Musk and other executives blamed Tesla’s early-year sales shortcomings on transitioning the Model Y to a new design
By Stefan Nicola
Tesla Inc. posted some of its steepest sales declines this year in European markets, where the Elon Musk-led automaker is mired in a protracted slump.
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The most pronounced drop reported thus far was in Sweden, where Tesla registered only 133 new cars last month, down 89 per cent from a year ago, according to the nation’s auto manufacturers’ association. Sales fell roughly by half in Norway, the Netherlands and Italy, and by almost a third in Spain.
France was the exception, with Tesla’s October registrations there rising 2.4 per cent. However, that compares with a depressed level — sales in October 2024 plunged 47 per cent from a year earlier. Through the first 10 months of this year, the company’s registrations were down 30 per cent.
Tesla posted record third-quarter sales mainly due to United States buyers rushing to take advantage of US$7,500 U.S. tax credits for EV purchases that expired Sept. 30. In Europe, registrations have been languishing for several quarters due to an aging lineup and blowback over Musk’s politics, including his work in the Trump administration.
Musk and other executives blamed Tesla’s early-year sales shortcomings on transitioning the Model Y — its top-selling vehicle — to a new design, which temporarily disrupted production.
But several months since the company started delivering the refreshed Model Y in Europe, Tesla keeps struggling in many markets, even as overall EV sales increase.
In Germany, the region’s biggest market, battery-electric vehicle registrations jumped 38 per cent in the nine months through September, the most recent month for which data is available. Tesla’s sales in the country are down 50 per cent in the same period.
—With assistance from Rafaela Lindeberg and Craig Trudell.
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