Make Tesla Small Again

Published in Der Standard
(Austria) on 6 March 2025
by Georg Pichler (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Kirsty Low. Edited by Michelle Bisson.
Elon Musk's pandering to Donald Trump's far-right supporters is emerging as a serious threat to his wealth.

Lies, mass layoffs, far-right rhetoric, the Hitler salute — there has been no shortage of bigger and smaller scandals involving Elon Musk in recent months. The richest man in the world has aligned himself with Donald Trump and is now evidently enjoying his role as a special government employee responsible for exposing primarily fictitious waste of taxpayer money. This clearly appeals to Trump's base. However, as sales figures show, it doesn't appeal to Tesla customers, the main source of Musk's wealth.

In the U.S., Tesla's market share has sharply declined, while in Europe, sales have dropped by 50% in some instances — and these developments have taken place against a backdrop of strong market growth. A slump of this magnitude cannot be explained solely by the fact that the competition has grown stronger. It is a welcome sign that consumers are not completely indifferent to the political views of companies and their bosses. Or, to put it another way: Hate doesn't sell well. The brand has been damaged.

Competitors Are Celebrating

The company’s competitors can celebrate, as Tesla owners who are willing to shop around are now flooding in, which also presents an opportunity for the European car industry. Trump's MAGA crowd won't save Musk's company. That's because they believe man-made climate change is a hoax, applaud the "drill, baby, drill" slogan and certainly don't plan on buying an electric car. Make Tesla small again.


Make Tesla small again

Elon Musks Anbiederung an Donald Trumps rechtsextreme Anhängerschaft wird zur akuten Gefahr für seinen Reichtum

Lügen, Massenentlassungen, rechtsextreme Rhetorik, Hitlergruß: An Skandälchen und Skandalen mit Elon Musk hat es in den vergangenen Monaten nicht gemangelt. Der reichste Mensch der Welt hat bei Trump angedockt und gefällt sich heute sichtlich in seiner Rolle als Sonderangestellter der Regierung, der den Aufdecker für meist frei erfundene Steuerverschwendung spielt. Der Wählerbasis Donald Trumps behagt das sichtlich. Der Kundschaft des Autokonzerns Teslas, der maßgeblich für Musks Reichtum ist, allerdings nicht, wie die Verkaufszahlen zeigen.

In den USA hat Tesla deutlich Marktanteile eingebüßt, in Europa haben sich die Verkäufe teilweise halbiert. Und das, während der Markt an sich kräftig gewachsen ist. Ein Absturz in dieser Größenordnung lässt sich nicht alleine damit erklären, dass die Konkurrenz stärker geworden ist. Es ist ein begrüßenswertes Zeichen dafür, dass Konsumenten die politische Einstellung von Unternehmen und ihren Chefs nicht komplett egal ist. Oder, anders gesagt: Hass verkauft sich nicht gut. Die Marke ist beschädigt.

Konkurrenz freut sich

Freuen darf sich die Konkurrenz, der nun wechselwillige Tesla-Besitzer zuströmen, was auch eine Chance für die europäische Autoindustrie ist. Trumps MAGA-Crowd wird Musks Konzern nicht retten. Denn dort hält man den menschengemachten Klimawandel für einen Hoax, klatscht Beifall zu "Drill, Baby, drill" und schafft sich mit Sicherheit kein E-Auto an. Make Tesla small again.
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