Elon Musk’s toxicity could spell disaster for Tesla
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This week WIRED Start looks at how Elon Musk's alt-right antics are seriously impacting his electric car business.
Elon Musk’s toxicity among many Europeans is such that even owners of Tesla news websites have ditched Muskmobiles for other EV brands. Jon Gibbs of Birmingham, England, runs what he calls the “world’s biggest Tesla inventory site." Tesla-info, Gibbs says, stores the “largest database of new and used Tesla motors in the world.†He used to own one himself—but he now drives a BMW iX electric SUV.
Likewise, Tim Kraaijvanger of the Netherlands, founder of Tesla360.nl, a Dutch everything-Tesla site, recently sold his Model Y and bought a Polestar instead. Both entrepreneurs pin their car switch on Musk’s support for European far-right political parties, and his inauguration rally arm gestures.
“While Musk might get away with a [Nazi-like] salute in some parts of the world, European markets reject such behavior.†- Tim Kraaijvanger
Last month, Norway—where EVs overtook internal combustion vehicles in total market share in 2024—recorded a biting 37.9 percent slump. At the same time, Tesla sales in France fell by a thumping 63.4 percent. And it gets even worse: In Spain, Tesla sales plummeted by 75.4 percent.
Even driving a Tesla on public roads is becoming increasingly problematic in Europe. Social media is rife with images of Teslas vandalized with Swastikas and expletives. Dealerships are also being targeted. Vandals sprayed graffiti on a Tesla car showroom in The Hague in early February, defacing the building with “No to Nazis†and sweary anti-fascist slogans.
On a grander scale, the English campaign group Led by Donkeys recently teamed up with Germany’s Center for Political Beauty to beam an image of Elon Musk making the inauguration salute onto Tesla’s gigafactory in Berlin, with the word “Heil†projected next to the lit Tesla logo. “This is who Elon Musk really is,†stressed Led by Donkeys across their well-followed social media accounts. “Don’t buy a Tesla†urged the activists.
Some Tesla owners are themselves defacing their cars, with the “I Bought This Before We Knew Elon Was Crazy†bumper sticker being a particular favorite. “I have seen massive uplift in sales across Europe,†Matthew Hiller of Hawaii-based Mad Puffer Stickers tells WIRED. “Leading the way are buyers from France, Norway, and the UK,†he adds. “I used to want a Tesla until Elon turned into a full-on fascist.â€
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Service Engineer
2 周I always like Tesla, the brand and what it stood for. While I still do I think that under Musk their overall performance will be reduced by brash decisions to remove LIDAR from vehicles and FSD choosing only to rely on cameras for example. I like the novel way that Tesla make their cars and the manufacturing processes that have been invented, but I feel a lot of Tesla’s innovation’s (genuine innovation) is getting unfairly credited to Musk when more likely it was a group of dev’s, engineers sitting around brainstorming ideas and worked on one. They aren’t getting the credit. The different between Apple and Tesla (just chose Apple) is that Apple in their production releases has the CEO and President or speakers acknowledge the team how hard they have been working to bring x feature to market. Musk doesn’t, 99.9% doesn’t shift credit to where credit is due. A true leader should deflect and protect there staff from criticisms but acknowledge them when presented with good feedback. It’s hard to do either when your CEO is running around running SpaceX, Nuerolink, X and now the leader of DOGE. Tesla needs a stable CEO that answers Tesla only questions, that takes car safety seriously, not spits out posts on X. I’m not looking at Tesla
I study Crime Policy, Urban Violence and how Technology — particularly AI and accelerating tech — is changing crime.
3 周What most people duped by the Elon Musk publicity juggernaut don’t realize is that Tesla is not a profitable company. A very large source of money for the company comes from it selling carbon offsets to other companies. The cars are a front for a different business play.
Marketing Manager
4 周Seems like you guys are fixated on Elon...
Writer | Editor of Deep Learning with the Wolf | Silicon Valley-Based
4 周And, it continues: Cybertruck has been banned in the U.K. for not conforming to road standards. Original source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2025/02/20/tesla-cybertruck-banned-in-the-uk-due-to-safety-issues/
Spirit Trucks & Equipment, LLC
4 周The opposite may be true for the majority that voted for President Trump. They like and celebrate what is taking place at DOGE. Many may consider Tesla above all, with their EV purchase.