[Volkswagen](https://www.wired.com/tag/volkswagen/) took the lead among electric vehicle manufacturers by selling 133,465 units in the first six months of the year versus Tesla’s 108,878, and Chinese manufacturer BYD sold more than twice as many cars as its US rival in October.
From a Danish perspective: norwegian people are: 1) Tolerant and friendly people og 2) good on climate. Probably that is why they don’t hate Tesla 🙂
Alternative_Gas2930 on
From a Danish perspective: norwegian people are: 1) Tolerant and friendly people og 2) good on climate. Probably that is why they don’t hate Tesla 🙂
MontezumaDigDug on
Norwegians are not that hatefull and woke.
johnnyoceandeep on
They don’t give a shit. That’s why
1AnonymousBurner on
Maybe they’re so rich they just don’t care.
ExpressEB on
Their national trust account is a major shareholder in Tesla.
FutureProperty9432 on
Because electric cars have been so heavily subsidized that everyone you know owns one. It’s hard to hate a car that everyone owns
sambare on
Ever heard of “never stick your dick in crazy”? Well, Norway went balls-deep into Tesla, fell in love with the cars, and now are having a hard time letting go.
Square_Positive_559 on
I think Norwegians are simply smart and know how to distinguish a business leader’s personal actions from the value or what they produce.
If we were to boycott every product with some kind of controversy behind it, we wouldn’t have much left.
Just think of high-end clothing brands made by children in China, or even German cars.
CuriosTiger on
Because the government said thou shalt drive electric at a time where the Tesla was one of the few decent options and Elon Musk hadn’t flown completely off the handle yet.
Basically, massive tax incentives for electric cars coupled with punitive taxes on ICE cars before the flood of Chinese electric car brands arrived. And before most of the mainstream manufacturers had decent offerings.
Plenty of Norwegians nowadays still love their Tesla but have a bad taste in their mouths when it comes to Elon Musk. And Tesla themselves have had a few run-ins with EU consumer protection rules that also apply in Norway. Even so, they got a head start in the market, and that translates to a competitive advantage that persists today.
Sporadisk on
You’d be surprised how adaptive the average Norwegian can be when faced with mild financial incentives such as a fancy subsidized car and cheap subsidized electricity. A lot of them would probably literally vote for a clone of Hitler if they thought it would benefit them financially.
Tesla sales will probably drop, but only because BYD are trying to price them out
Ok-Maize-8199 on
Aggressive low and zero interest rate campaigns making them cheaper to buy than other cars in the same range.
OternFFS on
1. Norwegians don’t care about cars
2. Norwegians doesn’t make cars
3. Norwegians don’t like people, and you can order Tesla without deadline with anyone.
4. Hive mentality, there are often «one winner» in the Norwegian market
5. The EU have been acting just as shitty towards Norway as US has to Europe. Buying French, German or Italian brands is not better than buying US or Chinese anymore.
Dawg-Dee-Lux on
Norwegian here that sold my Model 3 in 2020 when I realised what a POS they had running the company
Only regret, should have paid better attention in the first place
sagenbn on
Is Elon Musk the reason to boycott Tesla? The cars themselves are well-engineered and remain some of the best EVs you can buy, and the company continues to focus on innovation and environmental impact.
I may not agree with Elon Musk personally, but I still choose Tesla because I appreciate the company, the technology, and the engineering philosophy behind its products.
For me personally, not everything is political. If that’s the case then we should live in a cave without anything made in China.
No_Signature4723 on
The reason is a change in tax exemption on vat, from 31.12.2025- all electric car brands experience higher sales since october when the new budget came forth. VW cant meet demand on the I7 series for instance.
I do agree that its sad that so few show discernment, I have owned a Tesla s and Are also selling our x this year. Musk is a terrible person, i was aware of that Even 8 – 9 years ago – but his doge stunts and alignment with Trump is despicable
enevgeo on
A few factors that might contribute: They’re so common here, peer pressure won’t really have much of an impact. We don’t build alternatives domestically. The EU is imposing tariffs on us, so at the moment they can go fuck themselves a bit.
squirrel_exceptions on
Aggressive campaigning with zero interest loan, plus the fact that Tesla is such a normal ass car on Norwegian streets that it doesn’t stand out for shaming. There are quite a few who had decided against a Tesla bc of Musk’s radicalisation, but there are also a lot of people who care little for following world affairs or just don’t give a fuck as long as the deal is good.
Outrageous-Stress-60 on
I do. I’m absolutely silently judging the ones with newer Teslas. They know exactly who they are buying from.
Acrobatic_Constant34 on
It’s a national thing, they might talk about it with friends, or when they’re drunk. For example, many people think that Tesla is ugly as a duck. As strange as it may be, at the company I work for, only gay men drive Teslas.
Who doesn’t like homosexuals, who doesn’t like Muslims, but when they meet them, they interact politely. Norway is like the old Soviet Union. Socialist mentality, most people have IKEA furniture, they don’t want to brag, etc. But when you meet them abroad, when the alcohol has done its job, they are the noisiest people and often express their opinions clearly about what’s going on in their country.
Vonplinkplonk on
Is this just another circle jerk, where we all hate on Norway?
Upstairs_Secret_8473 on
They justify their purchase trying to persuade themselves with “Elon can’t be that bad”. But he is.
elliethestaffy on
I do
Enough_Willow_7359 on
Denmark is also full of Teslas. Why on Earth should we hate them? I love Elon. Is it because he fights for little girls being raped by Pakistani gangs in the UK you hate him?
hauntedSquirrel99 on
It’s fairly simple
Norwegians are not individually wealthy, it’s the country that is well off.
Tesla offers a fairly solid quality car with a lot of features and very long range compared to the competitors in its price class.
In addition their zero interest rate is significantly better than anything any of their competitors have, even once it ends you basically just end up paying the same interest rate any other company is expecting to begin with.
The other companies that offer 3 years of low interest rates have a small print that the rate skyrockets after that. So if you haven’t paid off the car within 3 years you’re essentially paying multiple times more for what is presented as a “deal”.
You easily save 90k NOK (about 9k euros) buying Tesla compared to their competitors just on the interest. That’s easily 2-3 months worth of paychecks (after tax).
Range is also more of an issue for a lot of norwegians who need cars that can drive a fair bit of distance, it’s a significantly less centralized country compared with most of europe.
Range just isn’t that much of a problem for a lot of the european market of people quite happy with 200km range, whereas only people who live in oslo and never go anywhere will be able to make due with less than 400km range for anything other than an extra car that’s only used for small commutes.
TL;DR
Price difference for that level of car is significant, you’re stuck with Tesla or cheap chinese shitcars.
28 commenti
The slump does not stop. [Tesla](https://www.wired.com/tag/tesla/) sales in Europe slumped again in November 2025, confirming a [negative trend](https://www.wired.com/story/whats-driving-teslas-woes/) that has been going on for more than a year.
Data reported by [Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/tesla-november-car-registrations-drop-58-france-49-denmark-data-shows-2025-12-01/#:~:text=Analysts%20pointed%20to%20growing%20competition,sold%20model%2C%20Mobility%20Denmark%20said.) shows monthly registrations of Tesla automobiles—an accurate way of measuring sales—halved compared to the same month in 2024 in the continent’s main markets: -58 percent in France, -59 percent in Sweden, and -49 percent in Denmark. In Germany, where the [Elon Musk](https://www.wired.com/tag/elon-musk/)-controlled automaker has its only European plant on the outskirts of Berlin, recorded just [750 vehicles sold](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/05/tesla-musk-germany-sales-down.html) in October, less than half the number [sold](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/05/tesla-musk-germany-sales-down.html) a year earlier.
The big exception to this downward trend is in Norway, where registrations of Tesla cars nearly tripled to 6,215 units.
The numbers for the first 10 months of 2025 expose a structural crisis. Tesla lost about 30 percent of European sales compared to the same period in 2024, according to [data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association](https://www.acea.auto/pc-registrations/new-car-registrations-1-4-in-october-2025-year-to-date-battery-electric-16-4-market-share/#:~:text=New%20car%20registrations:%20+1.4%25,ACEA%20-%20European%20Automobile%20Manufacturers'%20Association), the body that groups the industry’s manufacturers on the Continent. Tesla’s market share in the electric car segment fell from 12.6 percent in May 2024 to 7.2 percent in May 2025, according to analysis by Schmidt Automotive.
[Volkswagen](https://www.wired.com/tag/volkswagen/) took the lead among electric vehicle manufacturers by selling 133,465 units in the first six months of the year versus Tesla’s 108,878, and Chinese manufacturer BYD sold more than twice as many cars as its US rival in October.
Read the full story here: [https://www.wired.com/story/why-dont-norwegians-hate-tesla-like-rest-of-europe/](https://www.wired.com/story/why-dont-norwegians-hate-tesla-like-rest-of-europe/)
We have no principles…
Norwegian hive mentality may be a reason.
From a Danish perspective: norwegian people are: 1) Tolerant and friendly people og 2) good on climate. Probably that is why they don’t hate Tesla 🙂
From a Danish perspective: norwegian people are: 1) Tolerant and friendly people og 2) good on climate. Probably that is why they don’t hate Tesla 🙂
Norwegians are not that hatefull and woke.
They don’t give a shit. That’s why
Maybe they’re so rich they just don’t care.
Their national trust account is a major shareholder in Tesla.
Because electric cars have been so heavily subsidized that everyone you know owns one. It’s hard to hate a car that everyone owns
Ever heard of “never stick your dick in crazy”? Well, Norway went balls-deep into Tesla, fell in love with the cars, and now are having a hard time letting go.
I think Norwegians are simply smart and know how to distinguish a business leader’s personal actions from the value or what they produce.
If we were to boycott every product with some kind of controversy behind it, we wouldn’t have much left.
Just think of high-end clothing brands made by children in China, or even German cars.
Because the government said thou shalt drive electric at a time where the Tesla was one of the few decent options and Elon Musk hadn’t flown completely off the handle yet.
Basically, massive tax incentives for electric cars coupled with punitive taxes on ICE cars before the flood of Chinese electric car brands arrived. And before most of the mainstream manufacturers had decent offerings.
Plenty of Norwegians nowadays still love their Tesla but have a bad taste in their mouths when it comes to Elon Musk. And Tesla themselves have had a few run-ins with EU consumer protection rules that also apply in Norway. Even so, they got a head start in the market, and that translates to a competitive advantage that persists today.
You’d be surprised how adaptive the average Norwegian can be when faced with mild financial incentives such as a fancy subsidized car and cheap subsidized electricity. A lot of them would probably literally vote for a clone of Hitler if they thought it would benefit them financially.
Tesla sales will probably drop, but only because BYD are trying to price them out
Aggressive low and zero interest rate campaigns making them cheaper to buy than other cars in the same range.
1. Norwegians don’t care about cars
2. Norwegians doesn’t make cars
3. Norwegians don’t like people, and you can order Tesla without deadline with anyone.
4. Hive mentality, there are often «one winner» in the Norwegian market
5. The EU have been acting just as shitty towards Norway as US has to Europe. Buying French, German or Italian brands is not better than buying US or Chinese anymore.
Norwegian here that sold my Model 3 in 2020 when I realised what a POS they had running the company
Only regret, should have paid better attention in the first place
Is Elon Musk the reason to boycott Tesla? The cars themselves are well-engineered and remain some of the best EVs you can buy, and the company continues to focus on innovation and environmental impact.
I may not agree with Elon Musk personally, but I still choose Tesla because I appreciate the company, the technology, and the engineering philosophy behind its products.
For me personally, not everything is political. If that’s the case then we should live in a cave without anything made in China.
The reason is a change in tax exemption on vat, from 31.12.2025- all electric car brands experience higher sales since october when the new budget came forth. VW cant meet demand on the I7 series for instance.
I do agree that its sad that so few show discernment, I have owned a Tesla s and Are also selling our x this year. Musk is a terrible person, i was aware of that Even 8 – 9 years ago – but his doge stunts and alignment with Trump is despicable
A few factors that might contribute: They’re so common here, peer pressure won’t really have much of an impact. We don’t build alternatives domestically. The EU is imposing tariffs on us, so at the moment they can go fuck themselves a bit.
Aggressive campaigning with zero interest loan, plus the fact that Tesla is such a normal ass car on Norwegian streets that it doesn’t stand out for shaming. There are quite a few who had decided against a Tesla bc of Musk’s radicalisation, but there are also a lot of people who care little for following world affairs or just don’t give a fuck as long as the deal is good.
I do. I’m absolutely silently judging the ones with newer Teslas. They know exactly who they are buying from.
It’s a national thing, they might talk about it with friends, or when they’re drunk. For example, many people think that Tesla is ugly as a duck. As strange as it may be, at the company I work for, only gay men drive Teslas.
Who doesn’t like homosexuals, who doesn’t like Muslims, but when they meet them, they interact politely. Norway is like the old Soviet Union. Socialist mentality, most people have IKEA furniture, they don’t want to brag, etc. But when you meet them abroad, when the alcohol has done its job, they are the noisiest people and often express their opinions clearly about what’s going on in their country.
Is this just another circle jerk, where we all hate on Norway?
They justify their purchase trying to persuade themselves with “Elon can’t be that bad”. But he is.
I do
Denmark is also full of Teslas. Why on Earth should we hate them? I love Elon. Is it because he fights for little girls being raped by Pakistani gangs in the UK you hate him?
It’s fairly simple
Norwegians are not individually wealthy, it’s the country that is well off.
Tesla offers a fairly solid quality car with a lot of features and very long range compared to the competitors in its price class.
In addition their zero interest rate is significantly better than anything any of their competitors have, even once it ends you basically just end up paying the same interest rate any other company is expecting to begin with.
The other companies that offer 3 years of low interest rates have a small print that the rate skyrockets after that. So if you haven’t paid off the car within 3 years you’re essentially paying multiple times more for what is presented as a “deal”.
You easily save 90k NOK (about 9k euros) buying Tesla compared to their competitors just on the interest. That’s easily 2-3 months worth of paychecks (after tax).
Range is also more of an issue for a lot of norwegians who need cars that can drive a fair bit of distance, it’s a significantly less centralized country compared with most of europe.
Range just isn’t that much of a problem for a lot of the european market of people quite happy with 200km range, whereas only people who live in oslo and never go anywhere will be able to make due with less than 400km range for anything other than an extra car that’s only used for small commutes.
TL;DR
Price difference for that level of car is significant, you’re stuck with Tesla or cheap chinese shitcars.