U.S. electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors Inc. is set to finally land on the Korean shore with its Model S in May at the earliest, a move that is expected to change the landscape of the Korean imported car market currently dominated by German car makers BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in South Korea said Thursday that it approved the registration of Tesla as an auto manufacturer in the country a day earlier, as the U.S. firm’s after-sales service plan, one of the prerequisites for the approval, meets requirements.

According to the plan, the American automaker will operate directly-run service centers to offer maintenance services on core functions of its cars while hiring subcontractors for supplementary services such as external fixing.

Tesla is expected to start marketing its Model S sports sedans in Korea around May at the earliest. Tesla’s Model S P90D that will compete against both electric vehicles and sports sedans in the country’s imported car market can go as far as 270 miles (435 kilometers) on a single charge, farther than Chevrolet Bolt EV of its American peer General Motors Co. that can go 238 miles (383 kilometers) and is readying to hit the Korean market in the first half. Driving range is a crucial factor in determining an EV car.

The Model S also can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour (m/h) in less than three seconds. Its direct competitors BMW M3 and Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG that are sold in the similar price range in the Korean sports sedan market boast of 0 - 60 m/h performance in about four seconds. Fitted with an electric motor instead of an internal combustion engine, an electric car can reach blazing speeds.

The Model S has already claimed dominance in the U.S. luxury electric sedan market, with 9,156 units delivered in the third quarter of last year outselling the two German sedans - BMW 7 series 3,634 units and Mercedes-Benz S Class 3138 units, according to the market data provider IHS Markit Ltd.

The electric sedan also topped the world’s EV market last year, shipping as many as 50,935 cars across the globe.

By Park Chang-young

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]