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After years at the top of the electric vehicle hill, Tesla is facing challenges left, right and center. The company is fighting against dwindling profit margins as it keeps cutting prices, is seeing sales fall as it hits competition from legacy automakers and even has the fringe opinions of its own boss to contend with. Now, a new report has found that the company’s latest challenge is drawing in new buyers.
Tesla hasn’t had much of a problem finding buyers for its cars up to this point. For years, it faced little competition from other automakers and it amassed a legion of dedicated fans who hang on every word of company boss Elon Musk. Now, Business Insider warns that Tesla might not know how to draw in buyers who aren’t inducted into the church of Musk. As the site explains:
The typical Tesla driver is so stereotypical that they have a nickname: Tesla bro. These drivers are enticed by Tesla’s user experience and high-tech accessories — and have more patience for features that are hard to use or have initial bugs.
But the non-Tesla-bro contingent is looking for something more practical that mimics the experience of their gas-powered car.
The findings come from a JD Power survey, which quizzed almost 100,000 owners of new 2024 model-year vehicles after 90 days of ownership. The survey found that Musk’s car company is still popular among loyal customers, but its performance among newer buyers was described as “lackluster.”
Additionally, owners of EVs made by legacy automakers said they “felt more connected with their cars than Tesla owners did.” The findings should come of concern to Tesla, which has seen its sales fall in recent months. In the latest EV sales figures, Tesla’s share of U.S. electric-vehicle sales fell to 49.7 percent in the second quarter of 2024. That is still a lot, but it’s the first time the automaker’s share has fallen below 50 percent, reports Cox Automotive.