Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) reported strong third-quarter deliveries that exceeded analyst expectations, but a new report shows demand for one of its electric vehicles has fallen significantly.
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What happened: Tesla is seeing an uptick in demand in many parts of the world, including China, and the company has helped its home country, the US, set several records in the third quarter.
US electric vehicle sales reached a new record of 438,487 units in the third quarter report from Cox Automotive. Sales increased by 29.6% year-on-year and 40.7% quarter-on-quarter. The new total beat a previous record set in the fourth quarter of 2024 by 20%.
US new electric vehicle sales represented 10.5% of all new vehicle sales in the third quarter, reaching a record share in the quarter.
The strong demand came as the September 30 expiration of the federal EV tax credit approached.
Among the segments that saw strong growth in the third quarter were electric pickup trucks General Motors company (NYSE:GM) Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F) and Rivian automotive industry (NASDAQ:RIVN) is posting strong year-over-year gains. Tesla, on the other hand, not so much.
Here were some of the best-selling electric pickup trucks in the third quarter:
- F-150 Lightning (Ford): 10,005 units, +39.7% year-on-year
- Cybertruck (Tesla): 5,385 units, -62.6% YoY
- Silverado (Chevrolet): 3,940 units, +97.5% year-over-year
- Sierra (GMC): 3,374 units, +771.8% year-over-year
- R1T (Rivian): 2,378 units, +13.1% year-on-year
Of the large electric pickup trucks, Tesla’s Cybertruck was the only one to see a sales decline in the third quarter.
Also read: Here’s how many vehicles Tesla has delivered, produced in each quarter since 2019
Why it’s important: According to the report, Tesla had sales of 179,525 units in the US in the third quarter. This meant a gain of 7.5% on an annual basis.
Tesla vehicle sales are down 4.3% year-over-year in 2025, while the company has a 43.2% market share in the US in 2025.
Other Tesla models saw strong growth in the quarter, with the Model Y up 29% year over year to 114,897 units. The Model The Model 3 saw a decline of 53,857 units, a decline of 7.8% year over year.
The Cybertruck was a big gamble by Tesla and CEO Elon Musk once suggested that annual production capacity could reach 250,000. The vehicle is now on track to sell 20,000 to 25,000 units per year in the US, while several other international markets have recently launched sales of the vehicle.
This marks a major regression from Musk’s original vision for the Cybertruck.
Strong sales of pickup trucks for other companies helped Tesla rivals achieve higher growth rates for U.S. electric vehicles in the third quarter, as shown below:
- Chevrolet: +95.7% on an annual basis
- GMC: +83.7% year-on-year
- Rivaans: +31.8% year-on-year
- Ford: +30.2% on an annual basis
In addition to strong pickup sales, General Motors also sees a big boost for the Chevrolet Equinox, which had sales of 25,085 units in the quarter, up 156.7% year over year.
The big test going forward will be how much momentum the other electric pickup truck brands can maintain once the federal EV tax credit expires.
TSLA Price Promotion: Tesla stock closed 5.42% higher to $435.90 on Monday, compared to a 52-week trading range of $212.11 to $488.54. Tesla shares are up 7.94% this year through 2025.
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