Currently reading: Is Elon Musk really putting EV buyers off Tesla?

Potential customers were recently invited into showrooms to look at Elon Musk’s latest EVs. Undercover, we join them

Love ’em or hate ’em (and that may be shaped largely by your view of Elon Musk), Tesla electric cars are a common sight on the roads these days.

And with a facelifted Tesla Model Y currently being rolled out and some catching up to do in the sales charts, Tesla recently invited potential customers to visit its showrooms to try some of its models.

I must once have recorded my details with my local Tesla dealer because I too received an invitation. It sounded like a good opportunity to go undercover to see how the company sells cars and meet both those pondering their first EV and seasoned drivers thinking of switching brands.

EVs made up 19.6% of car sales last year, according to the SMMT. That figure was up a fifth on 2023 but still short of the 22% demanded by the zero-emissions vehicle mandate.

Through 2024, Tesla’s year-to-date market share dipped too, but by the end of the year, its overall market share was just about up (by 1.54%) – and the Model Y was the UK’s fifth-most-popular car.

Anyway, invitation in hand, a few months back I duly turned up at Tesla Guildford ready to play the clueless punter. A sales advisor quickly earned my attention with a Morrisons cake and a Nespresso coffee before matching me to a new, long-range Model 3.

On personal contract hire with maintenance and an annual mileage cap of 10,000 miles, it would, he said, cost me £374 per month over three years with a 12-month (£4488) down payment.

Too much? There was the standard-range car for £324 per month instead, but few were available. “It’s almost sold out, with fresh supplies not arriving for a few months,” he told me. “The deal may have changed by then, too. Take a long-range Model 3 for a test drive and think it over.”

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After a turn around the block and back at the showroom, my first conversation was with a chap considering a Model 3. His company car, a Volkswagen Passat GTE estate, is about to be returned, and he thought he’d go electric to save tax.

“I’ve driven a BYD Seal but it felt too Chinese and had more conventional instruments than the Tesla,” he said. “If you’re going to have an EV, it has to be a Tesla for its quality, performance and charging network.”

Next back at the showroom is the test driver of a Model Y.

“I run an Audi Q4 E-tron as a company car,” he said. “It’s great, but it causes me range and charger anxiety. Service station charge points are often so busy that I’m forced to wait ages. Also, sometimes when I’ve gone to use a Tesla Supercharger, it’s an older generation that won’t charge my car.

“Fortunately, my Audi is fitted with the optional heat pump, so I can warm the interior without affecting the car’s range. Colleagues who don’t have one get far fewer miles, and to avoid running out of range completely they drive in a hat and coat. Now that our company is offering a car allowance, they’re switching to Teslas not only for range and charging reasons but also because Teslas have a heat pump as standard. I’ll be following them.”

Another chap was preparing to leave in his Volvo XC60. “The Volvo costs me £150 per month in company car tax, whereas a Model Y will cost me £50,” he said. “It’s a no-brainer. I drive 200 miles a day for work, so the Tesla’s range and ease of charging is another bonus.”

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I just squeezed in a last chat with a couple and their children fresh from a drive of a Model Y, as they transferred all of their family paraphernalia back to their Audi Q5.

“My wife can get an electric car on salary sacrifice,” said her husband. “With Audi dealers offering to buy our car for £20,000 [it’s a 2018-reg with 50,000 miles], we’re thinking that now’s the time to change.”

By this point, a steady flow of visitors was arriving at the showroom. “It’s going to be a busy weekend,” an advisor told me. “Fortunately, the cars sell themselves.”

To business users, yes, certainly they do… Could Tesla regard its nationwide showroom event a success? Despite dire warnings of the possible threat to sales posed by Elon Musk’s recent political posturings, in February Tesla’s sales rose by more than a fifth when compared with the same month last year.

Admittedly, the whole EV market was up almost 42% year on year, driven by buyers rushing to sign up before April when, for the first time, EVs will be liable for road tax.

However, the company can take heart from the fact that against stiff competition, the Model 3 and Model Y secured second and third places in the month’s top 10 new car sales chart. I can’t claim to have contributed to that success, but I reckon I know one or two people who did.

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JSBarnet 22 April 2025

This is feeble stuff. Of course the people in the showroom aren't put off by Musk, they wouldn't be there if they were! The people who ARE put off aren't there! But you've made zero effort to talk to them, or to in any way answer the question posed by the headline. The article also glosses over the fact that the conversations happened "months ago", when the world was in a different place. There's no journalism in this piece, just an ad for Tesla. Autocar should delete this article, it lets them down. 

oop north 22 April 2025

What a shockingly thin article - the title doesn't match the content in any way at all. Devoid of any journalistic content. The visit seems to have been months ago before Trump's election. 

michael knight 22 April 2025

The article content has literally nothing to do with the title: you've just had a pleasant chat with prospective buyers about how great Teslas are - nothing mentioned about Musk putting-off potential buyers. Ridiculous. I realise it's a hot potato for the car-review industry but come on, at least ask them 'has Musk's political meddling had any effect on your purchasing decision?' 

JJFranco 22 April 2025

Couldn't agree more! Talk about avoiding controversy! I didn't think having opinions about Musk was that controversial anymore.