Could be.
Vox, citing surveys, says here a year ago Tesla was the first choice of 17% of potential EV buyers, ahead of all other carmakers. But that has dropped to 9% and Tesla now trails Toyota and BMW in buyer preferences. Overall, Tesla’s U.S. market share for EVs has fallen from 78% to 58% over the past year. It’s selling more vehicles, but the market is growing even more rapidly, and more of it is going to other carmakers.
But there could be other reasons besides Musk’s repellent ravings for that. Teslas are more expensive, have spontaneously burst into flames, have crashed into other vehicles in self-driving mode, and the company is now being accused of monopolizing repair and service of its vehicles so it can gouge owners.
Tesla has responses for all of this, of course, except it hasn’t yet attempted to explain why its CEO so frequently bursts into flame. Mostly that gas cars are even worse at catching fire in accidents, and stupid Tesla owners are responsible for not understanding that “self-driving” doesn’t mean the car drives itself.
I can only speak for myself. My first electric car is more likely to be a Ford, Chevy, or Toyota than a tricked-out Model S. For lots of reasons.