Tesla sales crash across Europe with drops of up to 90%

[midian182]

In a nutshell: Tesla's sales in Europe are back in decline following a brief uptick during September. In some EU countries, the EV brand experienced drops of over 80%, reaching almost 90% in at least one European nation. The figures are a contrast to those in the US, where the company set a third-quarter record, but that was primarily driven by consumers making purchases before the end of the EV tax credits.

Tesla has been having a difficult time in Europe. Sales were down 50% in May, and a similar trend has been seen throughout most of 2025. The company did see a sales rise in several markets in September, but that optimism came crashing down last month.

Reuters reports that Tesla's new car registrations, which are described as a proxy for its sales, were down 89 percent in Sweden, 86 percent in Denmark, 31 percent in Spain, and 50 percent in Norway in October.

The figures will be especially disappointing for Tesla given that overall sales of fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles jumped 119% in Europe during the same period. Tesla's overall sales on the continent, meanwhile, were down 28.5% through September compared to the first nine months of 2024.

There was one EU country where Tesla didn't suffer: France, where the company posted a small increase in sales for the second consecutive month.

In the US, Tesla's sales were down 13.5% in the second quarter. It was also reported that its US EV market share had fallen below 40% in August for the first time ever.

There was some good news for Elon Musk in the third quarter when US sales spiked as buyers rushed to get federal tax credits before they ended. But analysts expect another crash in Q4.

Some of the blame for Tesla's falling sales is being placed on its limited and aging lineup of vehicles as Chinese rivals release new models at a rapid pace.

Tesla is having a hard time in China, too. Its sales were down 9.9% within the Asian nation in October following a 2.8% increase in September.

It's hard to ignore the Musk effect in all this. Tesla's CEO has always been a divisive figure, but his (former) closeness to President Trump and time as head of DOGE have pushed many Europeans, and plenty of Americans, away from Tesla purchases.

This week will see Tesla's annual meeting take place (November 6), when we'll discover if shareholders approve Musk's $1 trillion pay package. Board chairman Robyn Denholm believes the deal must go ahead or Tesla will risk losing its CEO.

Image credit: Tesla Fans Schweiz

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Tesla sales crash across Europe with drops of up to 90%

 

[VitalyT]

The only Tesla consumers are those who know nothing about cars and not intelligent enough to research and find out the horrible build quality of all Tesla vehicles, so they've just got to find out that personally.

Now that the previous sales did spike on the new wave of suckers, the more experienced and oversaturated market just says no - enough of that Tesla garbage.

You would think that after so many years on the market, Tesla would work on the assembly and parts quality, but no, doesn't appear so. Same horrible seams, misaligned panels, and body is like an over-patched welding nightmare, made of 100 pieces of metal scraps.

I drove one of them a few years back (Model-S), and was shocked how much ambient noise it was getting into the cabin from outside and from the wheels. It's like having it quiet from the engine doesn't even matter.

 

[bviktor]

Robyn Denholm believes the deal must go ahead or Tesla will risk losing its CEO.

That's not a "risk", that's a "last chance".

 

[OortCloud]

Nobody in Europe wants to be associated with Musk and his toxic far-right facist pals in government.

 

[umeng2002]

Europe can't afford electricity; so that makes sense.

 

[poshflamingos]

Europe can't afford electricity; so that makes sense.

It's hilarious that someone says this while people in the US are literally unable to afford food and going hungry, due to the lack of access to SNAP from the government shutdown lol

 

[Megalomaniac]

I just tested the Tesla Model Y "standard" with full FSD.
I tested the new Tesla Model Y when it launched months ago.
While I was impressed with the performance and looks of the car as well as its simple, utilitarian nature, I was disappointed because it means buying from Tesla who has questionable business practices. Tesla isn't a "car dealer". They lack the amenities you'd expect like loaner cars. While they have the best charging network in America and the FSD tech is impressive - being able to drive itself and park itself - my issue is buying from Elon Musk. No one with good conscience wants to buy from a racist, antisemite Afrikaner. This form of "technofascism" is a growing threat - probably worse than AI. It's hate speech in the digital age. Political manipulation by billionaires. And from what I can see, just about every single one of these Trillion dollar corporations is guilty of it - along with illegally sharing our data or letting our data leak.

 

[trparky]

Whenever I see a Tesla driving around where I live, I ask out loud to no one in particular "Did you buy that before or after Elon went crazy?"

 

[Megalomaniac]

The only Tesla consumers are those who know nothing about cars and not intelligent enough to research and find out the horrible build quality of all Tesla vehicles, so they've just got to find out that personally.

Now that the previous sales did spike on the new wave of suckers, the more experienced and oversaturated market just says no - enough of that Tesla garbage.

You would think that after so many years on the market, Tesla would work on the assembly and parts quality, but no, doesn't appear so. Same horrible seams, misaligned panels, and body is like an over-patched welding nightmare, made of 100 pieces of metal scraps.

I drove one of them a few years back (Model-S), and was shocked how much ambient noise it was getting into the cabin from outside and from the wheels. It's like having it quiet from the engine doesn't even matter.

Tesla is not a true automobile company. They are a software company building electric cars. They lack the legacy understanding of GM, FORD, CDJR, Mercedes and BMW...but they still managed to create an impressive product that - for the most of it - looks good at first glance despite underlying issues and polish.

Drive a Model Y or Model 3 refresh today. They are world's better than the 2012 Model S / P85 I initially drove which pushed me to invest in the company.

I tell my friends to schedule test drives. Use the Model Y as a benchmark to judge other EV. Tesla got a lot right.

I'll just be happy the day they shed their racist, antisemite, Afrikaner CEO like a snake sheds its skin.

 

[AMN3S1AC]

I just tested the Tesla Model Y "standard" with full FSD.
I tested the new Tesla Model Y when it launched months ago.
While I was impressed with the performance and looks of the car as well as its simple, utilitarian nature, I was disappointed because it means buying from Tesla who has questionable business practices. Tesla isn't a "car dealer". They lack the amenities you'd expect like loaner cars. While they have the best charging network in America and the FSD tech is impressive - being able to drive itself and park itself - my issue is buying from Elon Musk. No one with good conscience wants to buy from a racist, antisemite Afrikaner. This form of "technofascism" is a growing threat - probably worse than AI. It's hate speech in the digital age. Political manipulation by billionaires. And from what I can see, just about every single one of these Trillion dollar corporations is guilty of it - along with illegally sharing our data or letting our data leak.

Any examples of this racist hatespeech?

 

[Squuiid]

Any examples of this racist hatespeech?

Check out his stream of consciousness on his X (Twitter) feed.

 

[netman]

"Tesla sales crash across Europe with drops of up to 90%"

The Musketeer Project Tesla is dying... China is killing it...!

 

[mountains]

It is shocking that this brand has the WORST digital privacy of any other automobile, and they are covered with cameras. And this is in a digital privacy market that has zero regulation, hence most new vehicles have terrible privacy.

You want people to buy it? Give us guaranteed control over our data, now and in the future!

 

[netman]

Nobody in Europe wants to be associated with Musk and his toxic far-right facist pals in government.

Lol...! Europeans usually wake up sooner to facts than Americans...!

 

[Dr Roboto]

Tesla is clearly moving down the ladder of relevance. There is way too much competition now a days and the FOMO idea of BEVs taking over the world has passed.

Now don't be confused by things like Tesla's ridiculous stock price and how it makes Elon the richest man in the world. The reason the stock price and the company's "value" are so high still, is simply because too many funds (like your 401k) invested way to heavily in it and it has become the biggest "MEME" stock of all time. If Tesla shares were to fall to their realistic level, it would crater all of those investment funds. There is no way that is going to happen. The price, and thus Musk's power, will come back to earth slowly, but don't get your hopes up any time soon.

 

[James321]

Could not have happened to a more deserving person.

 

[OortCloud]

Any examples of this racist hatespeech?

So many examples - watch this for some insight into just how loathsome he is...

 

[ActualViking]

Makes sense, who want's to drive a swastika.

Not to mention that there is now so many good alternatives in the EV market, so no reason to buy something of poor quality.

 

[Plutoisaplanet]

Reporting localized sales swings in small markets in isolated months is a terrible way to get an accurate picture of what's happening across Europe, but it sure does make for great doom and gloom headlines. One of the notable trends that's happening in Europe is that Tesla's sales in Norway has been booming throughout the entire year. You wouldn't know that from reading Rob's articles though. He reports that Tesla sales are down in Norway are down by 50%.

Model Y sales in Norway:
September (up 96%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-september-2025/
August (up 17%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-august-2025/
July (up 355%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-juli-2025/
June (up 115%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-juni-2025/
May (up 240%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-maj-2025/
April (up 24%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-april-2025/
March (up 13.7%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-marts-2025/
February (up 6.75%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-februar-2025/
January (up 3.86%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-januar-2025/

Furthermore, sales in many countries often shift across the quarter. Yet Rob has focused on monthly sales all year long:
February - https://www.techspot.com/news/107047-tesla-sales-rise-uk-despite-global-backlash-against.html
April - https://www.techspot.com/news/108069-tesla-sales-europe-plunge-50-amid-backlash-over.html
August - https://www.techspot.com/news/109375-tesla-us-ev-share-drops-eight-year-low.html
October - https://www.techspot.com/news/110124-tesla-sales-crash-across-europe-drops-up-90.html (this article)

Spain is a great example of sales swinging. It's a small market and it's on the edge of the continent. So the timing of inventory arriving can vastly shift sales from one month to the next. Here are the sales in Spain each month of the year so far:
October (393 vehicles, down 31%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...ain-some-european-markets-october-2025-11-03/
September (2,992 vehicles, up 3.4%) https://www.reuters.com/business/re...34-september-other-ev-sales-surge-2025-10-01/
August (1,435 vehicles, up 161%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...pean-markets-extends-eighth-month-2025-09-01/
July (702 vehicles, up 27%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...y-other-ev-sales-more-than-double-2025-08-01/
June (2,632 vehicles, up 61%): https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/new-tesla-sales-spain-rise-61-june-2025-07-01/
May (794 vehicles, down 29%): https://www.reuters.com/business/re...-29-may-while-other-ev-sales-soar-2025-06-02/
April (571 vehicles, down 36%): https://www.reuters.com/business/au...p-36-april-despite-ev-sales-surge-2025-05-05/
March (1,983 vehicles, up 34%): https://www.reuters.com/business/au...ars-rise-march-fall-first-quarter-2025-04-01/
February (909 vehicles, down 11%): https://electrek.co/2025/03/05/tesla-tsla-sales-crash-continues-in-europe-with-germany-down-70/
January (269 vehicles, down 75%): https://electrek.co/2025/02/03/tesl...europe-but-its-not-just-because-of-elon-musk/

YTD, Tesla sales are up 7-8% in Spain, but Rob reports a sales drop of 180 vehicles in Spain as evidence that Tesla sales are "crashing" lol. The truth of the matter is that sales in Spain are doing the opposite, but they are a great example of volatility. If a writer was biased toward Tesla, they could also use Spain as an example of Tesla growing in August, citing sales more than doubling. Rob should stick to longer term trends if he wants to be accurate, but the numbers are too juicy for him to pass up. I'm more interested in reading about downward trends than his isolated data points.

 

[daffy duck]

EU not as stupid as I thought.

 

[Megalomaniac]

Lol...! Europeans usually wake up sooner to facts than Americans...!

They still teach History in Europe.

America coddles racism and calls it "free speech".

 

[Megalomaniac]

Any examples of this racist hatespeech?

I will never even bother responding to those challenges. I'll let every one else do it for me.

 

[m4a4]

Reporting localized sales swings in small markets in isolated months is a terrible way to get an accurate picture of what's happening across Europe, but it sure does make for great doom and gloom headlines. One of the notable trends that's happening in Europe is that Tesla's sales in Norway has been booming throughout the entire year. You wouldn't know that from reading Rob's articles though. He reports that Tesla sales are down in Norway are down by 50%.

Model Y sales in Norway:
September (up 96%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-september-2025/
August (up 17%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-august-2025/
July (up 355%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-juli-2025/
June (up 115%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-juni-2025/
May (up 240%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-maj-2025/
April (up 24%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-april-2025/
March (up 13.7%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-marts-2025/
February (up 6.75%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-februar-2025/
January (up 3.86%): https://www.bilstatistik.dk/nyheder/det-nordiske-bilsalg-januar-2025/

Furthermore, sales in many countries often shift across the quarter. Yet Rob has focused on monthly sales all year long:
February - https://www.techspot.com/news/107047-tesla-sales-rise-uk-despite-global-backlash-against.html
April - https://www.techspot.com/news/108069-tesla-sales-europe-plunge-50-amid-backlash-over.html
August - https://www.techspot.com/news/109375-tesla-us-ev-share-drops-eight-year-low.html
October - https://www.techspot.com/news/110124-tesla-sales-crash-across-europe-drops-up-90.html (this article)

Spain is a great example of sales swinging. It's a small market and it's on the edge of the continent. So the timing of inventory arriving can vastly shift sales from one month to the next. Here are the sales in Spain each month of the year so far:
October (393 vehicles, down 31%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...ain-some-european-markets-october-2025-11-03/
September (2,992 vehicles, up 3.4%) https://www.reuters.com/business/re...34-september-other-ev-sales-surge-2025-10-01/
August (1,435 vehicles, up 161%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...pean-markets-extends-eighth-month-2025-09-01/
July (702 vehicles, up 27%) https://www.reuters.com/business/au...y-other-ev-sales-more-than-double-2025-08-01/
June (2,632 vehicles, up 61%): https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/new-tesla-sales-spain-rise-61-june-2025-07-01/
May (794 vehicles, down 29%): https://www.reuters.com/business/re...-29-may-while-other-ev-sales-soar-2025-06-02/
April (571 vehicles, down 36%): https://www.reuters.com/business/au...p-36-april-despite-ev-sales-surge-2025-05-05/
March (1,983 vehicles, up 34%): https://www.reuters.com/business/au...ars-rise-march-fall-first-quarter-2025-04-01/
February (909 vehicles, down 11%): https://electrek.co/2025/03/05/tesla-tsla-sales-crash-continues-in-europe-with-germany-down-70/
January (269 vehicles, down 75%): https://electrek.co/2025/02/03/tesl...europe-but-its-not-just-because-of-elon-musk/

YTD, Tesla sales are up 7-8% in Spain, but Rob reports a sales drop of 180 vehicles in Spain as evidence that Tesla sales are "crashing" lol. The truth of the matter is that sales in Spain are doing the opposite, but they are a great example of volatility. If a writer was biased toward Tesla, they could also use Spain as an example of Tesla growing in August, citing sales more than doubling. Rob should stick to longer term trends if he wants to be accurate, but the numbers are too juicy for him to pass up. I'm more interested in reading about downward trends than his isolated data points.

That was my initial reaction; the article seemed like it cherry-picked numbers out of context to spin click-bait. A growing trend here.

It is nice to see you were thorough in your added context. They should hire you as an editor lol

 

[Plutoisaplanet]

I will never even bother responding to those challenges. I'll let every one else do it for me.

You’re the one making the claim and you can’t back it up with evidence? You’d think if it’s so obviously true that you’d have loads of examples that convinced you it was so.

Unless you provide evidence, repeating the idea that Elon Musk is a racist nazi is simply propaganda. The goal is to just repeat the claim over and over to convince others that the lie is reality.

 

[whateversa]

Tesla just needs a real CEO who can listen to his staff and not get involved in politics. Elon Musk should be removed completely... he has done much harm to Tesla.