- Registrations of new Tesla EVs more than tripled in Norway in May, led by the refreshed Model Y. But European buyers elsewhere are no longer lining up to buy Elon Musk’s cars, and a growing number are looking at China-based BYD.
There’s a paradise on Earth for EV enthusiasts, and it’s called Norway. More than nine out of 10 new cars there are fully electric—a statistic unmatched anywhere else—and despite its vast oil riches, fewer than 200 of the overall 43,000 vehicles sold there through April ran on gasoline alone.
Even if Europe as a whole appears to be turning its back on Tesla, the world’s friendliest country for EVs is proving it remains loyal to Elon Musk’s carmaker, according to data published on Monday.
Registrations of new passenger cars, which lag retail sales slightly, showed demand for Tesla more than tripled last month to 2,600 vehicles, led by a surge in volumes of the Model Y.
The strong showing put Tesla back at the top of all car brands in Norway for the month while also erasing its previous year-to-date losses and then some.
Dutch, Swedish, and French buyers aren’t buying Teslas in the same numbers
The good news is the Y could recoup almost all the ground it had lost as a result of the changeover to the newer version over the first five months. The bad news is now that May showed there was sufficient supply to permit Y sales in Norway to double from April’s tally, bulls may have to rethink their thesis that weakness in the rest of Europe is due to constraints stemming from the production ramp of Tesla’s best seller.
As bright as things look in Norway, the picture for Tesla looks far more challenging across the rest of the continent. The Netherlands registered a 36% year-on-year drop in May, while Sweden saw volumes collapse by more than half. France was the worst hit, with volumes shrinking by two-thirds last month.
All three are traditionally strong Tesla markets with an above-average share of EVs in relation to their new car fleets. Yet between them all, there were only 2,281 Tesla cars registered in May. That’s fewer than the number of Model Y crossovers in Norway over the same time period.
By comparison, Spain is a more difficult market, with EV demand relatively low compared to northern Europe. Here, too, Tesla saw a sharp drop, even if at 29% it was less pronounced.
Tesla rival BYD enjoying explosive growth in May
Yet one brand is already seeing explosive growth in Spain: BYD. While published data does not differentiate between EVs and its “DM-i” range of plug-in hybrids, the Chinese carmaker saw sales increase by a factor of 10 thanks to its Seal U crossover.
BYD’s success in Spain is part of an ongoing trend. Even before its European car plant in Hungary celebrates its start of production later this year, the brand notched another monthly record for overseas sales.
The Chinese EV brand remains firmly on track to eclipse Tesla for the first time across a full year of sales. On Monday, it reported that volumes of its fully electric passenger cars surged by 42% in May.
Tesla, which only publishes aggregated data once a quarter, did not respond to a request for comment.