After a sluggish first half of the year, Tesla is back in the spotlight with a monster Q3 performance. Just a quarter ago, things looked “dire,” with both production and deliveries slipping below 400,000 units.
Now, the electric car manufacturer reported an unexpected increase in sales during the third quarter. This rise was likely driven by a consumer push to utilize the expiring $7,500 tax credit before its deadline on September 30th.
Between July and September, Tesla built 447,450 vehicles and delivered 497,099 EVs—setting a new company record, finally topping the previous high from Q4 2024.
The company didn’t suddenly find a way to make 50,000 extra cars. Instead, they tapped into a significant inventory surplus built up in the prior quarters:
– Q2 Surplus: 26,122 cars built but not delivered.
– Q1 Surplus: 25,934 cars built but not delivered.
This combined surplus of just over 52,000 vehicles is nearly exactly the number of “extra” cars Tesla shipped out in Q3. In short, Tesla made a record number of deliveries by finally selling the cars it had already built in the first half of the year.
As always, the Model 3 and Model Y are carrying the company. The two mid-range vehicles accounted for the vast majority of the sales figures: 435,826 built and 481,166 delivered.
However, the Model S, Model X, and the Cybertruck continue to underperform. This models only accounted for 11,624 units produced and 15,933 delivered in Q3. This figure is actually down from the 13,400+ units built in Q2 and the 17,161 in Q1.
Beyond vehicles, Tesla’s energy business also posted its best quarter to date, deploying 12.5 GWh of storage systems.
