Phones and electronics aren’t the only things that people are rushing to buy before the dreaded tariff tax hits, thanks to the Trump administration’s ongoing trade war with the world. According to research from Cox Automotive, the supply of new and used vehicles is starting to dwindle as consumers rush to secure a car before the price tag skyrockets.
The analysis shows that the supply of new vehicles on the market, calculated by using an estimated daily sales rate, crashed from 91 days in March to just 70 days this month. The supply of used vehicles was already lower than usual, with just 43 days worth available, but that has dipped to 39 days since the tariffs took effect. That aligns with Cox’s sales data, which shows that new vehicle purchases are 22% higher than the usual pace for this time of year, and total sales are up nearly 10% on a year-to-date basis. Used vehicle sales are just a little behind, still up 7% this year compared to 2024.
The vehicle supply is low despite the fact that auto dealers stocked up ahead of Trump’s tariffs, which placed a 25% import fee on cars at the start of April after a brief month-long reprieve to allow companies to prepare. While Trump backtracked on some of his tariffs, the ones on vehicles remain in place, and a similar penalty will be applied to imported car parts starting in May, which is not exactly going to help with the whole plan to ramp up American production since many of the parts and materials needed to make cars still come to the country from over a foreign border.
But while most car dealerships watch their inventory start to trickle down and spots sit empty thanks to a chokehold on the supply chain, Teslas seem readily available if you’d like one. Reuters reported that Tesla sales in California, the company’s biggest market, are down 15% during the first quarter of 2025. That’s about in line with data about the company’s global sales, which are down 13%, the lowest they’ve been in three years. The slowdown in sales has cut into the company’s dominant share of the electric vehicle market, as it has dropped below a 50% share in California, according to Bloomberg.
Tesla’s sales struggles are unique among EV producers. According to Bloomberg, sales of all other electric vehicles have increased 35% since the start of the year. And while it’s true that the EV market has started to catch up to Tesla’s head start, it really seems like Elon Musk may have singlehandedly destroyed the brand’s reputation with his endless shitposting and frontman role in the federal government demolition crew at the Department of Government Efficiency. Say what you will about the “attacks” on Tesla dealerships, but they’re target-rich environments since they seemingly can’t sell those cars.
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