Mansory's latest creation may be the ugliest car you've ever seen
If you thought the visually challenging concoctions brewed up by Swiss car modification firm Mansory peaked with this year's Cybertruck-based 'Elongation', think again – the Pugnator Tricolore has just broken cover.
Based on the Ferrari Purosangue SUV, Mansory's latest creation builds on the standard Pugnator revealed in September 2024. This time, there's a second rear wing, a colossal diffuser, four central exhaust tips, and just about everything else you'd expect from a more-money-than-sense mod shop.
Mansory – thankfully – labels the Pugnator Tricolore a "limited one-off".
100s of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
The main differences from the Pugnator are the more extreme exterior pieces and its more unique tri-colour paint job representing the Italian flag.
That means you get 'through-coloured' forged carbon-fibre exterior elements, air vents on the bonnet and wheel arches, huge side skirts, and gaudy fender flares.
There's also the Pugnator's standard forged 22-inch front and 23-inch rear 'FC.5' wheels, while Ferrari's naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine gets a boost in outputs.
It produces 563kW of power and 730Nm, an increase of 30kW and 14Nm.
More of the Italian tri-colour carries through to the Pugnator's white interior, where you'll find red and green accents on the centre console and seatbelts in particular.
Interestingly, Mansory has kept red to the driver's side, and green to the passenger.
As with the standard car, you'll notice a plethora of luxury materials like leather, carbon fibre, quilted surfaces and floor mats, embroidered seatbelts, and aluminium pedals.
Mansory hasn't announced what the standard Pugnator conversion will cost, let alone how much the premium is for the limited Tricolore. For context, the Purosangue starts at $728,000 before on-road costs in Australia.
Mansory was founded in 1989 by Iranian tuner Kourosh Mansory. The company has since built a reputation on producing highly-modified versions of supercars, luxury SUVs, and motorcycles – including models like the Mercedes-AMG G63, Ineos Grenadier, and Rolls-Royce Spectre.MORE: Man, sorry – Tuning icon makes Ferrari SUV even more controversial
MORE: Mansory Cybertruck revealed for people with too much money, not enough taste
MORE: Everything Ferrari Purosangue
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
If you thought the visually challenging concoctions brewed up by Swiss car modification firm Mansory peaked with this year's Cybertruck-based 'Elongation', think again – the Pugnator Tricolore has just broken cover.
Based on the Ferrari Purosangue SUV, Mansory's latest creation builds on the standard Pugnator revealed in September 2024. This time, there's a second rear wing, a colossal diffuser, four central exhaust tips, and just about everything else you'd expect from a more-money-than-sense mod shop.
Mansory – thankfully – labels the Pugnator Tricolore a "limited one-off".
100s of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
The main differences from the Pugnator are the more extreme exterior pieces and its more unique tri-colour paint job representing the Italian flag.
That means you get 'through-coloured' forged carbon-fibre exterior elements, air vents on the bonnet and wheel arches, huge side skirts, and gaudy fender flares.
There's also the Pugnator's standard forged 22-inch front and 23-inch rear 'FC.5' wheels, while Ferrari's naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine gets a boost in outputs.
It produces 563kW of power and 730Nm, an increase of 30kW and 14Nm.
More of the Italian tri-colour carries through to the Pugnator's white interior, where you'll find red and green accents on the centre console and seatbelts in particular.
Interestingly, Mansory has kept red to the driver's side, and green to the passenger.
As with the standard car, you'll notice a plethora of luxury materials like leather, carbon fibre, quilted surfaces and floor mats, embroidered seatbelts, and aluminium pedals.
Mansory hasn't announced what the standard Pugnator conversion will cost, let alone how much the premium is for the limited Tricolore. For context, the Purosangue starts at $728,000 before on-road costs in Australia.
Mansory was founded in 1989 by Iranian tuner Kourosh Mansory. The company has since built a reputation on producing highly-modified versions of supercars, luxury SUVs, and motorcycles – including models like the Mercedes-AMG G63, Ineos Grenadier, and Rolls-Royce Spectre.MORE: Man, sorry – Tuning icon makes Ferrari SUV even more controversial
MORE: Mansory Cybertruck revealed for people with too much money, not enough taste
MORE: Everything Ferrari Purosangue
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
If you thought the visually challenging concoctions brewed up by Swiss car modification firm Mansory peaked with this year's Cybertruck-based 'Elongation', think again – the Pugnator Tricolore has just broken cover.
Based on the Ferrari Purosangue SUV, Mansory's latest creation builds on the standard Pugnator revealed in September 2024. This time, there's a second rear wing, a colossal diffuser, four central exhaust tips, and just about everything else you'd expect from a more-money-than-sense mod shop.
Mansory – thankfully – labels the Pugnator Tricolore a "limited one-off".
100s of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
The main differences from the Pugnator are the more extreme exterior pieces and its more unique tri-colour paint job representing the Italian flag.
That means you get 'through-coloured' forged carbon-fibre exterior elements, air vents on the bonnet and wheel arches, huge side skirts, and gaudy fender flares.
There's also the Pugnator's standard forged 22-inch front and 23-inch rear 'FC.5' wheels, while Ferrari's naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine gets a boost in outputs.
It produces 563kW of power and 730Nm, an increase of 30kW and 14Nm.
More of the Italian tri-colour carries through to the Pugnator's white interior, where you'll find red and green accents on the centre console and seatbelts in particular.
Interestingly, Mansory has kept red to the driver's side, and green to the passenger.
As with the standard car, you'll notice a plethora of luxury materials like leather, carbon fibre, quilted surfaces and floor mats, embroidered seatbelts, and aluminium pedals.
Mansory hasn't announced what the standard Pugnator conversion will cost, let alone how much the premium is for the limited Tricolore. For context, the Purosangue starts at $728,000 before on-road costs in Australia.
Mansory was founded in 1989 by Iranian tuner Kourosh Mansory. The company has since built a reputation on producing highly-modified versions of supercars, luxury SUVs, and motorcycles – including models like the Mercedes-AMG G63, Ineos Grenadier, and Rolls-Royce Spectre.MORE: Man, sorry – Tuning icon makes Ferrari SUV even more controversial
MORE: Mansory Cybertruck revealed for people with too much money, not enough taste
MORE: Everything Ferrari Purosangue
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
If you thought the visually challenging concoctions brewed up by Swiss car modification firm Mansory peaked with this year's Cybertruck-based 'Elongation', think again – the Pugnator Tricolore has just broken cover.
Based on the Ferrari Purosangue SUV, Mansory's latest creation builds on the standard Pugnator revealed in September 2024. This time, there's a second rear wing, a colossal diffuser, four central exhaust tips, and just about everything else you'd expect from a more-money-than-sense mod shop.
Mansory – thankfully – labels the Pugnator Tricolore a "limited one-off".
100s of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
The main differences from the Pugnator are the more extreme exterior pieces and its more unique tri-colour paint job representing the Italian flag.
That means you get 'through-coloured' forged carbon-fibre exterior elements, air vents on the bonnet and wheel arches, huge side skirts, and gaudy fender flares.
There's also the Pugnator's standard forged 22-inch front and 23-inch rear 'FC.5' wheels, while Ferrari's naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine gets a boost in outputs.
It produces 563kW of power and 730Nm, an increase of 30kW and 14Nm.
More of the Italian tri-colour carries through to the Pugnator's white interior, where you'll find red and green accents on the centre console and seatbelts in particular.
Interestingly, Mansory has kept red to the driver's side, and green to the passenger.
As with the standard car, you'll notice a plethora of luxury materials like leather, carbon fibre, quilted surfaces and floor mats, embroidered seatbelts, and aluminium pedals.
Mansory hasn't announced what the standard Pugnator conversion will cost, let alone how much the premium is for the limited Tricolore. For context, the Purosangue starts at $728,000 before on-road costs in Australia.
Mansory was founded in 1989 by Iranian tuner Kourosh Mansory. The company has since built a reputation on producing highly-modified versions of supercars, luxury SUVs, and motorcycles – including models like the Mercedes-AMG G63, Ineos Grenadier, and Rolls-Royce Spectre.MORE: Man, sorry – Tuning icon makes Ferrari SUV even more controversial
MORE: Mansory Cybertruck revealed for people with too much money, not enough taste
MORE: Everything Ferrari Purosangue
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
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During the Sportage media conference, Mr Rivero also indicated that initial orders are showing a 60:40 split between AWD and front-wheel drive Sportage Hybrid variants, which is unsurprising given AWD hybrids have previously been unavailable in Australia. The most affordable Sportage HEV in Australia is the SX FWD, which starts from $46,450 plus on-road costs. A cheaper front-drive Sportage S hybrid would likely drop that figure to around $42,000. Australia's favourite SUV, the hybrid-only Toyota RAV4, is currently priced from $42,260 plus on-road costs for the cheapest GX 2WD variant. The Kia Sportage lineup is currently the fourth best-selling mid-size SUV in Australia based on VFACTS new-vehicle sales data, with 8723 units registered between January 1 and May 31 this year. Its 9.4 per cent share of the nation's largest auto market segment is bested by the aforementioned RAV4 (with 21,613 sales in the same period), as well as the Mitsubishi Outlander (10,203) and Mazda CX-5 (9409). For the 2024 calendar year, the Sportage line notched up 22,210 registrations (up 41.0 per cent year-on-year), again placing it fourth behind the same rivals in the same order. Interestingly, the related Hyundai Tucson lineup (7940 sales YTD) trails the Sportage in terms of popularity, despite offering double the number of hybrid variants – eight versus just four for the updated Sportage. Stay tuned to CarExpert for our first Australian drive of the facelifted Sportage on July 13. MORE: 2025 Kia Sportage price and specsMORE: Everything Kia Sportage Content originally sourced from: Kia Australia's product boss wants a more affordable, entry-level Sportage Hybrid (HEV) variant to better compete with the top-selling Toyota RAV4, but he can't confirm exactly when such an option will become available. Speaking with CarExpert at the Australian media launch of the facelifted Sportage, Kia Australia's general manager for product Roland Rivero said his team's next priority for the upgraded mid-size SUV range is adding a cheaper hybrid grade, but getting it here could be an uphill battle. "What we need to monitor first is this trim and powertrain strategy [the new all-wheel drive HEV variants in SX and GT-Line trims]. We want to see how this goes in the marketplace," Mr Rivero told CarExpert. "On top of that, we have to marry it up to how much supply we can get. Hybrid production [for Australia] is shared with the United States, so we sometimes don't get the lion's share of hybrids." Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "We're quite happy that… we've got enough supply to do SX and GT-Line across [Hybrid] all-wheel drive and front-wheel drive, and to ask for another variant means we're going to need more supply. "If the stars do align, we can bring [entry-level Sportage S HEV variants] in. It's easy to create the variant, but not necessarily easy to get the supply of it. So we've got to juggle that right now and see how we go – timing wise… I don't know," Mr Rivero added. Notwithstanding his desire for a cheaper S-spec version of the Sportage hybrid, Mr Rivero said supply of petrol-electric Sportage vehicles has improved slightly for the model's mid-life facelift, and currently sits somewhere between 400 and 500 units per month compared to the 300/month total for the pre-facelift model. During the Sportage media conference, Mr Rivero also indicated that initial orders are showing a 60:40 split between AWD and front-wheel drive Sportage Hybrid variants, which is unsurprising given AWD hybrids have previously been unavailable in Australia. The most affordable Sportage HEV in Australia is the SX FWD, which starts from $46,450 plus on-road costs. A cheaper front-drive Sportage S hybrid would likely drop that figure to around $42,000. Australia's favourite SUV, the hybrid-only Toyota RAV4, is currently priced from $42,260 plus on-road costs for the cheapest GX 2WD variant. The Kia Sportage lineup is currently the fourth best-selling mid-size SUV in Australia based on VFACTS new-vehicle sales data, with 8723 units registered between January 1 and May 31 this year. Its 9.4 per cent share of the nation's largest auto market segment is bested by the aforementioned RAV4 (with 21,613 sales in the same period), as well as the Mitsubishi Outlander (10,203) and Mazda CX-5 (9409). For the 2024 calendar year, the Sportage line notched up 22,210 registrations (up 41.0 per cent year-on-year), again placing it fourth behind the same rivals in the same order. Interestingly, the related Hyundai Tucson lineup (7940 sales YTD) trails the Sportage in terms of popularity, despite offering double the number of hybrid variants – eight versus just four for the updated Sportage. Stay tuned to CarExpert for our first Australian drive of the facelifted Sportage on July 13. MORE: 2025 Kia Sportage price and specsMORE: Everything Kia Sportage Content originally sourced from:
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2 hours ago
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Donald Trump says Elon Musk ‘went crazy' over US EV subsidy cuts
The relationship between the world's richest man and the leader of the United States has rapidly and publicly deteriorated, and the latter says a dispute over electric vehicle (EV) subsidies is at the heart of it. "Elon [Musk] was "wearing thin," I asked him to leave. I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" US President Donald Trump posted on his social media network Truth Social earlier today. "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!" President Trump's social media posts came shortly after Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to his own social media platform X overnight to oppose a piece of legislation the president is trying to have passed in Congress. He called on legislators to "kill the bill" that he said will grow the country's deficit to US$2.5 trillion (~A$3.85 trillion). After President Trump's Truth Social rebuttal, Mr Musk posted: "Such an obvious lie. So sad.". Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. The Tesla CEO, who last Friday completed his term as a special government employee leading massive cost-cutting initiatives across the government, also re-shared a clip of himself from 2021 calling for EV subsidies to be scrapped, along with subsidies for oil and gas companies. He reiterated this earlier today, arguing President Trump's Republican party should "keep the EV/solar incentive cuts in the bill, even though no oil and gas subsidies are touched (very unfair!!), but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill". Buyers of new EVs in the US can currently receive a full tax credit of US$7500 (A$11,550), provided the vehicles meet certain battery component requirements. Should the One Big Beautiful Bill Act pass in its current form, this tax credit – which depending on buyers' incomes, applies to certain Tesla Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck vehicles – will be repealed. The drama has continued to unfold in the media and on X, with Mr Musk accusing President Trump of being in the Epstein Files – referring to files on deceased financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein – and appearing to support the impeachment of the president and the formation of a new political party. But looking back to the EV subsidies, which are much more pertinent to an automotive website, and finance institution JP Morgan said in a note to clients on Thursday that it estimated the loss of the EV tax credit could cost Tesla around US$1.2 billion (~A$1.85bn) annually. The public feud has already corresponded with an almost 15 per cent fall in the Tesla share price, wiping around US$150 billion (~A$231bn) from its value – the biggest hit to its market cap ever, pushing it below the US$1 trillion (~A$1.54 trillion) mark. This comes after Tesla's financials have also taken a hit. In the first three months of 2025, Tesla posted an operating income of US$399 million (A$624 million), down 66 per cent on the first quarter of 2024. Mr Musk also said earlier this month the success of Tesla can be measured by its stock value, not its sales figures, which he used as evidence showing the automaker's difficulties have already been overcome despite well-publicised declines. "Our sales our doing very well at this point; we don't anticipate any sales shortfall, and – you know – honestly, the stock market recognises that, we're now back over US$1 trillion [A$1.54 trillion] in market cap, so clearly the market is aware of the situation," he said. Following the US election, Tesla stock prices reached record highs of almost US$480 per share, however, this then dropped to about US$220 before recently starting to rise once again. At market close on Thursday, shares were sitting at US$284.70 (A$438). "We've lost some sales on the left, but we've gained them on the right – we see no problem with demand," said Mr Musk in May. Tesla has posted declines in markets including China and Australia in recent months. Perhaps the most worrying sign for Tesla is in Europe, where its sales plunged by 38.8 per cent when comparing January to April 2025 with the same period last year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. The only brands to post a bigger decline were Lancia/Chrysler, Smart and Jaguar. Content originally sourced from: The relationship between the world's richest man and the leader of the United States has rapidly and publicly deteriorated, and the latter says a dispute over electric vehicle (EV) subsidies is at the heart of it. "Elon [Musk] was "wearing thin," I asked him to leave. I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" US President Donald Trump posted on his social media network Truth Social earlier today. "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!" President Trump's social media posts came shortly after Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to his own social media platform X overnight to oppose a piece of legislation the president is trying to have passed in Congress. He called on legislators to "kill the bill" that he said will grow the country's deficit to US$2.5 trillion (~A$3.85 trillion). After President Trump's Truth Social rebuttal, Mr Musk posted: "Such an obvious lie. So sad.". Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. The Tesla CEO, who last Friday completed his term as a special government employee leading massive cost-cutting initiatives across the government, also re-shared a clip of himself from 2021 calling for EV subsidies to be scrapped, along with subsidies for oil and gas companies. He reiterated this earlier today, arguing President Trump's Republican party should "keep the EV/solar incentive cuts in the bill, even though no oil and gas subsidies are touched (very unfair!!), but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill". Buyers of new EVs in the US can currently receive a full tax credit of US$7500 (A$11,550), provided the vehicles meet certain battery component requirements. Should the One Big Beautiful Bill Act pass in its current form, this tax credit – which depending on buyers' incomes, applies to certain Tesla Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck vehicles – will be repealed. The drama has continued to unfold in the media and on X, with Mr Musk accusing President Trump of being in the Epstein Files – referring to files on deceased financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein – and appearing to support the impeachment of the president and the formation of a new political party. But looking back to the EV subsidies, which are much more pertinent to an automotive website, and finance institution JP Morgan said in a note to clients on Thursday that it estimated the loss of the EV tax credit could cost Tesla around US$1.2 billion (~A$1.85bn) annually. The public feud has already corresponded with an almost 15 per cent fall in the Tesla share price, wiping around US$150 billion (~A$231bn) from its value – the biggest hit to its market cap ever, pushing it below the US$1 trillion (~A$1.54 trillion) mark. This comes after Tesla's financials have also taken a hit. In the first three months of 2025, Tesla posted an operating income of US$399 million (A$624 million), down 66 per cent on the first quarter of 2024. Mr Musk also said earlier this month the success of Tesla can be measured by its stock value, not its sales figures, which he used as evidence showing the automaker's difficulties have already been overcome despite well-publicised declines. "Our sales our doing very well at this point; we don't anticipate any sales shortfall, and – you know – honestly, the stock market recognises that, we're now back over US$1 trillion [A$1.54 trillion] in market cap, so clearly the market is aware of the situation," he said. Following the US election, Tesla stock prices reached record highs of almost US$480 per share, however, this then dropped to about US$220 before recently starting to rise once again. At market close on Thursday, shares were sitting at US$284.70 (A$438). "We've lost some sales on the left, but we've gained them on the right – we see no problem with demand," said Mr Musk in May. Tesla has posted declines in markets including China and Australia in recent months. Perhaps the most worrying sign for Tesla is in Europe, where its sales plunged by 38.8 per cent when comparing January to April 2025 with the same period last year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. The only brands to post a bigger decline were Lancia/Chrysler, Smart and Jaguar. Content originally sourced from: The relationship between the world's richest man and the leader of the United States has rapidly and publicly deteriorated, and the latter says a dispute over electric vehicle (EV) subsidies is at the heart of it. "Elon [Musk] was "wearing thin," I asked him to leave. I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" US President Donald Trump posted on his social media network Truth Social earlier today. "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!" President Trump's social media posts came shortly after Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to his own social media platform X overnight to oppose a piece of legislation the president is trying to have passed in Congress. He called on legislators to "kill the bill" that he said will grow the country's deficit to US$2.5 trillion (~A$3.85 trillion). After President Trump's Truth Social rebuttal, Mr Musk posted: "Such an obvious lie. So sad.". Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. The Tesla CEO, who last Friday completed his term as a special government employee leading massive cost-cutting initiatives across the government, also re-shared a clip of himself from 2021 calling for EV subsidies to be scrapped, along with subsidies for oil and gas companies. He reiterated this earlier today, arguing President Trump's Republican party should "keep the EV/solar incentive cuts in the bill, even though no oil and gas subsidies are touched (very unfair!!), but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill". Buyers of new EVs in the US can currently receive a full tax credit of US$7500 (A$11,550), provided the vehicles meet certain battery component requirements. Should the One Big Beautiful Bill Act pass in its current form, this tax credit – which depending on buyers' incomes, applies to certain Tesla Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck vehicles – will be repealed. The drama has continued to unfold in the media and on X, with Mr Musk accusing President Trump of being in the Epstein Files – referring to files on deceased financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein – and appearing to support the impeachment of the president and the formation of a new political party. But looking back to the EV subsidies, which are much more pertinent to an automotive website, and finance institution JP Morgan said in a note to clients on Thursday that it estimated the loss of the EV tax credit could cost Tesla around US$1.2 billion (~A$1.85bn) annually. The public feud has already corresponded with an almost 15 per cent fall in the Tesla share price, wiping around US$150 billion (~A$231bn) from its value – the biggest hit to its market cap ever, pushing it below the US$1 trillion (~A$1.54 trillion) mark. This comes after Tesla's financials have also taken a hit. In the first three months of 2025, Tesla posted an operating income of US$399 million (A$624 million), down 66 per cent on the first quarter of 2024. Mr Musk also said earlier this month the success of Tesla can be measured by its stock value, not its sales figures, which he used as evidence showing the automaker's difficulties have already been overcome despite well-publicised declines. "Our sales our doing very well at this point; we don't anticipate any sales shortfall, and – you know – honestly, the stock market recognises that, we're now back over US$1 trillion [A$1.54 trillion] in market cap, so clearly the market is aware of the situation," he said. Following the US election, Tesla stock prices reached record highs of almost US$480 per share, however, this then dropped to about US$220 before recently starting to rise once again. At market close on Thursday, shares were sitting at US$284.70 (A$438). "We've lost some sales on the left, but we've gained them on the right – we see no problem with demand," said Mr Musk in May. Tesla has posted declines in markets including China and Australia in recent months. Perhaps the most worrying sign for Tesla is in Europe, where its sales plunged by 38.8 per cent when comparing January to April 2025 with the same period last year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. The only brands to post a bigger decline were Lancia/Chrysler, Smart and Jaguar. Content originally sourced from: The relationship between the world's richest man and the leader of the United States has rapidly and publicly deteriorated, and the latter says a dispute over electric vehicle (EV) subsidies is at the heart of it. "Elon [Musk] was "wearing thin," I asked him to leave. I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" US President Donald Trump posted on his social media network Truth Social earlier today. "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!" President Trump's social media posts came shortly after Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to his own social media platform X overnight to oppose a piece of legislation the president is trying to have passed in Congress. He called on legislators to "kill the bill" that he said will grow the country's deficit to US$2.5 trillion (~A$3.85 trillion). After President Trump's Truth Social rebuttal, Mr Musk posted: "Such an obvious lie. So sad.". Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. The Tesla CEO, who last Friday completed his term as a special government employee leading massive cost-cutting initiatives across the government, also re-shared a clip of himself from 2021 calling for EV subsidies to be scrapped, along with subsidies for oil and gas companies. He reiterated this earlier today, arguing President Trump's Republican party should "keep the EV/solar incentive cuts in the bill, even though no oil and gas subsidies are touched (very unfair!!), but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill". Buyers of new EVs in the US can currently receive a full tax credit of US$7500 (A$11,550), provided the vehicles meet certain battery component requirements. Should the One Big Beautiful Bill Act pass in its current form, this tax credit – which depending on buyers' incomes, applies to certain Tesla Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck vehicles – will be repealed. The drama has continued to unfold in the media and on X, with Mr Musk accusing President Trump of being in the Epstein Files – referring to files on deceased financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein – and appearing to support the impeachment of the president and the formation of a new political party. But looking back to the EV subsidies, which are much more pertinent to an automotive website, and finance institution JP Morgan said in a note to clients on Thursday that it estimated the loss of the EV tax credit could cost Tesla around US$1.2 billion (~A$1.85bn) annually. The public feud has already corresponded with an almost 15 per cent fall in the Tesla share price, wiping around US$150 billion (~A$231bn) from its value – the biggest hit to its market cap ever, pushing it below the US$1 trillion (~A$1.54 trillion) mark. This comes after Tesla's financials have also taken a hit. In the first three months of 2025, Tesla posted an operating income of US$399 million (A$624 million), down 66 per cent on the first quarter of 2024. Mr Musk also said earlier this month the success of Tesla can be measured by its stock value, not its sales figures, which he used as evidence showing the automaker's difficulties have already been overcome despite well-publicised declines. "Our sales our doing very well at this point; we don't anticipate any sales shortfall, and – you know – honestly, the stock market recognises that, we're now back over US$1 trillion [A$1.54 trillion] in market cap, so clearly the market is aware of the situation," he said. Following the US election, Tesla stock prices reached record highs of almost US$480 per share, however, this then dropped to about US$220 before recently starting to rise once again. At market close on Thursday, shares were sitting at US$284.70 (A$438). "We've lost some sales on the left, but we've gained them on the right – we see no problem with demand," said Mr Musk in May. Tesla has posted declines in markets including China and Australia in recent months. Perhaps the most worrying sign for Tesla is in Europe, where its sales plunged by 38.8 per cent when comparing January to April 2025 with the same period last year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. The only brands to post a bigger decline were Lancia/Chrysler, Smart and Jaguar. Content originally sourced from:
