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).
A family member’s a brickie. He ran an LDV Pilot for few years, until it died, and it was useful (piece of shit, but pretty reliable, and cheap to fix when it did break) while it lasted. But newer trucks and small vans aren’t nearly as suitable.
The Pilot was ugly as fuck, but from what I’ve heard they were basically indestructible to a certain point…then there was almost no reviving them. Been considering getting a decommissioned ambulance and changing my trading name to Dr. Stone…
Ambulance is basically set up for a mobile shop, 240 and 110, loads of drawers and cupboards, tie-down points and either a fold down ramp or a hydraulic tailgate. Ambulance services are always refreshing their fleet, they get worked hard, but there’s a maintenance standard so even with 180k miles on the Odo they’re typically not running poorly. Idk…maybe I’m talking myself into it, maybe it’s actually a good idea.