporty rider car could beryllium imported from Japan early successful nan adjacent decade. But whether it's an electrical NSX remains to beryllium seen.

An electrical NSX would beryllium fantastic, though if Acura takes excessively agelong to bring it to marketplace nan car risks nary longer surviving up to nan "New Sportscar eXperimental" name. What's experimental astir an EV erstwhile everyone other already has one? As for nan decease of nan Integra, it'll beryllium a sad time erstwhile that yet leaves our market. I love that car. 

JHVEPhoto/Shutterstock

The South Korean conglomerate that is Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis had a very bully August. Each marque group a grounds for either its best-ever August successful North America, aliases (in nan lawsuit of Kia) its best-ever North American period altogether. Not a bad clip to activity for Kia/Hyundai/Genesis, it seems. From Automotive News:

Hyundai and Kia some delivered grounds U.S. light-vehicle income results successful August, helped by promotions and electrical vehicles.

Volume roseate 12 percent to 88,523 vehicles astatine Hyundai, its 11th consecutive monthly summation and an all-time August record. At Kia, deliveries roseate 10 percent to 83,007 vehicles — nan brand's all-time champion period successful nan U.S.

...

Hyundai's luxury Genesis marque besides posted its best-ever August, pinch U.S. income rising 7 percent to 7,925 vehicles.

The Korean automaker's prima has been sparkling brightly these past mates years, arsenic nan brands' caller strategy of "making good, beautiful vehicles that aren't arsenic easy to bargain arsenic nan aged ones" continues to salary off. Who would've thought that would work?

Kia

It's a bully clip to activity for Kia, it seems, unless you're 1 of nan group really building each those cars that nan institution is moving. In that case, you mightiness commencement to consciousness shortchanged arsenic your wages stagnate successful nan look of years of firm maturation — successful fact, you mightiness moreover scheme to onslaught complete it. From Reuters:

The national of South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor will shape partial strikes complete 3 days this week astatine plants crossed South Korea, successful a push for shorter moving hours and higher wages, according to a announcement sent to members of nan union.

The company's Korean union, which has astir 40,000 members, will motorboat nan partial strikes astatine various plants including factories successful Ulsan, Jeonju  and Asan, nan announcement said. Workers will time off activity for 2 hours connected Wednesday and Thursday and 4 hours connected Friday, it said.

...

The national asked guidance to salary a 30% prize from nan company's nett income successful 2024, erstwhile Hyundai generated record-high gross from maturation successful the  U.S.

The national besides wants to raise nan status property to 64 from nan legally guaranteed 60, arsenic good arsenic move to a 4-1/2-day activity week, a national spokesperson said.

Raising nan status property feels for illustration a chaotic choice, but possibly nan folks astatine Kia person done nan mathematics and wished that's a worthwhile waste and acquisition for nan bonuses and reduced activity weeks. If they negociate to get a 4.5-day activity week while we successful nan U.S. are still stuck pinch a afloat 5 days, we'll officially beryllium good and genuinely down nan curve. 

It's conscionable truthful much, y'know? Especially since truthful galore beingness flags you spot retired and astir look to usage almost metallic colors for nan reddish and blue. 

I'm judge this has been discussed astatine length, but why does nan euphony video for "Kids" make MGMT singer Andrew VanWyngarden look for illustration Lizzy Caplan successful "Cloverfield"?