Tesla’s Year-Over-Year Sales Decline: A Look at 2024 Performance

Tesla’s production and delivery numbers for 2024 have been released, revealing a sobering outlook.

The leading electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer in the US produced 1.77 million cars this year, marking a decline of approximately 4 percent compared to the previous year. Tesla delivered 1.79 million vehicles in 2024, which is about 1 percent less than in 2023. Furthermore, the company deployed 31.4 GWh in energy storage solutions.

Despite this, Tesla reported a “record” fourth quarter with 495,570 vehicles delivered to customers. The company also deployed 11 GWh of energy storage products in this quarter, which was another record achievement. In total, Tesla produced 459,445 vehicles, primarily consisting of Model 3s and Ys.

However, the strong finish in Q4 was insufficient to align the company’s full-year performance with that of 2023. Tesla CEO Elon Musk had previously warned that rising competition and declining demand for the company’s aging vehicle lineup would negatively impact performance in 2024. The relative success of the Cybertruck, which began deliveries late last year, was not enough to boost Tesla’s fortunes for the year.

Despite achieving records in deliveries and energy storage deployment for Q4, Tesla fell short of Wall Street’s expectations of 504,800 vehicles delivered, as reported by Wedbush’s Dan Ives. Consequently, Tesla’s stock price dropped by about 5 percent in light of the disappointing news.

The future of Tesla remains uncertain as Donald Trump resumes the presidency. While there has been much speculation about Musk and Trump’s alliance, the incoming president may remove various incentives that have made Tesla vehicles more accessible, including a $7,500 tax credit for new EVs.

Musk has indicated that a more affordable Tesla is planned for release in 2025, along with a fully autonomous Cybercab in 2026. However, both projects face significant challenges. Additionally, the pressure from China’s rapidly growing domestic EV production continues to affect US manufacturers operating in that market. China remains Tesla’s largest and most critical market, and the company is steadily losing market share to competitors like BYD and other significant players.