(Reuters) - Tesla EV sales in Europe have fallen in February behind legacy brand Volkswagen and the BMW group, as well as rivals from China, data by research platform JATO Dynamics showed on Monday.

Elon Musk's all-electric brand is facing a loyalty test in Europe after the close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump openly supported far-right parties in the continent, including with at least two dozen posts on his X platform promoting Germany's Alternative fur Deutschland.

Musk's role in politics, rising competition in the EV market and the phasing out of the existing version of its best-selling vehicle, the Model Y, have all impacted sales, Felipe Munoz, Global Analyst at JATO Dynamics, said in a report.

"Brands like Tesla, which have a relatively limited model lineup, are particularly vulnerable to registration declines when undertaking a model changeover," Munoz said.

Tesla's battery-electric vehicle (BEV) registrations in 25 European Union markets, the UK, Norway and Switzerland fell on average by 44% from the same month of 2024, to under 16,000 cars sold in February. Its market share in the month fell to 9.6%, the lowest February reading in the last five years.

By comparison, Volkswagen's BEV sales were up 180% to under 20,000 cars, while the BMW brand and BMW-owned Mini, combined, sold almost 19,000 BEVs in February, the data showed.

Chinese-owned brands, combined, also sold more electric cars than Tesla, JATO Dynamics said.

BYD's and Polestar's BEV sales in the same markets were up respectively 94% and 84% to over 4,000 and over 2,000 cars. Xpeng ( XPEV ) sold over 1,000 cars and Leapmotor almost 900.

BEV sales at Geely -owned Volvo and SAIC-owned MG, instead, dropped by 30% and 67% respectively, the data showed.

Total car sales in 25 European Union markets, the UK, Norway and Switzerland dropped by 3% to 0.97 million in February, while BEV registrations were up by 25%.