Despite the ongoing global chip shortage, Tesla has been able to steadily increase sales. Tesla has revealed that it sold nearly one million cars during 2021, almost hitting its stretched targets set before the onset of the global pandemic. It rounded out the year with 936,172 electric vehicle deliveries, compared to the 499,550 EVs the company handed over to customers in 2020.
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That being said, it isn’t all good news for the pioneering EV maker. Its flagship products, the Model S and Model X, has not performed as well as hoped. The high-end vehicle shipments decreased by more than half in 2021 compared to the prior year, from 57,039 cars to 24,964. While the results are somewhat disappointing, it isn’t completely unexpected as many customers decided to wait until the new revamped models, dubbed Plaid, was released before making their purchase. The Plaid versions of the Model S and Model X are better performing versions of the flagship products, with better battery and electric motor performance.
Given how most car manufacturers have struggled to fill orders due to the chip shortage (with several cutting sales expectations by millions of units), it is impressive that Tesla was still able to show significant growth. Tesla did have to make some compromises to deliver so many vehicles, however, with some even shipping without the inclusion of USB ports. Other vehicles have had to be delayed as well, with the Tesla Roadster (originally announced in 2017) still nowhere to be seen and the Tesla Cybertruck also way behind schedule and now expected in 2022.
Of course, Tesla doesn’t have it all their own way. It is now facing ever increasing competition, not just from traditional car manufacturers launching their own electric vehicles, but other start-ups like Rivian, who recently had one of the biggest IPO’s ever, breathing down their necks.
