Tesla reported 336,681 electric vehicle deliveries in the first quarter of 2025, down 13% from a year earlier and significantly below Wall Street expectations. The report came just two days after Tesla shares posted their worst quarterly performance since 2022, CNBC reported.
Key figures from Tesla's report:
- 1 sq. 2025 deliveries: 336,681 pieces;
- Q1 2025 production: 362,615 units;
- 1 sq. 2024 deliveries: 386,810 pieces;
- Q1 2024 production: 433,371 units.
Analysts had forecast Tesla would deliver between 360,000 and 377,590 vehicles this quarter. Even the lower end of that range turned out to be too optimistic.
Deliveries are considered the most accurate measure of Tesla's vehicle sales, although the company doesn't define it explicitly or break it down by model or region. Tesla said it produced 345,454 Model 3 and Model Y units and delivered 323,800 of them to customers. The company also reported 12,881 deliveries of other models, effectively referring to Cybertruck deliveries.
Tesla's March sales in China fell 11.5% year-on-year to 78,828 electric vehicles, according to the China Automobile Association. The company faces increasing competition from Chinese automakers such as BYD, which continue to aggressively expand into the electric vehicle market.
Tesla's European performance has also come under pressure. In Germany, its share of the electric car market fell from around 16% a year ago to just 4% in the first quarter of 2025. In 15 European countries, Tesla's overall share of the electric car market fell from 17.9% to 9.3%.
During the quarter, Tesla temporarily halted some production lines for retooling as it prepared to release an updated version of the Model Y. Recently, CEO Elon Musk told employees that he expects the Model Y to remain the world's best-selling car in 2025.
But the company is grappling with both operational hurdles and political backlash. Tesla has faced boycotts, protests, and acts of vandalism amid growing discontent with Musk’s political activities, particularly his prominent role in Donald Trump’s second administration. Musk currently heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he oversees sweeping federal job cuts and regulatory overhauls.
Musk's political activism has also spread to Europe, where his support for the far-right German party AfD during the February elections further damaged Tesla's brand image.
Tesla shares fell 36% in the first quarter, wiping $460 billion off its market cap. It was the biggest quarterly drop since Q4 2022 and the third-largest in the company's 15 years as a public company.
Despite the decline, Musk has publicly demonstrated confidence in Tesla's direction, focusing on updating existing models, releasing fully autonomous vehicles, and expanding into new markets. Given that Musk has full control of Tesla's board of directors and has the support of the Trump administration, he can feel confident as CEO for now.