STORY: In recent months, anger at Elon Musk ’s lurch into right-wing politics has provoked acts of vandalism against Tesla cars and dealerships.It’s pushed once loyal customers, particularly in Europe, to ditch the brand.But sales in Norway however are booming.Norwegian Road Federation Chief, Oyvind Solberg Thorsen.“In the beginning of this year, everybody talked about the Tesla shame. We actually warned about that and said that we have to look at the car sales for the first quarter in order to establish if it is a Tesla shame in Norway or it isn’t. And we were actually right. There isn’t a Tesla shame in Norway, not as we see it in other countries.”The world’s richest man’s politics have sparked a fierce consumer backlash across Europe.In the first half of this year as Tesla sales plunged by half or more in Germany, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.But they grew by 24% year-on-year in Norway, making the country of 5.5 million the company’s second-largest European market.Reuters interviews with Norwegian Tesla owners as well as EV industry experts highlight a 12-year relationship between the Nordic nation and the carmaker.It’s bred brand loyalty and insulated against blowback.Though small, Norway holds symbolic importance for the brand.“And he (Elon Musk) several times also thanked Norwegian politicians and the Norwegian consumers for cheering him on and buying his cars. And of course, Norway was important for Tesla in these days. In many ways, you could say that Norway helped build Tesla.”Norway was the first country outside of North America to receive Tesla’s flagship EV, the Model S, in 2013.And the company helped build Norway into the world’s leader in EV adoption.Musk, once a regular visitor to the country, praised its government’s subsidy-backed EV policies.Tesla’s dominance may be being challenged, but for now, it is successfully fending off the growing threats to its crown in Norway.
‘Tesla shame’ bypasses Norway as sales jump despite Musk’s politics
