Summary
Tesla’s registrations in France dropped 63% in January, their lowest since August 2022, far outpacing the broader total EV sales’ 0.5% decline.
Tesla registrations across EU countries fell 13% last year, with Germany accounting for much of the decline.
Sales in Germany, Tesla’s biggest European market, also fell 41% last year due to an aging lineup, competition, and subsidy cuts.
CEO Elon Musk’s political involvement, including support for Germany’s far-right party, may be affecting demand.
Tesla cars are a mixed bag (for Europeans, at least).
The software is good (although it got worse, many things now require multiple touches, which is really bad when driving), and it is better than every other brand I know.
But a lot of other aspects are suboptimal. E.g. the insulation is sub-par, resulting in more noise. The assistance systems are really bad, the car tried to kill me multiple times on the Autobahn. The cameras are bad when it’s dark outside, often I have to guess what I see in the rear camera when parking. The placement of the rear camera leads to dirt on it, I have to clean it every day to be able to use it. Etc, pp.
Nothing is so bad that I would advise against a Tesla, but these are many small paper cuts I was not used to in other brands.
That said: don’t buy a Tesla. Musk is a Nazi. Don’t support Nazis, punch them.
Edit: didn’t notice the train joke. Nice, you got me ;-)
Should I buy a car from the manufacturer that was founded by Adolf Hitler instead?