{"id":5882,"date":"2025-04-02T08:28:01","date_gmt":"2025-04-02T12:28:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/2025\/04\/02\/tesla-sales-are-slumping-even-in-the-most-e-v-friendly-place\/"},"modified":"2025-04-02T08:28:01","modified_gmt":"2025-04-02T12:28:01","slug":"tesla-sales-are-slumping-even-in-the-most-e-v-friendly-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/2025\/04\/02\/tesla-sales-are-slumping-even-in-the-most-e-v-friendly-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Tesla Sales Are Slumping, Even in the Most E.V.-Friendly Place"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If there is anyplace Tesla should be thriving, it\u2019s Norway. Electric vehicles account for more than 90 percent of new car sales in the Scandinavian country, and buyers here are among the most sophisticated in the world when it comes to understanding the nuances of batteries, charging and range.<\/p>\n

So it hardly bodes well for Tesla that its sales in Norway have declined more than 12 percent so far this year. Sales for the first three months of the year were even worse in Denmark, France, the Netherlands and Sweden. Analysts expect the downward trend to be reflected when the company reports its worldwide sales for the first quarter on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Wall Street analysts expect Tesla deliveries worldwide to have declined sharply from a year earlier, reflecting several serious problems, not least a consumer backlash against the prominent role that Elon Musk, the company\u2019s chief executive, is playing in the Trump administration.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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Geir Rognlien Elgvin, an urban planner with the City of Oslo, bought his first Tesla in 2013, months after they were introduced in Norway. He has toured the company\u2019s battery Gigafactory in Nevada. He met Mr. Musk when the executive was still mostly known for wanting to address climate change with electric cars and his rocket company, SpaceX.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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But as Mr. Musk drifted to right-wing politics, Mr. Elgvin\u2019s enthusiasm waned. And he grew concerned about the company\u2019s data security policy.<\/p>\n

Several months ago, he swapped his Tesla for a battery-powered cargo bike and a shared electric Volkswagen. \u201cI would never drive a Tesla again,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a question of ethics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last year, Tesla accounted for nearly a quarter of car sales in Norway, far more than any other carmaker. But in the first two months of this year Tesla slipped to third place behind Volkswagen and Toyota. Teslas made up just 9 percent of new cars sold, less than half of its market share a year earlier.<\/p>\n

For Tesla, the decline in the world\u2019s most advanced electric vehicle market is ominous, signaling problems to come elsewhere. \u201cNorway is always a good place to look into the future,\u201d said Will Roberts, who follows electric vehicles at Rho Motion, a research firm.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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There are several explanations for Tesla\u2019s sales decline. The company depends on two models, the Model Y sport utility vehicle and the Model 3 sedan, for almost all its sales. The Cybertruck pickup, Tesla\u2019s newest and most polarizing model, has been plagued by recalls and has not sold as well as Mr. Musk predicted it would.<\/p>\n

Tesla once set the standard for battery range, software and driver-assistance technology. But traditional carmakers have become more adept at building electric vehicles and have begun to catch up to Tesla in technology. Competitors like Volkswagen, Volvo, BMW \u2014 and, outside the United States, BYD, Xpeng and other Chinese manufacturers \u2014 offer a diverse selection of luxury sedans, minivans, pickups and compact cars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cTesla pretty much all of these years has been alone in Europe and the U.S.,\u201d said Felipe Munoz, global analyst at JATO Dynamics, a research firm. \u201cThat\u2019s not the case anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of the sales decline could be due to buyers who are waiting for an upgraded version of the Model Y, analysts said. Deliveries of that version began in March in Norway, which perhaps explains why the company\u2019s sales last month were down only 1 percent from March 2024.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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But Mr. Munoz pointed out that sales of the Model 3, which was updated in 2023, have also fallen, though not as much.<\/p>\n

In February, registrations in Europe of the older Model Y fell 56 percent, while registrations of the Model 3 fell 14 percent, according to JATO. The declines occurred even though overall sales of electric vehicles in Europe jumped 25 percent.<\/p>\n

Mr. Musk\u2019s support for right-wing parties in Europe and his role as President Trump\u2019s cost-cutter in chief have not helped Tesla\u2019s image. He has been the focus of protests around the United States and Europe, and his activities have alienated some customers. Electric vehicle buyers in most countries lean left politically.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hate Musk, I hate Trump, I hate this entire company,\u201d said Kao Leu, a 75-year-old resident of New York\u2019s Harlem neighborhood who was protesting outside a Manhattan Tesla dealership last week.<\/p>\n

In Sweden, the country\u2019s largest insurer, Folksam, said Wednesday that it had sold its stake in the U.S. automaker because Tesla\u2019s approach to employee rights violated the company\u2019s investment criteria. Folksam had been invested in Tesla since 2013 and its stake was worth 1.6 billion Swedish krona, or $160 million.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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Mechanics with the union IF Metall have been on strike in Sweden for more than a year, over Tesla\u2019s refusal to sign a collective agreement.<\/p>\n

More than anger, many Norwegians feel ashamed for supporting a company that they see as reneging on its commitment to making personal transportation better for the planet and whose chief executive they say has abandoned the principles of democracy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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Andrea Fresk\u2019s Tesla is caked with a thick layer of late-winter grime, a state of neglect she said reflected her ambivalence toward the vehicle that she and her husband took out a 10-year loan to buy in 2019.<\/p>\n

After Mr. Musk bought the social media company Twitter, she began feeling increasingly ashamed about owning the Tesla, but it got worse after Mr. Musk became a regular presence in the Trump administration.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThen it became really hard to defend having this car,\u201d said Ms. Fresk, a psychologist with Norway\u2019s public family services.<\/p>\n

Some of her friends have already sold their Teslas, she said. But because she and her husband are still paying off the car and it runs smoothly, she is not replacing it for now.<\/p>\n

Rebil, Norway\u2019s largest used-car dealer, has seen an increase in the number of drivers selling their Teslas in recent months. But that means prices are low, and despite \u201cTesla Shame,\u201d sales have been brisk.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had a lot of customers concerned about Tesla,\u201d said William Oestby, a salesman with Rebil. But when he quizzes them on price, range, size and the hauling capability they are seeking, he said, Tesla is usually the best deal on offer. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to find something that compares,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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That may soon change. Over the next two years, Ford Motor, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and other automakers will introduce their next generation of electric vehicles. These cars, some which will be on sale before the end of this year, will incorporate advances in battery technology that allow greater driving range and faster charging. These automakers say their cars will be better than what Tesla is offering.<\/p>\n

The traditional automakers \u201chave all made a lot of strides forward,\u201d Mr. Roberts of Rho Motion said. \u201cPreviously consumers might have struggled to find other options than
Tesla that really competed. That\u2019s now not the case.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n

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Anusha Bayya contributed reporting from New York, and Henrik Pryser Libell from Oslo.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If there is anyplace Tesla should be thriving, it\u2019s Norway. Electric vehicles account for more than 90 percent of new car sales in the Scandinavian country, and buyers here are among the most sophisticated in the world when it comes to understanding the nuances of batteries, charging and range. So it hardly bodes well for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5883,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-market","entry","has-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5882"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5882\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sharewatch.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}