Of the many markets where the Tesla Model S is now selling quite well, the market in Switzerland stands out as a particularly interesting example. I was actually a bit surprised recently to find out that sales are booming to such a degree there that the Model S actually outsold the combined sales of the Mercedes S-Class, the BMW 6-Series, and the Audi A7, during the months of January-September 2015.
The exact numbers for Tesla Model S sales are: 1151 units sold so far during 2015, as compared to 346 units sold during the same period of time in 2014.
Electrek provides specifics on the other sales comparisons mentioned above:
In September, Tesla added 157 Model S’s in the country, more than any vehicle in the same class: 17 BMW 6-Series, 1 BMW 7-Series, 4 Audi A8, 15 Audi A7, 69 Mercedes S-Class, and 125 E-Class.
Tesla is trying to replicate the Model S’ success in the country to other markets in Europe. Earlier this year, the company appointed its head of sales in Switzerland, Jochen Rudat, to lead Tesla’s team in Germany, where sales are up, but not at the level Tesla CEO Elon Musk hoped for. Despite its small size and population, Switzerland is currently Tesla’s third biggest market in Europe behind Norway and the Netherlands.
Going by these figures, it shouldn’t be too surprising that the Tesla Model S has remained the best selling electric vehicle (EV) in the country for the last 2 years running now.
As far as German sales go though, given how insular the Germans are I’m skeptical that Tesla will be able to meet its sales targets in that country — even with the potential boost coming from the Volkswagen diesel scandal. The culture there just isn’t that open to non-German companies/cultures/people/etc — as compared to the places/markets where Tesla is seeing the most success, anyways.