Are drivers ditching Teslas? Edmunds reveals findings
The Hill, by Michael Bartiromo – 03/21/25
(NEXSTAR) – Edmunds, a popular online automotive resource, says its data shows a “potential shift” in buyers’ feelings toward Tesla vehicles — based partly on a record-high number of Tesla trade-ins.
The Tesla brand has become a target of criticism by critics of CEO Elon Musk, who is now also an advisor to President Donald Trump and a key figure at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has taken controversial actions to slash government spending.
Musk critics have organized dozens of peaceful demonstrations at Tesla dealerships and factories across North America and Europe. But some dealerships and vehicles have also been vandalized — acts which Attorney General Pam Bondi has labeled “domestic terrorism.”
Some Tesla owners, including U.S. Senator Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) who feuded with Musk, have also vowed to get rid of their vehicles. Celebrities including Jason Bateman and Sheryl Crow have done the same thing.
Activists in the San Francisco Bay Area have also hung fliers urging residents to get rid of their “swasticars,” an apparent reference to accusations that Musk attempted to perform Nazi salutes at Trump’s second inauguration in January.
“We can get back at Elon,” a protestor outside a Tesla dealership in Boston told the Associated Press earlier this month. “We can impose direct economic damage on Tesla by showing up at showrooms everywhere and boycotting Tesla and telling everyone else to get out, sell your stocks, sell your Teslas.”
But are these boycotts having any effect?
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Whatever the reason, Tesla trade-ins have reached an all-time high, Edmunds data shows. Specifically, Edmunds observed that Tesla vehicles (model years 2017 or newer) accounted for 1.4% of trade-ins toward non-Tesla cars in March 2025 — a percentage that represents a record high for Tesla. (For comparison, that percentage one year earlier in March 2024 was 0.4%.)
Shoppers aren’t seeking out new Teslas at the same rate they used to, either, at least according to Edmunds. The company’s data shows buyer consideration for new Tesla vehicles fell to 1.8% in February 2025 (the “lowest point since October 2022”) from a high of 3.3% in November 2024.
There has been no significant drop, however, in shoppers seeking out used Teslas. Prices have yet to fall significantly for the brand’s used vehicles, but Edmunds’ analysts are expecting that to change as a result of increased trade-ins.
Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ head of insights, acknowledged that Musk’s political views and relationship to Trump may have alienated current Tesla owners, but believes many just can’t afford to sell off their cars for a new one.
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