from Hacker News

Tesla electric car sales plunge again in Australia – Model 3 down more than 81 p

by taimurkazmi on 3/4/25, 1:57 PM with 102 comments

• by thinkingtoilet on 3/4/25, 3:22 PM

  I'm asking this because I genuinely don't know, but at what point do Tesla shareholders sue the company? Musk's actions, like them or not, are actively hurting the company. There are many people who will never buy a Tesla who otherwise would due to Musk.

• by bovermyer on 3/4/25, 3:21 PM

  The article touches on it a little, but I'd like to know answers to the following questions:

  - Are car sales in general down?

  - Are other EV makers seeing a corresponding uptick in sales?

  - Are ICE vehicles seeing an uptick in sales?

  Just knowing that Tesla sales for a specific model have tanked doesn't tell me enough. The article mentions that Polestar and BYD are seeing an increase in sales over the last year, but doesn't say whether the last couple months have seen a higher increase than previously.

• by Fischgericht on 3/4/25, 4:43 PM

  I am soooo looking forward to the registration numbers for Tesla in February, which should be coming in the next days.

  Right now the high score appears to be:

  - Australien: -72% - China: -50% - Denmark: -48% - France: -45% - Norway: -44% [1]

  I really really hope my home country Germany can make it to #1.

  [1] Press releases have reported a 70% drop, but the numbers do not back this up. Maybe it's 70% drop in market share.

• by stubish on 3/4/25, 3:24 PM

  I'm sure a big chunk is people not wanting to associate with Musk (not many fans over here) or attract vandals. But it is worth noticing that a number of competing cars have recently dropped prices, trying to compete with BYD and MG who are completely dominating the AUS EV market. Tesla is in luxury car territory, along with the majority of EVs.

• by acc_297 on 3/4/25, 3:47 PM

  Reminds me of the situation in Canada[1], which was due mostly to a government subsidy being phased out but certainly also in part "personality driven". In general it seems like local subsidies are a huge driver of the global EV market share [2] - one hopes that the EV market will be able to stand on it's own one day and on it's own merits the technology will reach price parity with fossil fuels.

  [1] https://www.thestar.com/business/tesla-sales-are-down-but-it... [2] https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2024/trends-in...

• by JumpCrisscross on 3/4/25, 3:14 PM

  Europe, Canada, Mexico and everyone else getting the Trump & Musk heel turn should seriously consider special tariffs on all Teslas and super-premium registration charges on their luxury models. In the same way that TikTok is a security threat to America, Teslas and Starlink are threats to the free world.

  (I’d also throw in a ban on domestic content owners providing training material to xAI, but I’ll admit I have a vindictive streak.)

• by light_triad on 3/4/25, 3:35 PM

  > Local brands, including Xiaomi, are gearing up to launch direct competitors, with the upcoming YU7

  More details: Why a Chinese Gadget Company Can Make an Electric Car and Apple Can’t https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/business/china-xiaomi-app...

• by thelastgallon on 3/4/25, 3:27 PM

  Also, Tesla's China Nightmare: Sales Crash 49% as BYD Tightens Its Grip--Is This the Beginning of the End? https://finance.yahoo.com/news/teslas-china-nightmare-sales-...

  China is the world's largest car market.

• by apples_oranges on 3/4/25, 3:25 PM

  My feeling is that this will extend not just to Tesla but anything made in the US as long as it can be replaced elsewhere.

• by tim333 on 3/4/25, 8:09 PM

  Some torched in France too now https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14459107/Tesla-show...

  I'm not sure the new image is going well.

  Musk himself seems cheerful says the salute thing was nothing on Joe Rogan a couple of days ago https://youtu.be/sSOxPJD-VNo?t=664

• by x187463 on 3/4/25, 4:10 PM

  Are there any other carmakers with anything close to SFSD? People love to hate and act as though SFSD doesn't work, but SFSD v13 has driven ~95% of the miles on my model 3. From the driveway to the office and back, SFSD drives the car with minimal input. I would love to switch to a different manufacturer without giving up the huge convenience.

  Either way, I certainly won't buy another Tesla while Elon is running the place.

• by amriksohata on 3/4/25, 7:40 PM

  tesla had an early run, there is a lot more competition, their share price is holding well at the same levels its been for the last 3-4 years, bar some peaks and troughs, for good reason