In the latest developments following BYD's overtake of Tesla as the world's top EV seller in 2025—with 2.26 million battery electric vehicles to Tesla's 1.64 million amid an 8-9% annual decline—new data highlights Tesla's sharp sales drops in key markets, Cybertruck shortfalls, and booming energy storage business.
Tesla's full-year 2025 deliveries fell to 1.64 million from about 1.8 million in 2024, with Q4 at 418,227 vehicles (production 434,358). Model 3/Y dominated at 97% of Q4 volume, while Cybertruck, Model S, and Model X totaled just 11,642 quarterly and 50,850 annually. The Cybertruck notably underperformed, missing even one-fifth of its 250,000 annual target despite over one million reservations.
Regional challenges intensified the downturn. European sales plunged 28% to 203,382 units from January to November, against a 27% regional EV market growth. In Canada, sales dropped an estimated 67% in the first half, impacted by reduced Quebec incentives (from $7,000 to $4,000) and backlash over CEO Elon Musk's political stances, including endorsement of Germany's AfD party and U.S. ties.
Core pressures included the U.S. $7,500 EV tax credit phase-out (late 2024 to late 2025) and BYD's 28% sales surge without North American presence. Musk's controversies fueled 'Tesla Takedown' protests, eroding demand.
Offsetting vehicle weakness, Tesla's energy storage hit records: 14.2 GWh deployed in Q4 and 46.7 GWh yearly, up 48.7%. The company is accelerating autonomy, with robotaxi services in Austin and San Francisco since June, expanding to Phoenix, and Full Self-Driving logging over 7 billion miles. Future bets include AI, Optimus robotics, though analysts like Wedbush's Dan Ives caution on regulatory risks for self-driving tech.
Tesla shares fell 2.59% on the delivery announcement day, amid investor worries, but long-term optimism persists on non-vehicle growth.
