Video shows hundreds of Teslas ‘they can’t sell in Australia’
An industry expert has spotted hundreds of Teslas in an Australian car park in what he says is another bad sign for Elon Musk’s brand.
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Hundreds of new Teslas have been spotted seemingly collecting dust in a car park near Perth Airport.
Paul Maric, founder of carexpert.com.au, estimated there to be about 500 of the Tesla Model Y vehicles that “they can’t sell in Australia” seen in a holding area last week.
“They need to drop the price even more by the looks of it,” Mr Maric said in a video of the “crazy” sight uploaded to TikTok.
Speaking to news.com.au, the industry expert said Tesla had started taking orders for the updated Model Y vehicles and this video indicated the company was struggling to move their older stock.
“This is despite Tesla offering thousands of dollars off the price, free charging and a free charger if you buy one ahead of the new one arriving,” he said.
“Tesla rarely discounts, which indicates they’re desperate to move them.”
Mr Maric said Australians were losing interest in electric cars, with instead a huge surge in hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
He added that specifically Tesla had “burned previous customers” with huge price cuts to drive more sales.
“I bought a Model Y in 2022 for a list price of around $72,000 plus on-road costs,” he explained.
“When I sold that car two years later, they were selling them for just under $56,000 plus on-road costs – nothing had changed on the car in that time.
“This burns customers and it means they won’t come back to buy another one because it lost value for no reason, on top of the regular depreciation, which has been quite bad for Tesla vehicles in general.”
Mr Maric said Tesla was competing in the Australian market with a “massive surge” in new electric cars from China that have “more features” and are “much better priced”.
He said it meant Tesla was now “a second or third choice” for customers wanting a new electric vehicle.
Mr Maric highlighted that Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s support of US President Donald Trump has caused issues for the brand among customers who don’t agree politically with him.
“This group were predominantly buyers of his cars and are the ones now most vocal about trading or selling their cars at a loss,” he said.
Elon Musk destroying Tesla’s brand, experts say
Mr Musk, who funnelled an estimated US$100 million (AU$158 million) to Mr Trump’s campaign, and now heads his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is an increasingly polarising figure.
There have been acts of vandalism, firebombings and protests at Tesla dealerships across the United States, Europe and Canada.
US Attorney-General Pam Bondi has denounced the attacks as “domestic terrorism”.
Even in Australia, Tasmania’s only Tesla store in Hobart was vandalised with graffiti, labelling Mr Musk a “Nazi”.
Across 2024, Tesla’s brand value slumped by 26 per cent – the second consecutive year of losses, according to research by Brand Finance.
Some experts say Mr Musk’s increasingly erratic and divisive behaviour has thrust Tesla into a crisis.
“I think the Tesla brand is losing its mainstream appeal,” Rajat Roy, an associate professor of marketing at Bond University’s Business School, told news.com.au.
“It’s become polarised and controversial, and the customer base is dwindling as a result. It’s position as a cutting-edge, environmentally friendly and luxury brand has changed very quickly, in large part due to Elon Musk’s actions.”
Mr Musk and the brand are tightly intertwined, Dr Roy pointed out, and that was a positive for a long time when he was seen as an innovative disrupter who was changing the world for the better.
The problem is that Tesla’s dominant consumer base – and the pool of potential buyers of an electric vehicle – tend to be more liberal-minded, eco-conscious and aspirational.
“All of a sudden, those consumers are in an identity conflict,” Dr Roy said.
Consumer behaviour researcher Professor Nitika Garg from UNSW Sydney’s Business School said the brand damage is occurring at the worst possible time.
“Competition in the EV market is very fierce right now,” Professor Garg said.
“There’s a perception that Tesla has been resting on its laurels when it comes to their product range and their level of innovation. They haven’t kept pace with their competitors – particularly Chinese EVs.”
Major rivals like BYD and Xpeng are offering a stronger value proposition for many would-be buyers, she said. At the same time, Mr Musk’s strong link to Tesla has become “toxic”.
Originally published as Video shows hundreds of Teslas ‘they can’t sell in Australia’
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