*

Tesla sales fall in Aug in France, Sweden, Denmark,

Netherlands

*

Sales rise in Norway, Spain but by much less than BYD

sales

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Tesla has a small, ageing lineup

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A consumer backlash against CEO Musk has also hurt sales

(Adds Norway and Spain details, Netherlands figures)

By Nick Carey and Amir Orusov

LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Tesla's sales rout

this year in several European markets continued in August amid

fierce competition from EV rivals and a backlash against CEO

Elon Musk, although Norway and Spain bucked the trend.

Data from France on Monday showed registrations for Tesla

cars fell 47.3% in August versus the same month in 2024, while

the overall car market grew nearly 2.2%.

Tesla registrations fell more than 84% in Sweden - where

electric vehicle sales were flat and the market overall was up

6% - and dropped 42% in Denmark. Tesla registrations in the

Netherlands were down 50% in August.

Sales in Norway and Spain rose but growth was well below

that of China's top electric carmaker BYD.

Norway, where Tesla has deep roots and virtually all new car

sales are electric, saw a 21.3% jump in registrations for the

U.S. EV maker. But rival BYD saw registrations spike 218%.

In Spain, which provides EV subsidies of up to 7,000 euros

($8,195), Tesla's sales rose 161% to 1,435 cars from 549 in

August last year. But BYD's sales rose more than 400% to 1,827

cars.

Year to date, BYD's sales in Spain have surged 675% to

14,181 cars, while Tesla's sales have risen 11.6% to 9,303

vehicles.

Andy Leyland, co-founder of supply chain specialist SC

Insights, said Tesla's registration numbers for Spain may have

been skewed by a large vehicle shipment arriving in the country

in August and quarterly numbers will provide a clearer picture

of its performance there.

Tesla has several problems in Europe.

The company has a small, ageing lineup and has not released

a new mass-market model since the Model Y in 2020, while new

Chinese rivals and traditional automakers alike are flooding the

market with fresh models.

"One reason we are continuing to see disappointing Tesla

volumes can partially be attributed to a more competitive market

environment," said Matthias Schmidt, European autos market

analyst at Schmidt Automotive.

Schmidt added that Musk's insistence during the automaker's

second-quarter investor call in July that "there are no issues

with Tesla volumes on the European market", when its market

share in western Europe fell to 1.7% in the first half of the

year from 2.5% in 2024, made him "sound delusional."

Earlier this year Tesla representatives in Europe argued

that the automaker's sales decline was largely because

production was shifting over to the revamped Model Y, which was

Europe's top-selling car in 2023.

Deliveries of the revised Model Y began across much of

Europe in June, but Model Y sales were down 46.5% in Denmark in

August and 87% in Sweden.

SECONDHAND MARKET

Tesla's competitive problems have been compounded by Musk's

politics - he helped bankroll Donald Trump's U.S. presidential

election win last year and has championed European far-right

parties - which have sparked a fierce consumer backlash.

Ginny Buckley, CEO of Electrifying.com, said the EV advice

website has been tracking consumer sentiment towards Tesla since

the beginning of the year.

"What's clear is that Musk's influence on the brand has

become increasingly polarizing," Buckley said.

Over half of those surveyed by Electrifying.com said Elon

Musk is putting them off buying a Tesla, "signalling Tesla's

dominance is no longer a given."

SC Insights' Leyland said Tesla's sales are also being

undermined by the low cost of used Tesla EVs in the secondhand

market.

Tesla slashed the price of new cars dramatically starting in

2023, seriously undermining the value of used Teslas that are

now being snapped up.

Marketcheck, which collects used vehicle data in the United

Kingdom, said that sales of used Teslas hit a record in July,

jumping 270%. The average price for a used Model Y hit a new low

in July, down 41% since July 2023, Marketcheck said.

($1 = 0.8542 euros)