LONDON, March 3 — A growing number of Tesla owners are abandoning their vehicles in response to CEO Elon Musk’s recent Nazi-style salute.
According to The Guardian, the backlash erupted after Musk performed the salutes during Donald Trump’s inauguration day celebrations in January, triggering outrage among former loyal Tesla customers.
“I didn’t want to be saddled with a vehicle that was associated with something so awful,” said Filipos, a Philadelphia-area resident who sold his Tesla Model 3 and opted for an Acura instead.
Filipos had been a devoted Tesla fan, pre-ordering a Cybertruck in 2019 and even investing in Tesla stock, but Musk’s actions pushed him to sever ties with the brand entirely.
“When you own a vehicle like that, you are advertising for that company,” he was quoted saying.
Others have followed suit, with Tesla owners across the US and beyond ditching their vehicles and divesting from the company.
Singer Sheryl Crow made headlines when she posted a video on Instagram showing her Tesla being hauled away on a flatbed truck, captioning it: “There comes a time when you have to decide who you are willing to align with. So long Tesla.”
Anti-Musk sentiment has spread rapidly on social media, with users on Reddit, TikTok, and Instagram sharing posts of their Tesla sell-offs.
A TikTok account called Cybertruck Hunters has been projecting anti-Musk messages onto the massive rear bumpers of Cybertrucks, while protest groups like Tesla Takedown and Everyone Hates Elon are distributing stickers and posters urging people to boycott the company.
Demonstrations have erupted outside Tesla showrooms in cities such as New York, Seattle, and San Francisco, where protesters unfurled banners reading “Musk must GO” and chanted, “Hey hey, ho ho, Elon Musk has got to go.”
In Germany, Tesla sales have plummeted by nearly 60 per cent, coinciding with Musk’s endorsement of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and his dismissal of German Holocaust remembrance efforts.
Tesla’s stock has also taken a hit, with a 21 per cent selloff since Musk’s inauguration day salute and the company’s valuation dipping below US$1 trillion.
Filipos, who once owned 717 Tesla shares, sold all of them last summer, calling it a “reckoning moment” after Musk endorsed Trump.
“We feel lighter not being saddled with a symbol of hate,” he said.