Tesla was hit by a wave of protests over Musk, sales are crashing, insiders are waking up
Tesla was hit by a wave of protests across dozens of its stores in North America this weekend. With sales crashing and the board selling, it looks like some insiders are finally waking up.
As we reported last week, a grassroots movement has sprung to organize protests against Elon Musk at Tesla stores around North America.
The protests appear to have been quite successful, with primarily peaceful demonstrations in front of Tesla stores.
Here’s an example in front of Tesla’s Minneapolis store:
Similar protests happened at dozens of Tesla stores for hours in an attempt to disrupt sales and protest Musk’s meddling in politics.
Tesla’s Manhattan showroom saw one of the biggest protests:
While most protests were peaceful and lawful, some vandalism did happen, with images of Tesla stores getting graffitied with anti-fascism phrases.
Groups supporting the protests, like Anonymous, say it is just the beginning and plan to keep putting pressure on Tesla to, in turn, put pressure on Musk.
As we previously reported, Tesla’s sales this year are crashing in Europe, where they release monthly data.
In the US, the data comes a bit later, and therefore, it’s hard to tell how much Tesla sales are being affected by the negative perception of its CEO, but these protests against Tesla are undoubtedly unprecedented.
We have often highlighted how Tesla’s board of directors, which has authority over the CEO, has been entirely silent on this situation – letting Musk do whatever he wants, including spending little time at Tesla while running X, xAI, SpaceX, Neuralink, Boring Company, and DOGE.
While the board remains silent, it sounds like there’s finally some pushback amongst Tesla insiders.
The Washington Post has obtained a recording from a recent staff meeting at Tesla where some have openly expressed concerns about Musk:
Employees and senior managers at a recent staff meeting at one Tesla division openly expressed concern that Musk is damaging the company’s business and sustainability mission, according to a recording obtained by The Washington Post.
Tesla employees spoke to the Post about rising beliefs amongst the ranks about Musk “tarnishing the brand.”
According to a Tesla employee speaking to the Post, senior managers said that they believe “the company would be better off if Musk resigned.”
While some insiders are starting to speak out within the company, the report highlights how most discontent with Musk among employees happens in private:
Inside Tesla, most discussion of discomfort with the CEO happens quietly over lunch or in private messages, one of the employees who spoke with The Post said, and workers use external communication tools, fearing the company could be monitoring staff for signs of disloyalty.
Tesla regularly implements waves of layoffs, and lately, Musk has been using them to consolidate power and keep only loyalists among his top ranks at Tesla.
Electrek’s Take
Is this momentum against Elon at Tesla? It’s hard to tell. I have been fearing that Elon drove away most people who could stand against him at Tesla.
The protests are good, and employees speaking up is good, but at the end of the day, with the board in Elon’s pocket, it means that nothing short of the stock price crashing to push shareholders to kick the board out is needed.
I could see that happening, as I expect this quarter’s deliveries and earnings to be quite bad. However, there could also be a broader market downturn, on which Musk could blame Tesla’s stock’s poor performance.
It should be interesting next few months.
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Rivian issued a recall for over 17,000 vehicles on Friday due to a headlight issue that only occurs in cold weather. The recall impacts certain 2025 R1S SUV and R1T electric pickup models. Luckily, it should be an easy fix.
Rivian issues a recall for 2025 R1S and R1T vehicles
In a letter sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Rivian said it planned to recall 17,260 R1S and R1T vehicles.
The safety notice comes after the company found the headlights on certain 2025 models did not meet the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, “Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment.”
In cold weather, the headlight low beams might not illuminate once the vehicle is started. A message on the driver display will pop up, saying, “Low beam lights not working.” The issue only occurred in colder climates.
Rivian said it’s unaware of any crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to the recall. The 2025 R1S and R1T models were built with incorrectly figured parts from its supplier between April 29, 2024, and February 03, 2025.
For those impacted, Rivian will replace the headlight control module free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed out on March 28, 2025.
If you have questions, you can contact Rivian’s customer service at 1-888-748-4261. Rivian’s recall number is FSAM-1612. You can also contact the NHTSA hotline at 888-327-4236 or visit NHTSA.gov for more information.
The recall comes after Rivian posted its first positive gross profit in the fourth quarter, a big milestone as the EV maker aims to hit its next growth stage.
Rivian delivered 51,579 vehicles in 2024, but as it prepares to introduce its mass-market R2 electric SUV, the company expects a slight dip in 2025, forecasting between 46,000 and 51,000. A big part of this is due to plans to retool its Normal, IL manufacturing plant to prepare for the R2, which will launch in the first half of 2026. The midsize electric SUV will start at around $45,000, or almost half the R1S ($77,700) and R1T ($71,700).
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Super73, a leading e-bike manufacturer based in Irvine, California famous for its moped-style electric bikes, has issued a recall for two of its popular models.
The recall covers approximately 1,400 units of its model year 2024 Z Miami SE and Z Adventure Core electric bicycles. At the heart of the recall is an issue with the braking system.
Specifically, the retaining pin within the disc brake calipers may loosen and detach, potentially leading to brake failure and increasing the risk of crashes and injuries.
According to a recall notice posted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the recall covers the Z Miami SE in Bandit Black (black seat), Palladium Gray (camel seat), and Astro Orange (black seat), as well as the Z Adventure Core in Sandstorm, featuring a black and brown frame.
Super73 has confirmed that the affected e-bikes were sold between April 2024 and September 2024 at Super73’s Irvine store, various bicycle retailers nationwide, and online.
According to the company, Super73 has received 21 reports concerning loose retaining pins or associated brake failures, with one incident resulting in a minor injury.
Owners of the recalled models are advised to immediately cease using the e-bikes and contact Super73 for a complimentary repair kit. The company is providing a new retaining pin and will reimburse up to $50 for professional installation services. To obtain reimbursement, consumers should submit their installation receipts to Super73. The company is proactively reaching out to all known purchasers.
Customers seeking information on the recall can reach Super73 by phone at 888-841-3584 from Monday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT, or by email safety@super73.com. They can also visit a recall-related web page set up by the company.
These types of recalls are not uncommon in the e-bike industry, as manufacturers continue to refine designs and address safety concerns. Additionally, because most bicycle components are not built by the electric bike makers themselves, issues in systems such as brakes and wheels are usually related to the subcomponent manufacturers and can affect many bicycle companies downstream in the supply chain.
Similar examples of recalls in the industry include Rad Power Bikes’ 2022 recall of nearly 30,000 RadWagon 4 cargo e-bikes due to the bike’s tires, and the 2023 recall of some 45,000 Lectric XP 3.0 e-bikes over brake failure risks linked to faulty calipers.
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Japan reportedly plans to try to convince Tesla to invest in Nissan after the merger with Honda fell through.
Do you think it makes sense?
Shortly after being announced, Nissan and Honda’s planned merger quickly fell apart earlier this month.
The problem appears to be that Nissan expected a merger while Honda was looking for a takeover of its fellow Japanese automaker.
Now, it looks like Nissan has exhausted its potential lifelines in Japan and it is starting to explore potential partners outside of the country.
The Financial Times has revealed that a group has been put together to approach Tesla for a potential investment in Nissan:
A high-level Japanese group that includes a former prime minister has drawn up plans for Elon Musk’s Tesla to invest in the struggling carmaker Nissan, following the collapse of its merger talks with rival Honda.
The group includes Hiro Mizuno, a former Tesla board member, and ex-premier Yoshihide Suga.
FT’s report claims that the group believes Tesla is interested in buying Nissan’s factories in the US:
The group is hopeful Tesla will become a strategic investor since they believe the world’s largest pure electric-vehicle maker is keen to acquire Nissan’s plants in the US, according to the people. The factories would help it boost domestic manufacturing in response to Donald Trump’s tariff threats.
Tesla has greatly slowed down its plans for new car factories over the last few years as sales have gone down and its current factories are not operating at full capacity.
Electrek’s Take
At this time, it’s unclear if this report should be taken seriously. Japan seems to be panicking a bit because it doesn’t want Nissan to fall into the ends of China as Foxconn has shown interest in taking a stake.
Tesla doesn’t need Nissan’s factories and it has made clear that it prefers to build its own than take over existing factory since its takeover of Fremon factory from Toyota and GM, and that was back in 2010.
I am sure Tesla will hear them out since Mizuno is involved, but I doubt this will go much further than that.
What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below.
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