Archive picture of Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, PayPal, OpenAI, and Twitter (X), in New York, on April 4, 2025.
Elon Musk’s electrical dream stalls as Europe turns away from Tesla — battered by blue paint, political backlash, and BYD blowouts.
Credit score: Photograph Company, Shutterstock.
Tesla’s once-electric European trip has hit a pothole — and it’s not trying like a fast repair. From showroom sabotage in Berlin to whispers of a full Spanish exit, the sparks are flying, however not in a great way.
Tesla gross sales in Europe nosedive 49% – whereas rivals race forward
In a surprising blow to Elon Musk’s EV empire, Tesla’s automotive gross sales throughout Europe plummeted by 49% in April in comparison with the identical month final 12 months — a grim statistic revealed by the European Vehicle Producers’ Affiliation (ACEA).
The sting is even sharper contemplating that total electrical car (EV) gross sales in Europe rose by 34.1% in the identical interval. Ouch.
And it will get worse: Chinese language auto large BYD overtook Tesla in European electrical automotive gross sales for the primary time ever. Based on JATO Dynamics knowledge, BYD logged 7,212 car registrations in April, narrowly edging out Tesla’s 7,165. Even Renault’s new electrical R5 outsold Tesla in some international locations.
Model battered by blue paint and blue politics
Tesla’s picture has taken a beating — actually and figuratively.
In March, Tesla’s Berlin showroom was drenched in blue paint by activists from the group New Technology, protesting Musk’s endorsement of Germany’s far-right AfD social gathering, whose social gathering color is, fittingly, blue.
Musk’s political entanglements don’t cease there. He’s spent almost $300 million backing Donald Trump’s re-election, and now splits his time between Tesla and advising Trump’s newly minted “Division of Authorities Effectivity,” or DOGE.
Throughout Tesla’s most up-to-date earnings name, Musk promised to chop down his authorities involvement to only “a day or two per week”. Traders, nevertheless, stay deeply sceptical.
No hybrids, no updates, no clue?
Tesla’s product line isn’t serving to both.
The corporate lastly launched an upgraded Mannequin Y SUV this 12 months — however critics say the lineup stays stale, with no main new mass-market mannequin launched in years. In the meantime, European drivers are flocking to hybrids, which now account for over 35% of the market. Tesla? Suntil totally electrical. No hybrid choices. And we received’t speak concerning the autonomous driving drama…
‘We’re two years behind Google’: Tesla’s AI chief admits Waymo lead
In a bombshell confession on the Gobinath Podcast, Tesla’s personal Chief of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, admitted:
‘In autonomous driving, we’re about two years behind Google’s Waymo.’
That’s a far cry from Musk’s 2015 promise that Tesla vehicles can be totally self-driving by 2017.
Regardless of ambitions to launch its “Robocab” service in Austin, Texas this summer time, consultants say Tesla isn’t even near Stage 4 autonomy — not to mention the promised Stage 5. Greg McGuire from the College of Michigan’s autonomous car analysis centre bluntly said in late 2024 that Tesla is ‘not but ready’ to function at that stage.
Goodbye to Tesla in Spain? Tesla’s quiet withdrawal from Spain raises eyebrows
Nowhere is the Tesla turmoil extra seen than in Spain, the place rumours are swirling that Musk could also be pulling the plug altogether.
A number of Spanish retailers, together with La Vanguardia, report that Tesla Spain and Twitter Spain have didn’t file their firm accounts — a authorized requirement. The missed deadlines might set off sanctions and even deregistration from Spain’s Enterprise Registry.
When reached for remark, each Tesla and X (previously Twitter) remained characteristically silent. In the meantime, different tech titans like Apple and Microsoft have complied totally with Spanish regulation.
Insiders recommend this might point out the start of Tesla’s withdrawal from the Spanish market, particularly because it struggles to compete with BYD’s booming native gross sales — regardless of the EU slapping tariffs on Chinese language EV imports.
The ultimate cost?
Elon Musk’s empire seems more and more overstretched: politically divisive, technologically behind, and dropping market share quick.
Whereas Musk lately reassured the general public he’s dedicated to main Tesla for the subsequent 5 years, the larger query is whether or not Europe nonetheless desires to come back alongside for the trip.
As a result of from Berlin to Barcelona, and Oslo to Oxford, the warning lights are flashing. With gross sales collapsing, rivals overtaking, and scandals piling up, Tesla isn’t simply in a skid — it’s in a full-blown spin. And if Elon’s not cautious, Europe is likely to be the primary to get out and stroll.
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