Protests targeting Tesla and Elon Musk continue, even though its CEO has left the Trump administration. Demonstrators have found a new high-profile site, the new Tesla diner in West Hollywood. More from Headlight.News.
Protestors at the new Tesla Diner show their opposition to CEO Elon Musk.
Tesla sales took a sharp tumble during the first half of this year and industry-watchers put at least some of the blame – or credit, if you prefer – on the aggressive protests targeting the automaker’s CEO Elon Musk.
The demonstrations have barely slowed in recent months, even after Musk relinquished his post as head of the Department of Government Efficiency and wound up in a high-profile feud with Pres. Donald Trump.
Now, protestors have found a new way to get their message across, staging noisy rallies outside the newly opened Tesla diner in West Hollywood.
“Tesla Takedown”
Along with the diner, the facility has stalls for 32 EVs to charge.
First envisioned by CEO Elon Musk back in 2018, the facility on chic Santa Monica Blvd. features 32 charging stalls built into a ‘50’s-era, retro-futuristic complex. Rather than having to sit in their cars, customers can order up high-end diner-style food, along with giant movie screens showing classic movie clips.
The Tesla Diner officially opened on July 21 and has seen customers wait for hours to get in o order burgers served in boxes designed to look like Cybertrucks. But they’ve also faced large crowds who are there to protest Musk’s outspoken politics. Some have called it ironic that the restaurant is located in Wes Hollywood, an LGBTQ+ mecca, considering Musk’s outspoken anti-trans position.
“This is the world’s most renowned anti-trans advocate who just opened a diner in West Hollywood,” Joel Lava, one of the “Tesla Takedown” organizers, told CNN. The community is not very supportive of Elon.”
Protests spread worldwide
Protests outside Tesla stores have had an impact on sales, according to analysts.
Once a darling of the environmental community, Musk’s halo began tarnishing after the $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, quickly using it to post sharply conservative positions while lifting bans on then-presidential candidate Donald Trump and even some neo-Nazis.
Protests began popping up around the country, even spreading to Europe and other parts of the world, as Musk signed on as Pres. Trump’s head of DOGE. While most of the gatherings were peaceful – if noisy – others saw various levels of civil disobedience. And, at some locations, Tesla reported showrooms hit by violence. Fires at a French store resulted in numerous EVs being damaged and destroyed.
The precise impact of the protests – and concurrent calls to boycott Tesla – can’t readily be determined but analysts like Stephanie Brinley, principal auto analyst at S&P Global Mobility, have said these moves clearly didn’t help the automaker as it has struggled to deal with rising competition and an overall slowdown in the EV market.
“We’ve already been successful in tarnishing the Tesla brand,” protestor Lava said.
More Tesla News
- Protests Hit Tesla as Sales Go into Global Tailspin
- Musk Warns of “Tough Quarters” Ahead as Tesla Earnings Plunge
- Diners, Drive-Ins and Elon Musk
Tesla struggles
Whatever the cause, Tesla is facing a struggle right now. The EV automaker last week reported a 16% decline in net income for the second quarter, to $1.2 billion, while Musk warned that Tesla is facing “a few rough quarters” to come, during an online briefing for analysts.
Global deliveries were down 13% during the second-quarter compared to a year earlier, demand in some parts of Europe off by as much as 50%. It handed over the keys to 384,122 vehicles between April 1 and June 30, generating Q2 revenues of $22.5 billion, a 12% decline.
Wall Street has had trouble figuring out how to handle the downturn while Musk continues to insist his company will not only rebound but set new highs by turning to new lines of business, including its humanoid Optimus Prime robot and driverless taxis. The robotics business has begun ramping up, albeit at a slower pace than promised. The robotaxi business launched in Austin has also been slow to develop a customer base, though it’s unclear whether that is due to pushback on Musk’s politics.
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