Has Orange County turned on Elon Musk?
Recent data from the OC Automobile Dealers Association (OCADA) suggest the recent behavior by the Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) owner and CEO is having a negative effect on sales in a region that’s long been one of the EV maker’s best domestic markets.
May sales for Tesla in OC plummeted nearly 46% from year-ago levels to 1,278 sales, OCADA data indicates. That represents, by far, the biggest unit decline of any automaker in OC for the month.
Year-to-date through May, Tesla’s sales are off 15% locally, the association’s data shows. That’s slightly higher than the 13% decline in sales companywide Tesla reported for the first quarter.
Why the higher declines of late for OC’s most popular EV brand? Given it often takes upwards of three months for a delivery of a new Tesla after placing an order, the data suggests that perhaps potential buyers stopped placing orders for the cars earlier in the year, and the sales data is just now catching up.
It looks like Tesla’s lost business went elsewhere. New auto sales are up 4.3% in OC, year-to-date through May, OCADA’s latest auto outlook indicates.
Tesla counts a 12.9% market share in OC, down from 15.7% a year ago, based on year-to-date sales. Toyota leads the pack here, with a 16.7% market share.
Local EV maker Rivian (Nasdaq: RIVN) doesn’t appear to have capitalized on the apparent souring on Tesla, at least locally. Its YTD sales here were off 10.3% through May, and its market share in OC remains just under 1%, OCADA reported.
The Irvine Spectrum Center, already an automotive hub with firms like Mazda North America and Karma Automotive counting bases in the area, is drawing more industry attention.
When Vietnam-based electric car manufacturer VinFast (Nasdaq: VFS) began ramping up its presence in the U.S. near the start of 2023, it placed one of its first showroom locations at the Irvine Spectrum Center, while setting up its domestic base in Los Angeles.
The company in the past month has begun citing Irvine as the base of VinFast US operations, rather than LA. Records indicate the company has a local base along Research Drive, less than a mile from where Hyundai is planning a new vehicle testing center and warehouse at a 91,600-square-foot industrial building currently under construction.
It’s hard to look past the prime rib when dining at CdM’s Five Crowns restaurant, but the iconic steakhouse along Coast Highway is tempting diners with a variety of menu items to celebrate its 60th anniversary.
A June 20 event held at Five Crowns was hosted by Ryan Wilson, CEO of parent company Lawry’s Restaurants (who helped open the adjacent gastropub SideDoor in 2009) and previewed a ‘historical prix fixe menu’ to honor the Diamond Jubilee.
Notable main courses being highlighted on the menu include the dry-aged roast duck, dover sol veronika and English rib chop. If you have room after the continental Louie cocktail and main course, the eton mess dessert is a winner.
