MEXICO CITY (AP) — Snubbed by Tesla, Mexico’s new president pledged Friday to create a Mexican-made small, affordable electric car to compete with vehicles imported from China. President Claudia Sheinbaum said Teslas were too “onerous,” or expensive, for the Mexican market anyway. Tesla’s cheapest car, the Model 3, costs about $30,000.

Mexico's president vows to create an affordable electric car after Tesla scrapped plans for a Gigafactory in the country. The plan faces challenges.

Claudia Sheinbaum said her government will try to bring together Mexican companies and researchers to produce a “compact, cheap electric car.”