Source: Tesla
Tesla electric vehicle sales rebounded strongly in the month of May, led by the refreshed Model Y which helped boost the electric SUV’s sales to its highest level since March, 2024.
New data released by the Electric Vehicle Council on Tuesday shows that Tesla recorded 3,897 sales in May, nearly eight times the 500 recorded in April, a lull the company blamed on delays on the arrival of ships carryings its EVs from China.
Tesla sales in Australia and across the world have slumped badly in 2025, blamed on the retooling of factories for the new Model Y, customers holding off purchases until the new model is available, and consumer pushback against the political declarations and erratic behaviour of CEO Elon Musk.
Although the refreshed Model Y has been available in Europe and other countries for several months, the company only started deliveries in Australia in May and its rebound in Australia is the biggest and most positive seen in any market to date.
According to the EVC, there were 3,580 Model Y sales in May, more than double the 1,609 in the same month last year, and its highest level since selling 4,379 vehicles in March, 2024. Sales of the Model 3, which had its relaunch early last year, totalled just 317 in May, down from 1,958 in the same month a year ago.
Even though Tesla’s overall sales in May are up 10 per cent from the same month a year ago, its year to date sales are still down 48 per cent to 9,557. The Model 3 has slumped 70 per cent to 2,583, but the Model Y is now down just 27.4 per cent for the first five months of the year to 6,974.
Another couple of strong months of deliveries will see the Model Y catch up to last year’s sales. How much growth it delivers over the remainder of the year remains to be seen, as the company deals with increased competition, and as Musk steps back from his role in the Trump administration.
The EVC also releases data for another specialist EV maker Polestar, which also recorded a strong month with 243 sales, a rise of 66 per cent from 146 in the same month a year ago.
It has since released two new models, with the Polestar 4 its best performer with 133 sales in May and 502 so far this year, and the more expensive Polestar 3 adding 28 sales in May, to take its year to date total to 71. The Polestar 2 added another 82 sales, taking its total for the year to 261, down 43 per cent from the same period a year earlier.
Sales data for the rest of the auto industry in Australia will be released by the FCAI on Wednesday, and that will include EV sales data from other car makers.
What is clear is that the rebound in Tesla sales will help boost the share of EVs in the Australian new car market, which had peaked above 10 per cent last year but fell to just above 5 per cent earlier this year.
Tesla once held a commanding position in the Australian market, accounting for more than 60 per cent of sales, but that market share has slumped dramatically in recent months, even though it is clear that the Model Y will retain its position as the best selling EV on the Australian market, and by some margin.
Tesla’s head in Australia, Thom Drew, told The Driven early last month that the company expects “big things” from the Model Y sales in the June quarter.
“We have just had the first vessel arrive … the vehicles start delivery this week …. with over 3,500 cars on board,” he said. “There’s more to come over the (June) quarter. So we’re expecting some big things this quarter.”
See: Tesla expects “big things” from new Model Y sales as first Australia deliveries start
And: New Tesla Model Y review: World’s best selling EV is now even better, and it costs less
And: How Tesla surrendered its dominance of Australia’s EV market
And: Australian electric vehicle sales by month and by model in 2025
Giles Parkinson is founder and editor of The Driven, and also edits and founded the Renew Economy and One Step Off The Grid web sites. He has been a journalist for nearly 40 years, is a former business and deputy editor of the Australian Financial Review, and owns a Tesla Model 3.
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Looks like Anti-Musk sentiment in Australia is much lower. Probably because much of what he did didn't affect us all that much.
So far the "Chinese EV Invasion" hadn't ramped up yet - what we see on the roads are still mainly various Tesla, MG and BYD vehicles. With only the occasional glimpse of an Xpeng G6 (probably easier to recognise because of its striking Orange paint job)
"what we see on the roads..."
Thanks for that mr omniscient.
For me it was a no-brainer to buy the Tesla and not the heavy BYD with its vague steering and surfeit of buttons and knobs.
The BYD Sealion 7 faces other issues too, including slower charging speeds, and potential software glitches like app disconnection and inaccurate safety announcements. Additionally, some owners have reported issues with the Heads-Up Display and the throttle calibration, particularly at slow speeds.
Charging Speed:
While AC charging is decent, DC charging speeds are not as fast as some competitors, potentially limiting its future-proofness.
Throttle Calibration:
Some drivers find the throttle calibration to be a bit "touchy" at slow speeds and when releasing the throttle, with a brief "sticking" sensation.
Software Glitches:
Disconnects from the phone app, random safety announcements (even when disabled), and potential issues with the Heads-Up Display have been reported by some owners.
Ride Quality:
Some owners have noted that the Sealion 7 can be a little noisy on rough road surfaces.
Driving Experience:
While the Sealion 7 can be a fast and enjoyable car, some reviewers point out that it can be surprisingly quick and may not feel particularly sporty in tight bends due to its weight.
Safety System Issues:
Some owners have reported that the safety systems can be overly intrusive and even distracting, with warnings that some users find annoying and unwanted.
I collected my new Juniper last week. Absolutely bloody fantastic car, no exaggeration. Best I have ever bought.
FACT: when I collected mine, there were lots of other people collecting theirs too. There were people waiting to be taken to their new cars. I managed to have 2 cups of free chamomile tea and about 6 biscuits before I was finally taken to mine. Huge warehouse full of new, beautiful EVs. Cars leaving one by one, silently. Bliss.
Strangely, most new buyers were of Asian appearance. I was the only Caucasian picking one up. I think the Asians have completely ignored the woke resistance to Tesla.
Buy yours now, ya numpty!
How much are they paying you to keep posting this spam? If they aren't, more fool you...
It's my genuine opinion. I find it amusing that a lefty drone like you should complain about opinionated comments from the other side, Note: even though I'm a Labor voter, I consider you an extremist and someone with unreliable views.
And you are entitled to your opinion, but don't expect everyone to agree with you. After all, you ARE supporting a company with a fascist as its CEO, who IS complicit in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. Whether you agree or not is irrelevant, if you choose to delude yourself, that's your business, just keep it to yourself. You shill here for Tesla so much that the only conclusion is that you must be paid to do it, or there is something wrong with you...
Weirdo troll accuses automaker CEO of mass murder. News at 10. 😂
.
☑️ Yup, that's the correct response to Mr T (T for Troll).
"I was the only Caucasian..." Reminds me of a racist exercise from before you were born. 'spot the aussie.'
It's not racist to identify ethnicity
Yes, because anecdote is so much more reliable than data.
EV Bellwether Norway Model Y May numbers are up over 200% year-on-year and Model Y is back on as numero uno best selling car of any kind in Norway.
Can you please invite Ketan back on and ask him to go halfsies eating the humble pie with you 🙏 🤣
🪳🪳🪳🪳🪳🪳 .... crickets .... 🪳🪳🪳🪳🪳🪳
Hahaha! Hilarious.
Plenty of "bellwethers" on this site!
Few featherweight trolls too ^ 🤣
Tesla fans are so sensitive!
Tesla fanboys when anything else hits #1 (e.g. the BZ4X was on top in Norway some time in the last 12 months): fake news, we need yearly or at least quarterly figures!
Tesla fanboys when Tesla is #1: this month is perfectly representative of long term trends, yes, clearly.
Sales promotion, similar to MG did here earlier this year.
Elon Derangement Syndrome seems to have left you confused and dazed. My sympathies are with you.
To be clear, it wasn’t Tesla fanbois who wrote 6 consecutive negative articles on Tesla, based on 2 months of data, during which all Tesla factories worldwide were shut down for 4-6 weeks. It was the owner and editor in chief of this tabloid rag of an EV website.
I do think it is remarkable that you conclude that there are Tesla haters on this website (including me, and I have long owned two Teslas), yet you don't seem to accept the possibility that others in the world may have also had an opinion on Mr Musk's political declarations and acted accordingly, and chose not to buy Tesla EVs. Didn't Musk and Tesla acknowledge this? Isn't that why they offered zero interest loans and massive discounts to try and move stock? Why is that such a scary thought for you?
France is a disaster. Deutsche Bank has May sales in China at 39K. Last May was 55K
Be careful trackdaze there is a Troll who comments here who masquerades as a Tesla expert and everything non tesla is garbage according to him....he's a nasty piece of work and the editor should have a look at him before he crawls back to the Dark Web
Monthly results are pretty meaningless - the data is way too noisy. Feast one month, famine the next.
I only compare quarterly sales results. Much more indicative.
Great news for Tesla and the amazing refreshed Model Y. Watching a number of videos about how the cars are constructed, it's no wonder sales have bounced back so well.
For me, I'm waiting till the Model Y performance becomes available. I will then decide between it and the Long range AWD.
Sales are down massive year to date. The will be another decent month in Australia for the brand tragics to swap out of their existing Tesla but it will be crickets after that.
It now ranks fifth in Europe in April and has been outsold by BYD.
Tesla sales up in May in Australia and Norway. Being overrun by several brands in China and absolutely slaughtered by BYD (in EVs not including Hybrids). Down 30% in Denmark, down 36% in the Netherlands, down 19% in Spain, down 67% in France, down 85% in Canada. Most Teslas I'm seeing driven around my suburb are by members of our Chinese community. Sedans are generally struggling for sales whether ICE or EV but the Tesla 3 is on shaky ground in Oz surely. The new Tesla Y has been available in Europe since March
With all the protesting and cars set alight at Tesla dealerships through Europe, would you rush out to buy one right now (if you were in the market for one) or wait a few months for the sentiment to improve?
Yeah fair point, I guess it all depends on how long term the brand damage lasts and whether or not it's permanent ....and it's obviously very significant in Europe. Certainly the new Y is obviously a fine vehicle. Whether the brand damage slowly fades, time will tell and meanwhile the Chinese and European brands just keep getting better. The new upcoming Xpeng G6 may be better than the Juniper....this is the big problem now for Tesla, even if potential buyers are hanging back.
Apologies, I left a couple out. Down 53% in Sweeden, down in Portugal 68%. These are all year on year. In both these markets EV sales in total were up 25%. The US doesn't count in trends of course because it's a totally protectionist market that stops overseas manufactured vehicles from competing with Tesla. Always important to see the global trends rather than just tiny markets (Oz) in isolation.
Further to my previous post, with Germany and the UK yet to release May figures, it goes like this…..
Tesla down in
France, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Portugal, Poland and Finland
Tesla up in
Norway and Austria.
Norway and Austria. Quisling and Anschluss. Plus ça change...
All the European EV sales data for May is now available.
In Germany EV sales increased by 45% year on year. Tesla sales fell by 36% from the previous year In May
In Britain EV sales increased by 28% year on year. Tesla sales fell by 45% from the previous year in May