Tesla has apologised after being attacked by Chinese state media for its treatment of customers, days after a protest against the company in one of its most important markets.
The US group’s presence at the Shanghai Auto Show this week was overshadowed by demonstrators wearing T-shirts alleging Tesla vehicles had “malfunctioning brakes”. The incident drew huge crowds before security guards carried away the protesters.
The company said a Tesla customer who had taken part in the demonstration had asked for a refund after an accident in February, which she alleged was caused by brake failure. But negotiations stalled after the owner refused to allow a third party investigation into whether a malfunction or speeding had caused the crash.