Tesla, the world's top-selling maker of electric cars, plans to establish a maintenance center and showroom in Istanbul, according to a report in the Vatan daily. The decision comes after Space X, owned by Elon Musk, launched a car into space last week.

Tesla Motors Netherlands B.V., Tesla's European headquarters, is looking for an area to set up a maintenance center on the Anatolian side of Istanbul. The company plans to open maintenance service within six months and exhibit three or four vehicles for promotional purposes.

Tesla also plans to open a showroom in a popular district of Istanbul in 2019. It wants to quickly enter Turkey with its Model 3, which is more affordable than its Model S and Model X.

The Model 3, starting at $35,000 in the U.S., was introduced April 1, 2016, and sold with a prepaid reservation of $1,000. The model received more than 400 orders in one month. While deliveries have begun in the U.S., the vehicle will enter Europe late this year. The Model 3 is expected to go on sale in Turkey in 2019 at an estimated price of about TL 326,940, or 70,000 euros.

An agreement signed with Gersan Electricity Trade and Industry for fast charging stations is the first signal of Tesla entering Turkey.

While there are currently more than 150 Tesla vehicles in Turkey, the lack of repair service is a big problem, as owners have to send their vehicles to Europe for repair, and there are problems with automobile insurance.