Tesla’s electric vehicle sales in the United States are worse than reported, mainly due to the company’s lack of transparency. A Cox Automotive report suggests Tesla delivered 128,100 vehicles in the US during Q1 2025, down 8.6% from the previous year. However, a more accurate analysis reveals that Tesla actually delivered around 124,657 vehicles in the US, indicating a decline of approximately 15%.
This disparity is largely due to Tesla’s refusal to provide region-specific sales data or model-specific information. As a result, analysts rely on estimates like Cox’s, which may not accurately reflect Tesla’s true performance. To get a clearer picture, experts use registration data from other markets where Tesla sells vehicles globally.
The company’s global deliveries reported in Q1 2025 were 336,681 units, with approximately 212,024 registrations outside of the US and Canada. Subtracting this number from Tesla’s global deliveries yields an estimated 124,657 vehicles delivered in the US, which is about 3,500 fewer than Cox’s estimate.
The Model Y changeover did impact Tesla’s sales in the US, but it’s not the only factor contributing to the decline. The company ended Q1 with record inventory levels and no backlog of orders for new Model Ys, raising concerns about demand in the market. As the brand continues to face criticism from Elon Musk’s actions, particularly during the second half of Q1, it remains uncertain whether Tesla will see growth in US deliveries this year.
Source: https://electrek.co/2025/04/11/tesla-us-sales-worse-than-what-is-reported-more-accurate-data