SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Tesla Inc came under increased pressure from regulators and state media in China on Wednesday after Monday’s protest by a disgruntled customer at the Shanghai auto show went viral and forced the electric car manufacturer to issue a rare apology.
Tesla’s disbursement in China, which accounts for 30% of the US company’s global sales and where it makes cars at its own factory in Shanghai, comes amid ongoing tensions between the US and China and as other foreign companies become too have had to deal with backlash.
“China will continue to open its market to foreign companies, but that doesn’t mean foreign companies will have any privilege,” said the Global Times, a tabloid published by the ruling Communist Party’s official People’s Daily, in an op-ed on the government. “Tesla blunder”.
On Monday, an unfortunate customer climbed on top of a Tesla at the auto show in protest at the company’s handling of its complaints about malfunctioning brakes, which sparked a social media storm, also involving regulators and state media.
Late Wednesday, China’s market regulator urged Tesla to ensure product quality in the country, while official Xinhua news agency said Tesla’s apology was “not genuine.”
“The arrogant and overbearing attitude the company has shown to the public is repugnant and unacceptable, which could seriously damage its reputation and customer base in the Chinese market,” writes the Global Times.
Tesla, whose cars are popular in China, declined to comment, but said in a statement that it would share data on the braking incident with regulators after a local regulator asked.
In videos that went viral from Monday’s auto show, a woman wearing a T-shirt saying “The brakes are not working” made similar allegations as staff and security struggled to restore peace.
Tesla apologized to Chinese consumers on Tuesday for failing to deal with the complaint in a timely manner, saying it would launch an overhaul of its service operations in the world’s largest auto market.
However, the Xinhua news agency said Tesla’s apology fell short.
“A big company should have a responsibility to be a big company, no company can do what it wants,” said in a comment Wednesday evening.
“If a company doesn’t correct when it has a problem, if it doesn’t change a problematic senior executive … it will eventually make mistakes again,” it said.
‘ARROGANCE’
On Monday, Tesla vice president Grace Tao told local media that “there is no possibility of Tesla compromising” and said she suspected someone was presenting the customer at the protest. The interview sparked allegations of “arrogance” from Tesla’s side of the state media.
Meanwhile, the Global Times released a story of a fatal accident allegedly involving a Tesla, which “surfaced online Wednesday,” which reportedly gives rise to further concerns about Tesla’s quality control.
Last month, Tesla came under control in China when the military banned its cars from accessing its complexes, citing concerns about the safety of cameras in its vehicles, sources told Reuters. Earlier this month, Tesla said cameras in its cars will not be triggered outside of North America.
Chinese internet users started calling for boycotts of brands like H&M, Adidas and Nike last month in response to earlier statements that they do not use cotton from Xinjiang, where some researchers and foreign lawmakers say authorities use forced labor to meet seasonal needs, which China denies.
(Reporting by Shanghai and Beijing editors; edited by Hugh Lawson, Steve Orlofsky and Marguerita Choy)