(Adds background and details on market share in paragraphs 4-9)
April 16 (Reuters) – Tesla’s electric-vehicle registrations in California dropped 15.1% during the first quarter, according to industry data, signaling an accelerated decline and growing challenges for the Elon Musk-led automaker in the crucial U.S. market.
The company’s quarterly sales globally fell 13% to the lowest in nearly three years, hurt by a backlash against CEO Musk, rising competition and as customers wait for a refresh of its highest-selling electric vehicle Model Y.
“An aging product lineup and backlash against Musk’s political initiatives are likely key factors for the decline in Tesla BEV market share,” the California New Car Dealers Association said.
Musk’s leadership of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency has sparked widespread protests across the United States, with activists demonstrating against his role in federal workforce cuts and the cancellation of contracts funding global humanitarian programs.
Tesla’s share of the EV market in California fell to 43.9% from 55.5% a year earlier, according to the industry body.
While the Model Y remained the best-selling EV in the state, its sales plummeted about 30% in the first quarter, compared with a year earlier.
Tesla said earlier this month that retooling production lines for the refreshed Model Y at four of its factories resulted in several weeks of lost production during the first quarter.
Meanwhile, analysts attributed some of the drop in overall sales in the January-March period to customers waiting for cheaper versions of the refreshed Model Y crossover.
The California New Car Dealers Association added that it expects new vehicle registrations in the state to fall 2.3% from last year due to U.S. trade policies.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
