- TESLA RETAIL SALES SINK TO 4%
- ZEV MANDATE TO SEE ‘SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE’
- PROPERTY MARKET ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN LIMBO
- CLELANDS AND RAY CHAPMAN SCOOP VOLVO RETAILER PRIZES
- HYBRID WORKING: HAVE YOUR SAY
- WEEK AHEAD: SMMT Electrified 2025
- WILL THE CASH ISA ALLOWANCE BE CUT?
- FIRST-CLASS STAMP UP 142% IN 6 YEARS
- AUSTRALIAN MERCEDES RETAILERS ‘VULNERABLE’ IN AGENCY COURT CASE
- VW TO AVOID US TARIFFS?
- OPINION: How far will the Government go to save automotive?
Tesla retail sales sink to 4%
Data exclusively published in Auto Market Insight has revealed Tesla’s retail sales slumped to just 4.1% of its total registrations in February.
New car registrations figures from the SMMT for last month showed Tesla’s combined fleet and retail total hit 3,852 units. The SMMT also recorded the Model 3 was the UK’s second best-selling car and the Model Y the third best-seller.
Of the total, however, only 159 were retail sales.
Data accessible by Auto Sunday and sister title Auto Market Insight shows Tesla typically averages close to 20% retail mix and has been as high as 33% in the past year.
What is not clear from the data is the reason for the slump in retail sales. However, a survey by Electrifying.com last month revealed 60% of car buyers now say Musk’s controversial reputation actively puts them off buying a Tesla.
This sentiment spanned both current EV owners and those planning to make the switch to electric, with 59% of each group admitting Musk’s influence has become a dealbreaker.
Auto Sunday has contacted Tesla for a comment.
Meanwhile, in Canada, Tesla has been accused of gaming its EV rebate program after four stores sold more than 8,600 cars in the three days before the program ended. It amounted to more than $43m in rebates claimed by Tesla. Carscoops reports retailers are now questioning the legitimacy of the sales.
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ZEV Mandate to see ‘substantial change’
“A substantial change of policy” regarding the ZEV Mandate has been agreed, business secretary Jonathan Reynolds has revealed, after Nissan met with the government calling for changes.
Nissan warned that high targets and fines were a threat to its Sunderland factory, which is Britain’s biggest automotive plant.
“We will do everything we can to make sure Nissan has that secure long-term future in the UK, making sure the business and regulatory environment reflects that,” said Reynolds.
The Times reports Nissan had called for a two-year moratorium in which the ZEV Mandate monitors EV sales but does not impose penalties.
It is also understood that hybrid vehicles and other technologies could be factored in, and the £15k fines on OEMs could be reduced. “Nothing is off the table,” said Reynolds, who has been in Japan on a trade mission.
Property market energy efficiency in limbo
In proposals dating from 2021, commercial properties must have an energy efficiency rating of A or B from 2030 onwards in order to be lawfully let out. However, the government has yet to indicate whether the measures will go ahead or not – leaving commercial landlords in limbo.
British Property Federation suggests that 83% of commercial properties in England’s biggest cities could become unlettable without significant investment; Bristol and Birmingham are most exposed.
The Telegraph reports many experts are now saying the targets are unrealistic.
Clelands and Ray Chapman scoop Volvo retailer prizes
Clelands has been named Volvo National Retailer of the Year, and Ray Chapman Motors has been named Investor Group of the Year. The success came in a 2024 that saw Volvo’s highest new car sales in three decades. MD Nicola Melillo Shaw presented the awards with Volvo ambassador Kate Garraway.
Hybrid working: have your say
Public calls for an end to remote or hybrid working may have been getting louder in recent weeks, but flexible working patterns appear to be firmly embedded in the automotive industry.
The Intelligence team at Ennis & Co Group has been taking the temperature of working practices within the sector, and is now speaking with leaders across the industry to understand if and how things might be changing. If you’d like to be involved in the research, contact the team directly: Rebekah.razza@ennisco.com and 07436 072237
WEEK AHEAD
Thursday, SMMT Electrified 2025
Thursday, RICS housing market survey
Friday, UK GDP
DATA INSIGHT
Will the cash ISA allowance be cut?
£4,000: Amount lobbyists want the chancellor to cut the annual cash ISA allowance to, according to The Times. Stocks and shares ISAs would keep the existing £20k limit, which they argue would funnel more money into the stock market. Brits currently hold around £390bn in cash ISA savings.
First-class stamp up 142% in 6 years
£1.70: Price of a first-class stamp from 7 April after another 5p increase, says the BBC. Second-class stamps are up 2p to 87p. In 2019, the price of a first-class stamp was 70p, meaning it has risen 142% in six years.
Danish postal service PostNord will abandon deliveries at the end of the year, reports the Telegraph, after letter volumes declined 90%.
GLOBAL AUTO
Australian Mercedes retailers ‘vulnerable’ in agency court case
The full appeal lodged by Australian retailers against Mercedes-Benz was last week held in the Federal Court. AADA CEO James Voortman says it has been referred to as “the most important case in Australian franchising history and the precedent set will be of consequence to every franchised new car and truck dealer across Australia”.
Retailers put forward a strong case, reports Voortman, but the judge was critical of Australia’s Franchising Code of Conduct in providing no protection for goodwill to dealers. “This leaves dealers in a very vulnerable position”. Retailers will now be challenging the judge’s interpretation of unconscionable conduct.
Read Voortman’s full analysis of the judgement
VW to avoid US tariffs?
Volkswagen Group believes its vehicles built in North America will be exempt from president Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on imports into the US from Mexico and Canada. However, other OEMs, including BMW, may not be, reports Automotive News.
Volkswagen says its North American vehicles comply with the terms of the United States – Mexico – Canada (USMCA) rules of origin agreement. A BMW spokesperson said its vehicles did not comply. Audi and Porsche are also vulnerable to tariffs as they have no US production base.
OPINION
How far will the Government go to save automotive?
Forgive me if I bang on about retail demand for electric cars, but it’s important. If we’re going to transition to a full electric world, it’s quite useful to know what consumer demand is like without the incentives that are being poured into the company car sector. After all, retail sales are more profitable than fleet, and are what automotive retailers focus on.
It’s also the crux of the matter when it comes to the ZEV Mandate; if private buyers don’t want electric cars, then the impact is felt, not only by retailers, but also OEMs.
And this week’s revelation that Nissan had to threaten to close its Sunderland plant for the Government to sit up and take notice is a case in point.
While we don’t know exactly what the ZEV Mandate review will say when it’s published in a month or so’s time, this week’s messaging from Government points to a significant relaxation. The hint being that the changes will go beyond just massaging the ‘flexibilities’ in the scheme and actually change the percentage targets.
Even if this is the case, the impact may take some time to filter down to the market. The review is just that, a review, it’s not a change in legislation. That could, if we’re optimistic, take a further six months, which would move the industry beyond the all-important September plate-change. Until that point, what are manufacturers, national sales companies and retailers supposed to do? Gamble that all will be fine and ease up on the EV push? Or keep the pressure on EV registrations until there’s a definite change? With so much, financially, at stake, it’s a call I’m glad I’m not having to make.
But it there is another point to think about. If we’re still aiming to decarbonise road transport, will a change to the ZEV Mandate change retail demand?
If we admit that forcing the market doesn’t work, but incentives do (see the company car market for details), will the next step be to encourage rather than cajole buyers into EVs?
Tristan Young
Editorial Director
Get in touch: tristan@autosunday.co.uk
ISSN 2977-6597