Tesla Sales Decline In 2024 For First Time In Years

AUSTIN, TX – Faced with an aging model lineup and a lack of new models, growing electric niche competition, and an increasingly conservative CEO in Elon Musk, EV maker Tesla experienced a year-over-year sales decline in 2024 for the first time in more than a dozen years.

Total deliveries fell to 1,789,226 models, a decline of 19,355 from the 1,808,581 sold in 2023, according to data included a news released issued Thursday that listed fourth quarter and annual numbers. Tesla did not comment on the results but plans a live Q&A with management on Jan. 29.

—

Reasons for Tesla’s minor dip in sales appear multifold, which includes a core model lineup that hasn’t changed significantly in recent years, except for the introduction of the limited-appeal Cybertruck, and increased competition in the EV market.

“Especially for EVs, you have to attract new buyers and returning buyers. In the EV market people want something new and fresh,” Edmunds auto analyst Jessica Caldwell told Tribune News Service.

Another factor in Tesla’s slowdown in sales may be the conservative politics of billionaire company head Elon Musk, who has aligned himself with Republican President-elect Donald Trump. Musk donated $277 million to Trump and other Republican candidates in the lead-up to the 2024 election.

While Tesla doesn’t break out numbers on a state-by-state basis, Tesla has reportedly been taking a hit in left-leaning areas such as California. “There are people with a negative image of Elon Musk and that’s tainted the Tesla a bit,” Caldwell told the news service.

Jeff Schuster, vice president of the automotive research firm Global Data told The Associated Press, “I suppose the choices that he’s made on the political front don’t line up with a good portion of his buyers’ profile.”

The last time Tesla saw a sales decline was in 2011 when it sold 1,129 models, down from 1,306 in 2010.

(Photos and graphic courtesy of Tesla)