I bought this car before Elon went crazy.
What could Musk’s rapprochement with Donald Trump, his support for European far-right parties and his attacks on diversity policies lead to? Just ask Tesla’s stakeholders.
Tesla is rapidly losing market share all worldwide. While in China the company is struggling against fierce competition from local EV makers and appears to be losing the battle, in Europe Tesla seems to be facing a buyer strike.
In both Germany and France, sales of the electric pioneer's cars were cut in half year-on-year in January 2025. Meanwhile a series of isolated incidents targeting Tesla has raised concerns among buyers and industry analysts. What’s driving this?
Nobody wants to be associated with Musk's behaviour. His shifting focus from running his electric-car empire to diving into U.S. politics — and, some say, meddling in European affairs — has alienated customers. Across Europe and the U.S., people who oppose Musk’s political maneuvering, are slapping stickers boycotting the Tesla CEO.
Since the beginning of the year, Tesla stock has declined almost 30%, wiping out nearly all gains it made during the November 5 election.
At that time, the automaker surged to a record high of around $480 per share — up 90% since Trump’s victory —propelling the company onto the list of top stock gainers. Today, that increase has shrunk to just 8% as Musk’s foray into politics has wiped out more than $110 billion in market value.
Declining sales could push investors to sell off their stock, hurting Tesla’s value — which accounts for a significant potion of Musk’s net worth. He owns nearly 411 million Tesla shares, or 13% of the company.
In December, Musk became the first person ever to surpass a $400 billion net worth. However, he has since lost $52 billion as Tesla shares have plunged 27.6% in February.
It’s unclear whether the Tesla Takedown movement will have a significant impact on the company. So far, there hasn’t been a noticeable spike in Tesla owners selling their used cars.
Some hesitation may be due to other factors, such as the cost of purchasing a new vehicle in a high-interest-rate environment and the fact that Tesla prices have dropped.
Although Tesla may face backlash due to Musk’s political involvement in the government, some Tesla owners and potential buyers seem to be separating the company from its CEO.
Tesla is set to report its first-quarter delivery numbers in early April. That’s when analysts and investors will get a clearer picture of how the company has performed amid Musk’s political controversies.
