Teslas were a symbol of progressive values. Now some progressives are ditching the cars.
It was not enough for Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., to announce that he had gotten rid of his Tesla. He did it on X, the social media platform headed by Elon Musk, who took over as CEO of the electric vehicle company in 2008.
Kelly made his reason for abandoning the car that one time represented progress and automotive and environmental achievement: Musk and his politics.
'Every time I get in this car in the last 60 days or so, it reminds me of just how much damage Elon Musk and Donald Trump is doing to our country,' Kelly posted.
Other well-known figures have dumped Teslas as well, including actor Jason Bateman, who said driving it was like 'driving around with a Trump sticker' back in October.
Music star Sheryl Crow made a video to announce she had sold her Tesla. She donated the money from the sale to NPR, posting: 'My parents always said … you are who you hang out with. There comes a time when you have to decide who you are willing to align with. So long Tesla.'
Musk's connection to President Donald Trump and the emergence of the Department of Government Efficiency and its vast federal government job cuts were the tipping points for many progressives who owned the EV, which remains the top-selling electric car in the country.
But Musk's influence within conservative politics has inspired a growing segment of people to ditch their Tesla, as they don't want to be connected to Musk and had tied his political actions to their ownership of vehicles produced by his company. It is a connection many have said they want to disengage by getting rid of their once-beloved groundbreaking cars.
Tesla did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Teslas still make up 42% of electric vehicle sales in the U.S., even with recent dips.
But anecdotal and automotive data indicate that the Tesla brand is taking a hit.. S&P Global Mobility numbers showed that Tesla registrations dropped 11% in January, while other manufacturers like Ford, Chevrolet and Volkswagen, saw a 44% increase in electric vehicle registrations.
Ronnie and Tarita Bagley purchased a Tesla Y a year ago, thinking Musk was an environmental revolutionary. But one month into DOGE's work under the Trump administration, the Bagleys determined the fate of the EV in their garage.
'We had to get rid of that car,' Ronnie Bagley said. 'Our personal morals and values were at odds with what he represents, which is divisiveness, inequality and chaos.'
And so, two weeks ago, they traded in their Tesla for a Cadillac Lyric, an electric SUV.
'It was refreshing to get that Tesla off our hands,' he said.
Megan Paulus, a preschool teacher in New Jersey, took over her husband's Tesla Y when he died in December 2021. Paulus said her husband was a 'huge Elon and Tesla fan. He even owned stock.'
She said they sold the stock to buy the car. As the owner now, Paulus said, 'I'm very much connected to the story of how we got the car, that it was my husband's car.'
But Musk's movements concern her. More importantly, she's worried about being tied to him and his politics by driving a Tesla. The company's dealerships and the cars themselves have been targets of vandalism in recent weeks.
'I no longer wish to be associated with these people. I no longer want to be associated with Elon Musk,' Paulus said. While she said she is 'very happy with the car as a car,' the actions of Tesla's CEO loom over the vehicle, so much so that Paulus said she needed to distance herself from the man as she drives the car.
'I got one of those magnets-slash-bumper stickers,' she said. 'It says: 'I bought the car before I knew how awful Elon Musk was.' I did that as a placeholder, because I have thought very much about selling the car.'
While Musk's public image has disappointed many, emergency room physician Jerel Chacko, said he is able to separate the CEO's actions from the vehicle.
Chacko, of Holmdel, New Jersey, bought his Tesla Y in 2020. 'Musk wasn't the same type of public figure then as he is today,' he said. 'The perception back then was that he focused on the environment, sustainability and space travel.'
Chacko said 'it's a shame' that more people can't follow suit. 'Does he make outlandish statements? Yes,' he said. But he bought the car because it's 'a good product. In my head, he and Tesla are two completely separate entities.'
It was disturbing to some Tesla owners that Trump acted as a car salesman last week, having a fleet of Musk's cars on display on the White House lawn.
'What was that?' said Andrew Johnson, of Scottsdale, Arizona. He rents his Tesla out through the Turo car app. 'That display made me sick, from the standpoint of why is the president of the United States pushing cars for the richest man in the world? That was it for me.'
'I don't even drive it, but I don't even want it anymore,' he said. 'This is a man who totally flipped. His car was, in my eyes, a sort of symbol of progress. Now, with him killing people's jobs … I can't. And I won't. I just don't feel right within myself.'
Which was also Bagley's point in selling their Tesla. 'You have to take a moral stand,' he said. 'Yeah, you can say it's just a car. But it's really representing you. And we just couldn't bear that.'
Neither could Tonya Parker of Atlanta. She bought a Tesla a year ago and included all the upgrades. 'It was tricked out,' she said. 'But still, I never loved the car.'
When Musk began campaigning for Trump and espousing his disdain for diversity, equity and inclusion, Parker's dislike of her car — and the man — intensified.
'I wanted to make a statement,' she said after selling her Tesla a couple of weeks ago. 'Some of my friends were disappointed in me that I bought the Tesla in the first place. And I understand. I came to the point where I did not want to be associated with him. I don't like his politics. I don't like anything about him. I don't like the person, Trump, that he co-chairs with. I wanted out.'
Paulus, the teacher, seems to want out, too, but she's in the process of purchasing a home and concerned about the resale value of her car. If she does move on from Tesla, she plans to get another EV.
'I'm sold on electric vehicles,' she said.
Tamaira Johnson, who lives near San Diego, is also sold on EVs, calling the Tesla's capabilities 'genius.'
'Tesla is still running circles around its counterparts, performancewise, and with its infrastructure network of quick-charging capabilities,' Johnson said.
'But,' Johnson added, 'do I like representing an Elon Musk vehicle? Hell, no.'
She owns two Teslas and interchangeably rents out one for passive income via Turo and drives the other.
The financial and business considerations are where it gets tricky for her. 'Many like me have to ride it out for a couple reasons,' she explained, adding that the 2020 to 2023 models' value, in some cases, has depreciated, making a trade-in problematic. 'And with Elon's unfavorable popularity, the brand's value is subject to taking a larger dive,' Johnson said. 'So being stuck in a vehicle with upside-down value is what it leaves me with.'
Bagley and Parker said they were 'fortunate' to get deals in which they sold their Teslas that allowed them to pay off their loans.
Johnson, though, said she likes her cars and considers them reliable. 'If it was just about Musk, you'd see them abandoned on the side of the road all over the place,' she said. 'But until the competitors catch up with the technology, it's going to be tough. Tesla is still the one to beat in the EV industry, regardless of his politics.'
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