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Early car sales data for January is starting to arrive from countries across the pond, and they paint an alarming picture for Tesla. Sales are crashing in France, Germany, and the UK—all affluent countries that are key markets for Tesla's electric vehicles. Coming on the heels of a large financial miss, it's just one more problem for the automaker.

Tesla sales dropped around 13 percent across Europe in 2024, but so far this year, the scale of the problem is far greater. In France, sales of new Teslas fell by 63 percent, while total car sales in the country fell by just 6 percent, with EV sales dropping just half a percent.

Germany was already looking like lost ground for Tesla—its 41 percent drop in 2024 accounted for most of Tesla's lost sales across Europe. That must make the 59 percent drop in German Tesla sales recorded during January even more painful on the profit and loss statements.

Across the Channel, the British auto industry just released its sales data for January. Here, Tesla sales fell less precipitously—just 12 percent. However, battery EV sales were 35 percent higher in the UK in January 2025 than in January 2024. The cake is growing, but Tesla is getting to eat less and less of it.

In fact, no Tesla cracked the UK's top 10 best-seller list last month, something that has regularly happened in the past, although that may be due to having just two models for >sale in most markets.

Large declines have also been recorded in Sweden (44 percent), Norway (38 percent), and the Netherlands (42 percent).

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[-] Venetas@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 1 hour ago

I'm not going to sell a perfectly useable Model Y after a year just because the CEO is a cunt. But I'm going to tell everyone that he's a cunt with 30 stickers plastered all over the useless rear window

[-] comfy@lemmy.ml 1 points 15 minutes ago

Sell it to who, Ben? Fucking Aquaman?

Good choice, no point throwing it away if it was too late for you to realize, but it's more powerful as a platform to disavow Musk and Tesla.

The US is collapsing and all I got was this lousy car

[-] Maeve@kbin.earth 8 points 1 hour ago

May every business that brings this man profit tank until he learns some empathy.

[-] b161 10 points 4 hours ago

Anyone still driving a Tesla needs a bit of verbal abuse.

[-] BritishJ@lemmy.world 5 points 1 hour ago

Maybe they just like the car. Not everything has to be political. Especially if they get it 2nd hand, the depreciation is huge. So someone could get a nice Tesla for great money. Doesn't mean they like Elon or support him.

Buying 2nd hand is greener and doesn't support him.

[-] Lifter@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 55 minutes ago

It does though, their most profitable (as in profit margin) businesses areas are the subscription based services and charging.

https://www.energyandcapital.com/tesla-fsd/#%3A%7E%3Atext=This+would+result+in+approximately%2Ca+year+from+charging+services.

I don’t know about abuse but I do judge people with Teslas purchased in the last 5 years. Before that the completion was lacking and it was less evident to most people that the CEO is a cunt, but now even if you ignore Elon, it’s just a crazy purchase when all the other manufacturers have caught up in electric and arguably produce better vehicles with less issues.

[-] drmoose@lemmy.world 14 points 5 hours ago

The TSLA crash going to be glorious, can't wait.

[-] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 36 points 9 hours ago

Turns out that siding against voters interested in human sustainability, and pro oil extortionist conservatives bent on climate and human destruction is not a good EV marketing strategy. I have an MBA... AMA

[-] pastermil@sh.itjust.works 22 points 6 hours ago

Also doing a nazi salute in front of thousands of people with full blown media coverage.

[-] Justas@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 hour ago

WWII might be a distant memory for Americans, but most of Europeans have been to historical sites of Jewish genocide.

[-] magnetosphere@fedia.io 51 points 11 hours ago

Its investment in the Cybertruck is of no help in the region, as the steel-clad pickup truck is too large and heavy for use with a normal driver's license and does not conform to road legality regulations.

I was not aware of this. Further reasons to laugh at Musk are always welcome!

[-] echodot@feddit.uk 5 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago)

Yeah technically it's a HGV, and you need an HGV license in order to be able to drive it.

Although apparently the other problem is that it has red indicators, because in the US they don't have separate lights for brakes and indicators they just flash the brake light.

[-] phdepressed@sh.itjust.works 1 points 7 hours ago

Most cars have yellow lights for indicators and red for brakes. Even for the US having red indicators is at least uncommon.

[-] dubyakay@lemmy.ca 2 points 6 hours ago

No it's not. I see red turning indicators waaay more often than yellow ones.

[-] phdepressed@sh.itjust.works 1 points 5 hours ago

You live somewhere with a lot of trucks? Most cars and suvs have separate ones, i don't remember the last time I saw a red indicator other than on a semi. I see a lot of people not bother to indicate but the yellow or orange is there.

[-] dubyakay@lemmy.ca 1 points 5 hours ago

Montreal but also lived in Toronto for four years. It's red blinkers everywhere, annoying as heck.

Not that many trucks, I guess. Are we talking about trucks only? I might be wrong then. Mostly crossover SUVs.

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 8 points 10 hours ago

This metal blob goes against so many safety regulations in Europe, it is basically unfixable. And even then you would need a truckers licence to drive it, like the ones for big commercial trucks.

[-] essteeyou@lemmy.world 16 points 9 hours ago

"Europe and the UK" did they move the UK to another continent, or did they mean the EU?

[-] Neon@lemmy.world 4 points 4 hours ago

You know exactly what was meant.

[-] Professorozone@lemmy.world 6 points 6 hours ago

You see there was this little thing called Brexit....

[-] essteeyou@lemmy.world 9 points 5 hours ago

Oh right, is that when they moved to a different tectonic plate?

[-] Professorozone@lemmy.world 5 points 5 hours ago

Oh I see what you're saying. Yeah, they probably should have said EU but it's a little pedantic to pretend you didn't know.

[-] essteeyou@lemmy.world 2 points 4 hours ago

Welcome to the internet.

[-] gianni@lemmy.ca 5 points 5 hours ago
[-] Presently42@lemmy.ca 9 points 9 hours ago

So, I hate to be the breaker of bad news, but the UK has left the EU 🤷 Don't shoot the messenger

[-] whatsisface@sh.itjust.works 16 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

EU ≠ Europe

Europe is a continent. The European Union is a group of countries in Europe, no longer including the UK.

[-] Toribor@corndog.social 6 points 9 hours ago

Maps like this are the only way my feeble American brain can process complicated European things.

[-] toofpic@lemmy.world 1 points 31 minutes ago

The EU one has camo painted seas, so I needed several seconds for my understanding of "what is where" kicked in. I wonder how they got this stupid idea

[-] RedditVirumCurialem@lemmy.world 2 points 1 hour ago

This post unfortunately leaves out the all important Council of Europe (not to be confused with the European Council). 😉

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[-] toofpic@lemmy.world 8 points 9 hours ago

Read the comment. EU - maybe, but not the Europe,how do you leave a continent?

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[-] Valmond@lemmy.world 76 points 13 hours ago

This sparks joy.

[-] kurcatovium@lemm.ee 86 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 14 hours ago)

Gimme cheap, simple and reliable EV with guaranteed 200km range and I'm sold. I don't need bazillion of cameras inside and out, I don't need glass roof, I don't need 200kW of ridiculous power I would never use, I don't need always online maps for a subscription fee and I don't need 20" infotainment, neither I need 3 zone AC with ventilated seats and ballsack massage device, etc. I just want a Dacia of EV market.

[-] Neon@lemmy.world 2 points 4 hours ago

VW E-Up is cheap and really good

[-] SlopppyEngineer@lemmy.world 25 points 13 hours ago

Microlino, Fiat panda grande, Renault 5, Citroën Ami and others. The smaller and more affordable versions are getting there.

[-] WolfmanEightySix@piefed.social 1 points 3 hours ago

There’s a little blue Honda EV I see at work. Looks smart as.

[-] SinningStromgald@lemmy.world 12 points 11 hours ago

Any of those in the US market?

I've only seen Rivians and Teslas in my parts.

[-] takeda@lemm.ee 5 points 6 hours ago

There's a lot more, but they don't stand out. Look at cars that don't have a radiator and if course a tailpipe.

[-] DontTreadOnBigfoot@lemmy.world 13 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago)

You've probably seen a lot more electric vehicles than you realize. Almost every big manufacturer has them in their lineups at this point, just most of them are looking more and more conventional.

Take a look at the Honda Prologue, the Toyota BZ4X, the Kia Niro EV6 or EV9, VW ID.4, Hyundai Ioniq line and Kona, Ford Mach E, Chevy Equinox EV or Blazer EV.

There's also EV versions the F150, Chevy Silverado, and Hummer. Supposedly RAM will have an EV truck soon, too.

Granted there are fewer compact sizes than in European markets, but that's true of all vehicles, regardless of powertrain

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[-] neo2478@sh.itjust.works 13 points 12 hours ago

The fiat 500 e fits all that and it’s a delight to drive.

[-] brucethemoose@lemmy.world 12 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago)

Coincidentlaly, throwing all this junk out makes EV's significantly lighter. And theoretically cheaper.

They kinda suffer from "the tyranny of the rocket equation" since so much of their mass is "fuel." Make it lighter, and they need less battery for the same range, which means you need even less battery to carry that battery around, lighter motors, less chassis and suspension weight for that, which removes even more battery, and so on.

This is not the case with combustion cars, where much of the engine's mass is fixed and gasoline takes up little weight.

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[-] Mvlad88@lemmy.world 14 points 14 hours ago
[-] casmael@lemm.ee 12 points 12 hours ago

Good news everyone!

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[-] Teknikal@eviltoast.org 38 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

Honestly people would have to be basically mad to buy tesla now, same with twitter etc.

I sympathise with people who starlink is the only option but yeah I'd rather go without.

[-] MyOpinion@lemm.ee 32 points 13 hours ago

Let’s get to 95% down in Q1 of 2025.

[-] Viri4thus@feddit.org 9 points 11 hours ago

Teslas are shitware. Only an oligarchy like ~~Russia~~ US could produce absolute trash like that and still sell it because everyone has to play ball.

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this post was submitted on 05 Feb 2025
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