Data reported by Reuters shows that monthly registrations of Tesla automobiles – an accurate way of measuring sales – have halved in the continent’s main markets compared to the same month in 2024: down 58 percent in France, down 59 percent in Sweden, and down 49 percent in Denmark. In Germany, where the Elon Musk-controlled automaker has its only European plant on the outskirts of Berlin, only 750 vehicles were sold in October, less than half of those sold a year earlier.
The big exception to this downward trend is in Norway, where registrations of Tesla cars have almost tripled to 6,215 units.
Data for the first 10 months of 2025 highlight a structural crisis. Tesla suffered a nearly 30 percent loss in European sales compared with the same period in 2024, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, which groups the industry’s manufacturers on the continent. According to Schmidt Automotive’s analysis, Tesla’s market share in the electric car segment will fall from 12.6 percent in May 2024 to 7.2 percent in May 2025.
Volkswagen took the lead among electric vehicle makers by selling 133,465 units compared to Tesla’s 108,878 units in the first six months of the year, and Chinese maker BYD sold more than twice as many cars as its US rival in October.
global shock waves
There are many reasons for the decline. Musk’s political stances have alienated a significant portion of his European customer base, particularly in Germany where the entrepreneur has publicly supported the Alternative für Deutschland, Germany’s far-right party known as the AfD. Musk’s virtual participation in an AfD election rally in January 2025, during which he called on Germans to overcome guilt over their Nazi past, triggered a wave of boycotts. German companies such as pharmacy chain Rossmann and energy group Lichtblick announced the divestment of their Tesla fleets, while in Poland Sports Minister Sławomir Nitras called on citizens to boycott the brand.
Then the truth is that competition has become even more fierce. More than 150 electric models produced by European, Chinese, Korean and Japanese manufacturers are available on the European market. As Reuters reports again, The survey conducted by Escalante of more than 2,000 buyers in the five largest European car markets revealed that 38 percent of respondents believe the Tesla brand has now lost its aura of innovation and quality.
According to data from Italy’s Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, Tesla registrations in Italy also fell for six consecutive months through October, with it selling only 256 cars in the month, a 47 percent decrease compared to the same month in 2024. In the first 10 months of the year, 9,047 Tesla vehicles were registered in the country, a decline of 33 percent. The Italian figure is significant, as the electric car segment in the country is projected to grow by 73 percent in the first five months of 2025. Therefore, the problem is not with the electric vehicle market, but with Tesla itself.
norwegian reason
However, data in Norway tells a different story. Tesla plans to sell more cars in the Scandinavian country in 2025 than any other manufacturer in national history, surpassing the previous record set by Volkswagen in 2016. As Reuters reports, figures released on December 1 by the Norwegian Road Federation, the body that monitors Norwegian road traffic, show that Tesla registered 28,606 vehicles from January to November, an increase of 34.6 percent compared with the same period in 2024. Tesla now has a total stake of 31.2 percent. Norwegian car market.
Success is the result of very specific factors. Norway is the country with the highest penetration of electric vehicles in the world: in November, 97.6 percent of new registrations involved battery-powered cars. The record stems from an incentive system created over more than two decades that has made electric vehicles cheaper than conventional vehicles through a 25 percent VAT exemption for cars priced under 500,000 Norwegian kroner; This is approximately €42,500 euros or $49,360.
However, the November increase should also be read in light of the impending change. The Oslo government announced plans to reduce the tax-exemption threshold to 300,000 kroner (€25,500/$29,600) from next year in the 2026 budget, and then eliminate the benefit altogether in 2027. Norwegian consumers are therefore rushing to complete their purchases before the new rules come into effect.
This story was originally published by WIRED Italia and translated from Italian.
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