Tesla seems to be be doubling down on its India visibility, even if its cars are comfortably priced in the semi-luxury to luxury segment in the country. The Elon Musk-led EV giant has confirmed that it is opening its fourth showroom in Bengaluru, expanding its retail presence beyond Mumbai, Delhi and Gurugram. The move is part of the company’s strategy to build visibility and consumer familiarity in major urban hubs as it tests demand in the world’s third-largest car market. However, questions around local manufacturing and the long-term scale of Tesla’s operations in India remain unclear.
The latest move also comes as China’s BYD overtook Tesla in 2025 to become the world’s leading electric vehicle maker, recording 2.26 million sales compared with Tesla’s 1.64 million, highlighting the growing intensity of competition in the global EV market.
Notably, Tesla officially entered the Indian market in July 2025, ending years of speculation and on-and-off discussions with policymakers. The company’s first showroom opened in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex, one of the country’s most prominent commercial districts, and served primarily as an experience centre rather than a high-volume sales outlet. The launch allowed Indian consumers to see Tesla vehicles up close for the first time, with the Model Y electric SUV positioned as the company’s initial offering for the market.
Within weeks of its debut in Mumbai, the EV giant expanded into the National Capital Region with a showroom in Delhi’s Aerocity, strengthening its footprint in northern India. This was followed by the opening of an integrated Tesla centre in Gurugram, which combines sales, deliveries, service and charging infrastructure at a single location. Therefore, unlike the earlier showrooms, the Gurugram facility reflects a more operationally complete setup.
And now adding Bengaluru to its expansion list is seen as a logical next step for Tesla. The city is widely regarded as India’s technology capital and has one of the highest concentrations of early adopters, startup professionals and environmentally conscious consumers. Bengaluru also has one of the country’s higher EV adoption rates, supported by a growing charging network and state policies aimed at promoting electric mobility.
But despite all such efforts, Tesla’s India presence remains limited to imported vehicles. The company has not announced any plans to set up local manufacturing and assembly facilities, a decision influenced in part by India’s high import duties on fully built vehicles. While the Indian government has signalled openness to attracting global EV manufacturers through policy incentives, the Elon Musk-owned company appears to be taking a cautious, phased approach, like first establishing brand presence and calculating demand before committing to large-scale investments.