LAST YEAR’S MODEL

Tesla Sales Crash 40% in Europe as Musk Backlash Rages

Elon Musk’s personal brand appears to be increasingly toxic for his EV manufacturer.

Elon Musk has been dealt another blow in the aftermath of his Trump White House adventure, with news of plummeting Tesla sales in Europe amid stiff competition from China. Registrations of new Teslas across the pond dropped 40 percent year-on-year to 8,837 in July, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association reported by CNBC. The fall will particularly sting the world’s richest man, as it coincides with a 225 percent leap to 13,503 new registrations for Chinese EV rivals BYD, along with an overall rise in electric vehicle sales across the market. Musk’s toe-curling exit from the Trump administration appears not to have convinced his critics, and nowhere has this been more evident than in the shifting public opinion on Tesla cars. Stickers along the lines of “I bought this before Elon went crazy” have become more common on the vehicles. The U.S., Canada, and Europe have all seen anti-Musk protests, with fires lit and protests staged at dealerships as part of the so-called Tesla Takedown movement.