Archive · 2 Jan 2026
Tesla Loses EV Sales Crown
Tesla, which used to be the top seller of electric cars, has now lost that title to a Chinese company called BYD.
Tesla sold fewer cars in 2025 than the year before, and this was partly because some people didn't like Elon Musk's political views and other companies were selling good cars for less money.
Even though Tesla's car sales went down, investors are still excited about the company's future plans, like making self-driving taxis and robots.
Tesla's stock price went down a bit when the company reported its latest sales numbers, but it's still doing better than it was a year ago.
Tesla is trying to sell cheaper versions of its cars to compete with other companies, and it's also focusing on new technologies like robotaxis and energy storage.
Despite all these changes, Elon Musk, who is already the richest person in the world, just got a big pay package from Tesla.
Tesla delivered 1.64 million vehicles in 2025, down 9% from the previous year, losing its top EV maker status to BYD.
Q4 2025 deliveries totaled 418,227 vehicles, missing analysts' expectations of 440,000 vehicles.
Tesla's stock price dropped over 2.5% intraday on January 2, 2026, following the Q4 delivery report.
Tesla introduced cheaper versions of the Model Y and Model 3 to compete with Chinese EV makers.
Investors remain optimistic about Tesla's future in robotaxis, energy storage, and humanoid robots, despite declining sales.
- Who
- Tesla Inc., Elon Musk, BYD, investors, analysts
- What
- Tesla's decline in EV sales and loss of top EV maker status to BYD
- When
- Fourth quarter of 2025 and outlook for 2026
- Where
- Global, with specific mentions of the US and China
- Why
- Customer revolt over Elon Musk's politics, competition from Chinese EV makers, and expiration of US EV tax credits
- 2025 Deliveries
- 1.64 million vehicles (down 9% YoY)
- Q4 2025 Deliveries
- 418,227 vehicles (down 16% YoY)
- Expected Q4 2025 Deliveries
- 440,000 vehicles (analysts' estimate)
- BYD 2025 Deliveries
- 2.26 million vehicles
- Tesla Stock Price (Jan 2, 2026)
- $443.72 (down 1.33%)
- New Model Y Price
- Under $40,000
- New Model 3 Price
- Under $37,000
- Expected Q4 2025 Sales Drop
- 3%
- Expected Q4 2025 Earnings Drop
- Nearly 40%
- Musk's 2018 Pay Package
- $55 billion
Sources
Tesla Sales Outlook Darkens Despite Musk’s Self-Driving Euphoria
BYD Posts Weakest Sales Growth in Five Years on Headwinds at Home
Elon Musk’s new year move: $100 million to charity, one big tax win
China's BYD to topple Elon Musk's Tesla as the biggest EV maker after hitting sales goal
Tesla loses title as world's biggest electric vehicle maker as sales fall for second year in a row
Tesla Slips To Second As China's BYD Becomes World's Number 1 EV Maker
Tesla Sales Fall in Key European Markets but Set Record in Norway
Tesla stock drops over 2.5% intraday after Q4 vehicle deliveries decline 16% — Details here