It's not just Tesla's share price that's racing towards the bottom. So are car sales. In Norway, Toyota now sells more electric cars than the Americans.
In the Norwegian car market, electric cars still dominate. In fact, they are on almost 100 percent of all new cars. But Tesla has been left out in the cold.
In fact, Toyota now sells far more cars to our neighbors further north than Tesla manages to ship from its dealers.
In the first two months of the year, Tesla's sales in Norway fell by 44.4 percent compared to the same period in 2024.
At the same time, the overall market grew, so that electric cars now account for 96 percent of all new passenger cars sold in the country.
Tesla sold 1,606 cars to Norwegians in January and February. That's almost 3,000 cars fewer than the same period last year.
Toyota now sells far better than Tesla in Norway
For the same reason, Tesla has to settle for third place on the sales charts in Norway. Both Volkswagen and Toyota, which only sell one electric car in the country, the bZ4X, are selling better.
This is a marked contrast to the whole of 2024, where Tesla sold 24,259 cars in Norway and had 18.9 percent of the market in the country.
According to data from the Danish Road Traffic Information Council, total sales of passenger cars, including electric cars and gasoline cars, increased by 46.3 percent (corresponding to 18,292 cars) in the first two months of 2025.
Volkswagen now occupies first place in the Norwegian electric car market with 3,222 cars sold in January and February, an increase of 224.1 percent compared to the same period in 2024.
Toyota follows with 2,102 units sold (an increase of 97.6 percent), while Tesla, now in third place, saw sales decline by 1,606 cars.
The other brands in the Norwegian top five are Nissan with 1,186 cars sold (an increase of 31.3 percent) and BMW with 1,134 cars sold (an increase of 113.6 percent).
When it comes to individual models, Toyota's bZ4X is the best-selling car in Norway overall. That is, when you take into account that we are only through the first two months of 2025.
Tesla's Model Y, once the Norwegians' favorite electric car, has fallen to fourth place with only 965 cars sold, a drop of 64.4 percent.
According to Norwegian TV2, it is too early to say anything about why Tesla is actually plummeting in Norway. However, polls from the research firm Opinion show that 2 out of 3 Norwegians now view Tesla more negatively than before.
Much of the negative reaction in Norway may be linked to Tesla CEO Elon Musk's political involvement. His connection to US President Donald Trump in particular does not resonate well in the North.
However, some experts believe that Tesla's challenges in Norway go beyond the director's public image.
Robert Næss, investment director at Nordea Asset Management, believes that Tesla's previously unique appeal has diminished in Norway.
– I think it's a combination of some people having a negative impression of Musk and the fact that a Tesla is no longer a much better buy than all other electric cars.
