Tesla sales plunge 58% in Germany amid struggles for auto market

Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla saw sales collapse by almost 60% in Germany in the first half of 2025, official figures showed on Thursday.

Figures from the Federal Motor Transport Authority revealed that Tesla - founded by billionaire Elon Musk - sold only 8,890 cars in the first six months of 2025, down 58.2% from the same period in the previous year.

The US carmaker, which has a major gigafactory in Germany, dropped to a market share of just 0.6%.

Tesla's disappointing performance came after Musk last year became a close ally of US President Donald Trump and openly supported the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) ahead of February's parliamentary election.

Despite Tesla's disastrous results, electric vehicle sales surged in Germany over the first half of the year, rising by 35%.

In contrast, total German car registrations were down 4.7% to 1,402,789 over the six-month period, the Flensburg-based agency said, with June sales plunging 14%.

Domestic manufacturers saw mixed results, with BMW (119,000) and Mercedes-Benz (127,000) both registering modest rises in sales, but Volkswagen (286,000) slightly down.

Consultancy firm EY said the German auto market was in "crisis mode."

EY expert Constantin Gall said global uncertainty was dampening sales. "Uncertainty is poison for the new car market."