What's Going On With Tesla?

This is only one of the many challenges hurting Tesla. Ford warns of possible price spikes, Hyundai sends two big messages, and much more! .

Four Wheel Trends Automotive Newsletter
Issue #107

Happy Saturday! We’ve had a lot happening in the past days. Today, we discuss Tesla’s many issues, how Ford might spike prices, all the while struggling with recalls, and Hyundai’s bold stands. This and much more!

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up and get it for Free!

Market News

Safety and Recalls

Car Culture

Video Of The Week

Here’s how the flying car worked until it didn’t.

Power On The Go

The 2nd Best Gift I’ve Ever Given My Dad (Hands Down)

This past Christmas, my dad lit up more than the tree when I gave him a solar generator. He uses a CPAP machine at night and constantly worries about losing power—especially with hurricanes and winter storms here in North Carolina.

Knowing he finally had a reliable backup gave both of us peace of mind.

That’s why I joined Bluetti’s affiliate program. Their lineup of solar generators is incredibly solid—and they’ve got models for everything from emergency home backup to road trip charging stations.

Personally, I have the EB3A. It’s compact, perfect for camping or tossing in the car to charge phones and laptops. But if you want to power bigger stuff—like a fridge during an outage—you’ll want one of their larger units.

👉 Check out the current Bluetti deals here.

Yes, that’s an affiliate link. No, it doesn’t cost you anything extra. But every click helps support this newsletter and keeps the content coming. Win-win.

In The Know

What’s going on at Tesla?!

Trade-ins of Teslas for any other brand have grown exponentially all across America during March.

This article explains how much trade-ins have increased and how Tesla owners are rushing to dealerships, willing to take a hit on their finances, to get rid of the controversial cars. 

At the same time, as Jalopnik reports, Tesla itself is urging people to buy their Cybertrucks.

Part of this desperate strategy involves offering huge discounts as long as they leave with the Cybertrucks and empty the lots. 

Even EV-loving California is ditching the brand, as Reuters reports that Tesla registration has dropped 15% in 2025. 

To make matters worse, insuring them is increasingly more expensive, as we explained here

All these situations have compounded and left the company with less than 50% of the market share. So, what is going on?

Is the company reflecting how Musk has ventured into the political world, leaving the company unattended? The answer is slightly more complex than that. 

There’s no denying that the company’s leader has rubbed many the wrong way with his political initiatives, as this article explains, but that’s not the only reason. 

Tesla was once an innovator, and most (if not all) of its fleet stood above the rest. Now, competition has caught up and even surpassed it. Check out this list by Car And Driver: Tesla is at the top in only one category. 

That’s not the most surprising aspect of it all. It’s the number of brands, from Hyundai to BMW to Lucid, to Kia, to Porsche. It’s no longer a handful, and they’re outperforming Tesla. 

Additionally, the company has been embroiled in controversy lately. In 2025, the Cybertruck, perhaps Tesla’s most iconic vehicle, had eight recalls. 

This is one of the highest recalls in an individual model, and we’re only in April. Then, the company had to replace four million computers on different vehicles due to an error in self-driving technology. 

Granted, going through massive recalls isn’t a situation that only Tesla is going through. Ford is also one of the country’s most recalled brands, as this article explains.  

However, many have created some healthy distance because of how Tesla has handled its business, and the latest controversy does nothing to help. 

First, there’s an excess of data tracking, one that owners might not be aware of, which has earned them the rank of “rolling surveillance platforms.” On one side, data is critical for self-driving technology, but many question how much the company actually collects. 

Fortunately, as this article explains, you can opt out of data tracking. Hopefully, the company will follow through and not track you. 

Then, there’s the big elephant in the room. Tesla faces a class-action lawsuit as many drivers claim that the company has sped up odometers, so the warranty runs out faster. 

In some cases, Tesla Model Y’s have reported 117% more miles, which all boils down to a cunning strategy. Instead of considering actual mileage, the vehicles read many other factors and calculate the mileage. 

Undoubtedly, such a case will impact the company’s reputation, but how much? 

In the meantime, we understand how owning a Tesla can be more expensive, especially in terms of insurance.

However, did you know that you can lower your insurance without switching cars? We discuss this topic in our article below.