Tesla regains momentum as new registrations rise 52%

Tesla Inc. regained its rapid sales momentum in the U.S. during the first four months of 2023 after deep price cuts, growing its registrations by 52 percent compared with the same period of last year, Experian data showed.

CEO Elon Musk said this year that he was willing to sacrifice profit for volume, and that strategy is working in the U.S. Musk's annual growth target for Tesla's global sales is 50 percent.

From January through April, Tesla's Model Y crossover had a 99 percent increase in new registrations over last year, while the Model 3 sedan grew by 28 percent, Experian said. The Model X crossover's registrations rose 15 percent, while the Model S sedan's fell 67 percent.

Tesla's U.S. registrations totaled 211,842 through April, which was good for a 60.8 percent share of the electric vehicle market, the data showed. That was a slight improvement over its 60.3 percent share in the first quarter.

Tesla does not break out U.S. sales as part of its global sales report, but registrations serve as a proxy. Tesla no longer maintains a press office to provide comment.

Chevrolet was the No. 2 EV brand in the four-month period, with 24,689 registrations and a 7.1 percent market share, Experian said. Ford was third, with 17,167 EV registrations for a 4.9 percent share.

EVs made up 7 percent of U.S. light-vehicle registrations through April, compared with 4.4 percent a year earlier. The 7 percent share was the same as in the first quarter, Experian data showed.

New EV registrations totaled 348,258 through April compared with just over 5 million for the entire light-vehicle market. EV registrations grew 72 percent compared with the year-earlier period, Experian said.

For EV leader Tesla, the January through April numbers are an improvement over first-quarter registrations, which grew 37 percent from a year earlier. Tesla's new registrations in April alone totaled 56,482, topping its monthly average of 51,787 registrations in the January through March period.

Tesla has generated positive headlines in recent weeks from third-party global sales estimates and surprise agreements with Ford Motor Co. and General Motors to open its Supercharger network to the rival brands. Musk made those announcements with Ford CEO Jim Farley and GM CEO Mary Barra on Twitter.

Ford and GM also agreed to use Tesla's charging connector in future vehicles rather than the Combined Charging System standard they are currently using.

Musk said Tuesday during a conference in Texas that opening Tesla's charging network might put the EV maker at a competitive disadvantage,, but he added that doing so will "help the rest of the industry," Reuters reported.

Tesla has repeatedly adjusted its vehicle prices this year, following deep price cuts in mid-January. The global reductions came after signs that Tesla sales growth was slipping.

Also boosting Tesla's U.S. sales is the federal tax credit of up to $7,500. Before Jan. 1, Tesla buyers did not have access to the incentive because the automaker had met its credit limit under old rules.

By combining the price cuts and the federal EV incentive, buyers could potentially acquire a Model Y at a $25,000 discount compared with last year. The tax break is subject to eligibility requirements. State incentives are also available to Tesla buyers.

At the end of 2022, the Model Y started at $67,440 with shipping. The current base Model Y starts at $49,380 with shipping and qualifies for the credit.

The base Model 3 sedan had a starting price of $48,440 with shipping at the end of last year; it now starts at $41,880 with shipping and qualifies for the incentive.

Despite consumer fears of an economic downturn, Tesla continues to plow ahead in multiple business sectors, analysts said, including the opening of its Supercharger network, battery production and lithium refining.

"Elon continues to play five games of chess against all sorts of different competitors and comes out on top," Bryn Talkington, managing partner at Requisite Capital Management, said Tuesday on CNBC.

In the U.S. luxury vehicle market, Tesla's new registrations of 211,842 were more than its next two competitors combined, covering both electric and gasoline-powered models. BMW had 114,889 in the four-month period, and Lexus had 95,511. Mercedes-Benz, in fourth place, had 86,033, and Audi had 72,582, Experian said.

Teslas are considered luxury vehicles because of their pricing and shopper demographics.

Comparing only full-electric vehicles in all segments, three of Tesla's four nameplates made the top 10 in new registrations for the January to April period, Experian said. The Model Y was first, with 127,541; the Model 3 was second, with 72,259; and the Model X was sixth, with 8,216.

The Chevrolet Bolt EUV was third, with 16,036, and the brand's slightly smaller Bolt EV was fifth, with 8,653 registrations, Experian said. The Volkswagen ID4 crossover was fourth on the list, with 11,858.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E crossover was seventh, with 7,972 registrations, and the Ford F-150 Lightning pickup was ninth, with 7,085.

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 crossover was No. 8, with 7,957, and the BMW i4 sedan was No. 10, with 6,560 new registrations, Experian said.

Among EV startup brands, Rivian had 9,302 registrations of its R1T pickup and R1S crossover in the four-month period for a 2.7 percent market share. Rivian has forecast full-year production of 50,000 vehicles, including commercial vans that are not a part of the Experian numbers.

Lucid Motors had 2,298 new registrations through April for its pricey Air sedan. Lucid has estimated that its 2023 production will be more than 10,000 vehicles.

Vietnamese automaker VinFast had 83 registrations. VinFast was in 22nd place among the EV automakers considered in the Experian numbers. GMC was in last place, at No. 25, with just 28 new registrations for its Hummer EV pickup, compared with 156 in the year-earlier period.