Consumer interest in purchasing Tesla vehicles has dramatically reduced, based on the most recent Brand Watch survey from Kelley Blue Book, according to Electrek.
The automotive research company claims that consumer interest in Tesla “plummeted” quarter over quarter.
“Tesla fell to sixth from fifth in the rankings of most-shopped luxury brands, with 12% of all luxury shoppers considering a Tesla – down 3 percentage points from Q2 2022 and notably the largest quarter-over-quarter loss for any luxury brand. Shopping consideration for the Model 3 sedan declined by 10% from the second quarter, and the Tesla Model Y and Model S both fell off the Top 10 most-shopped luxury vehicle list for the first time in two years,” it elaborated.
Nonetheless, the survey shows that the Tesla Model 3 is still the third-most-popular car despite the decline. Apart from that, it is also at the top spot in the luxury category.
Top 10 Models in the Brand Watch survey
The following are the top 10 models based on the survey:
| Type | Category | |
| 1. Escalade | Luxury Fullsize | SUV |
| 2. Enclave | Luxury Midsize | SUV |
| 3. Model 3 | Entry Luxury | H/P/E Car |
| 4. 3 Series | Entry Luxury | Car |
| 5. MDX | Luxury Midsize | SUV |
| 6. Encore | Luxury Subcompact | SUV |
| 7. 5 Series | Luxury | Car |
| 8. RX | Luxury Midsize | SUV |
| 9. CT5 | Entry Luxury | Car |
| 10. X5 | Luxury Midsize | SUV |
How does the federal tax credit affect customers’ interest in Tesla vehicles?
In the United States, there was a relatively sharp decline in customers’ interest in the more expensive Tesla Model Y vehicles. Considering that the electric SUV is slated to be eligible for the new federal tax credit beginning in January, the said decline is somewhat predictable.
Tesla had been disqualified from the $7,500 EV federal tax credit. Nonetheless, the American automaker still managed to lead the electric vehicle market in the US against many competitors.
That said, it was anticipated that the effects of regaining eligibility for the automaker would become increasingly apparent. To explain it simply, buyers prefer to buy Model Y later as they wait to be eligible for the $7,500 tax credit.
Cox Automotive’s Senior research and market intelligence manager, Vanessa Ton, expressed her thoughts regarding the new report:
“The third quarter also saw a noteworthy drop in consideration for Tesla, which could have been caused by a number of factors. Increased competition from other automakers offering more new electric vehicles, price hikes and a lack of new products all may have contributed to Tesla’s considerable decline. However, we have seen Tesla’s shopping numbers drop before and they always eventually rebound. It will be interesting to see if they rebound more slowly or quickly this time around.”
Despite all these, CEO Musk reaffirmed his confidence that demand would not be an issue soon.
