Latest news with #Cybertruck
Business Insider
6 hours ago
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Tesla sales are nosediving in California, and it's dragging the state's entire EV market down
Tesla's new retro-futuristic diner has Californians queuing around the block — but they are less keen on the company's cars. The automaker's registrations in the West Coast state fell more than 20% in the second quarter compared to the previous year, according to data from the California New Car Dealers Association released on Tuesday. It's Tesla's seventh consecutive quarterly decline in the US's largest EV market, and comes despite California's new car sales growing in the first half of the year. The California Dealers Association warned that Tesla's woes were dragging the rest of the state's EV market down. Zero-emission vehicles accounted for 18.2% of new cars sold in California in the second quarter of 2025, compared to 22% in 2024, the association's data showed. Tesla has been struggling with lacklustre sales this year. The electric vehicle giant is battling consumer backlash over CEO Elon Musk's high-profile interventions into US politics. The sales data suggest that the brand damage has been acute in California, which leans liberal and was the birthplace of the Tesla Takedown protest movement. Tesla is set to report second-quarter earnings after the market closes on Wednesday. Earlier this month, the carmaker reported that its deliveries for the second quarter had fallen by around 13.5% compared to last year, its second consecutive decline in global sales. In addition to the brand damage caused by Musk's work on DOGE and his support for the Trump administration — which seemingly ended with a high-profile public spat last month — Tesla is also facing fierce competition and a dearth of new products. A refreshed version of Tesla's best-selling Model Y, launched earlier this year, has failed to boost sales. The automaker has not rolled out a new model since the Cybertruck in 2023. The polarizing pickup has sold only 11,000 units so far this year, according to data from Cox Automotive. Tesla faces additional challenges from recently passed legislation that is set to end the $7,500 tax credit for new US-made electric cars in September. The company recently introduced a wave of new incentives and offers, including free supercharging for some Model 3 purchases and free Full Self-Driving transfers, as it looks to drive sales before the end of the tax credit. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment sent outside normal working hours.
WIRED
7 hours ago
- Automotive
- WIRED
It Looks Like the Tesla Model Y Refresh Has Bombed
The high-selling Model Y is crucial for both Elon Musk and Tesla, but a half-hearted reskin of the car hasn't reversed the company's sales woes. Would a complete overhaul have been a better bet? Despite Elon Musk stepping away from his DOGE activities, Tesla's sales have continued to slide. No doubt Musk hoped that the release earlier this year of the refreshed Model Y would help reverse these fortunes; however, describing the six-year-old midsize crossover EV as 'new' appears not to have attracted as many buyers as Tesla anticipated. Model Y is crucial for Musk; it accounts for roughly two-thirds of Tesla's global sales (though this fluctuates). Last year, however, according to JATO Dynamics, the Y lost its top slot in the rankings for world's top-selling car in 2024 to Toyota. The revamped Model Y was launched in January, but it only became globally available through May. While there's no definitive data yet on how well the car is performing at retail—Tesla doesn't publish model or country sales number splits—the early signs do not look good. Many markets offer discounts and low-interest loans for the Model Y, and delivery is reportedly immediate for those interested, suggesting a general lack of demand, which is far different from the long wait times typically seen for the previous Model Y. The refreshed Model Y features a Cybertruck-like light bar on the front. Courtesy of Tesla With many analysts pinning Tesla's current woes on Musk's tanking popularity, bulls have kept the faith, claiming that last year's sales decline was mainly due to reduced inventory as production switched over to the revamped Model Y, with would-be customers delaying purchases until this year's delivery of the makeover of a vehicle unveiled back in 2019. According to the latest report from Kelley Blue Book, Tesla's US sales fell 9 percent in the first quarter. Receipts didn't pick up when the revamped Model Y became more widely available, with Kelley Blue Book estimating Model Y sales in the US falling by 15 percent year over year in the second quarter. (Tesla reported on July 2 it sold 384,122 cars in the second quarter of 2025, a near 15 percent decline from the previous year.) 'The hyper-competitive [US] EV market is providing the troubled automaker no relief,' noted Cox Automotive's analysis. Speaking on the second quarter Tesla figures, Cox Automotive's director of industry insights Stephanie Valdez Streaty says this was 'more than double the overall EV market's 6.3 percent drop, making it a standout in terms of softness.' However, she stresses, the Model Y still 'commands a dominant 28 percent share of the EV market.' Nevertheless, The New York Times reported that Tesla's factories were operating at just 70 percent capacity in the second quarter. Tesla sales in Europe remain depressed. In Sweden, Tesla sold 53.7 percent fewer cars in May compared to the same month a year earlier, while in Portugal sales were down 68 percent. And this was on top of similarly steep falls in previous months. Most other European markets were down by similar numbers, but inexplicably, in Norway, sales jumped by 213 percent in May, according to data from the Norwegian Road Federation. The future looks especially bleak for Tesla in China, the world's largest and most competitive automotive market. Data from the China Passenger Car Association shows that despite an uptick last month, Tesla sold 128,803 vehicles in China during the second quarter of 2025, a 4.3 percent decrease from the first quarter. Year-over-year, the decline is even starker at 11.7 percent compared to the second quarter of last year. This decline in China, Tesla's second-most-important market after the US, occurred despite showrooms offering discounts on the refreshed Model Y, providing 0 percent financing and reportedly staging street promotions featuring entertainers to draw in potential customers. Unlike long-in-the-tooth Tesla models, Chinese auto brands can launch new platforms within 18 months, and they file dozens of automotive-related patents daily. A new light bar running across the front hood and a few other tweaks on the refreshed Model Y are not head-turning in a Chinese market fizzing with innovation. The Model Y 'is not a new car,' says Jay Nagley from automotive consultancy Redspy. 'It's a heavy facelift. If it doesn't look new, then people don't think it's new. You can't order people to think differently; not even Elon Musk can do that.' Another light bar is on the rear … Courtesy of Tesla … while the side profile is largely unchanged. Courtesy of Tesla Tesla has 'fallen behind Chinese competition,' states David Bailey, professor of business economics at the University of Birmingham in England, with BYD now besting Tesla on most fronts. 'Rather than launching a more mass-market model, Tesla wasted a lot of money on the Cybertruck. And Tesla's autonomous technology is behind that of Chinese makers.' Essentially, adds Bailey, Tesla has 'gone from being a disruptor to being a laggard.' And the refreshed Model Y hasn't juiced Tesla at all. 'Model Y has not taken off to the degree that Tesla needed, because the competition has caught up and, in some cases, overtaken it at lower prices,' Bailey says. 'BYD can make a car at a lower cost with better battery technology. Tesla was relying on a premium position to allow them to charge a premium price, but they're now being out-competed with better tech at lower prices.' Referring to the promise of an entry-level EV, Bailey says that Tesla 'could have built at scale to get costs down. Musk has consistently said it's all about scale, and yet he's done other things.' Aside from potential missions to Mars, these other things include prioritizing politics over business now that Musk says he wants to launch a third party to disrupt the Republican-Democrat duopoly in the US. This is testing the patience of even the most gung-ho of Tesla's perma-bulls. Wedbush Securities tech analyst Dan Ives wrote a cautionary post on X in early July, urging Tesla to stop Musk's roving political eye with a fatter salary. Musk responded on X that Ives should 'shut up.' For several years, Ives has been one of Musk's most vociferous and loyal champions, but with estimated lower-than-promised sales of Model Y, no commercial release date for Tesla's humanoid robot, and a not entirely unproblematic robotaxi trial in Austin, Texas, he and many of Tesla's biggest investors are getting antsy. Tesla did not respond to WIRED's request for comment on this article. For Nagley, it's too early to talk about Tesla failing to survive, 'but the question is, can they thrive? One of the iron rules about the car industry is that there are model life cycles. People get bored of cars of one generation and want a new generation, or they go somewhere else,' he says. Customers 'have decided that a lot of Tesla cars, including the 'new' Model Y, are looking very familiar.' In an automotive world where China designs are advancing far faster than Western competitors, how cars look is becoming ever more crucial. For Jamie Tomkins, senior project designer at the Royal College of Art's Intelligent Mobility Design Centre in London, an only slightly updated Model Y design is a missed opportunity for Tesla. 'Just to update the front and rear and make it kind of Cybertruck-esque … it's not enough,' he says. Referring of the historical global success of the Y, Tomkins adds that it would have been prudent for Tesla to invest in a full redesign, 'but they've done it on the cheap. Any brilliance that Musk may have shown before is now history.' Frank Stephenson, the renowned auto designer who has worked for Ford, BMW, Ferrari, Maserati, Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, and McLaren, and is perhaps best known for redesigning the Mini, has a clear opinion. 'They've got a great design team [at Tesla]. But the worst designer at Tesla is Musk. I know a few guys on the team. They're very capable. It's just that when Elon says 'I want something' he gets it, and it's not to everybody's taste—which is I'm sure what happened with Cybertruck.' Model Y is 'the most successful volume seller for the brand, and it's doing well,' says Stephenson. 'But it's that philosophy of if it's not broken, don't fix it. But a lot of times, in the world of design, that is the wrong path. If you're not moving forward, you're moving back. So everybody's full on, especially the Chinese right now.' Stephenson feels that the addition of the light bars to the 'new' Model Y was a response to some of the more positive reactions to the Cybertruck—'so they borrowed that,' he says. 'The one on the back has the wow factor. The light bar on the front is as boring as you can make a light bar.' However, Musk appears to not merely be pinning hopes of extending the Model Y's lifespan on just the recent refresh. 'Grok is coming to Tesla vehicles very soon,' Elon Musk stated in a post on X earlier this month, though this only brings the EV brand in line with what the likes of Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen have already done in adding AI assistants to their vehicles. And just this week it's been revealed that Tesla has a longer-wheelbase version of the Y, the Model Y L (a six-seater, 456 HP, dual-motor iteration of its electric SUV) coming to China customers to fill the demand for such vehicles there right now. Whether it eventually also lands in the US remains unconfirmed. As it stands in the US market, GM, Rivian, and other brands have, relatively speaking, newer-minted EVs to sell—but while the Model Y has many rivals, there's not yet a clear Model Y killer in Western markets. It's very different in China. Last month, Xiaomi opened preorders for its YU7 SUV, amassing more than 200,000 down payments in mere minutes. Meanwhile, Xpeng debuted the G7, another Model Y rival, to similarly robust early demand. The YU7, in particular, could seriously dent Tesla's Model Y sales in China. Xiaomi makes a wide range of consumer electronic products—from smart TVs to beds—with millions of customers globally in its tech ecosystem. Musk would doubtless disagree, but many consider Xiaomi's tech superior to Tesla's: Its motors are better, its infotainment is slicker, and its design is fresher. And—the true killer blow—it's cheaper. The YU7 is $1,500 cheaper in China than the Model Y. To Musk's possible relief, the YU7 won't be delivered to most consumers until next year, and there might still be Tesla-style delivery snafus ahead for Xiaomi, but in the near future, and in markets outside of China, too, you can rest assured that the YU7 and Xpeng's G7 won't be the only Model Y killers out there. Tesla's refresh has not worked—Model Y is Model Yesterday.
Business Insider
10 hours ago
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Tesla's (TSLA) Sales Plunge Again in California, but This Time It's Not Alone
EV maker Tesla (TSLA) saw its vehicle registrations in California drop by 21.1% in the second quarter, as the company continues to struggle in one of its most important U.S. markets. Indeed, California has traditionally been a strong area for Tesla, but recent trends suggest that a shift is occurring. Some believe that CEO Elon Musk's increasingly political behavior, which often clashes with California's liberal values, might be part of the reason why the brand is losing traction in the state. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. As a result, from April to June, Tesla registered 41,138 new vehicles in California, down from 52,119 in the same period of last year, according to the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA). This is the seventh consecutive quarter that Tesla has seen a decline in registrations in the state. To make matters worse, Tesla recorded only 3,622 Cybertruck registrations during the first six months of the year. Still, Tesla's Model Y and Model 3 continue to be the two most popular vehicles in the zero-emission and hybrid category through the first half of the year. Interestingly, though, it is worth mentioning that Tesla isn't the only EV brand facing challenges. In fact, rival Rivian (RIVN) saw a 28.6% drop in second-quarter registrations in California. At the same time, hybrid vehicles are gaining popularity, with registrations rising by 54% in the first half of the year to make up 19.2% of the California market, according to CNCDA. Therefore, investors are currently waiting for Tesla's second-quarter earnings results, which are scheduled for July 23 after the market closes, for clues on how the company plans to tackle its problems. What Is the Prediction for Tesla Stock? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on TSLA stock based on 13 Buys, 13 Holds, and eight Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average TSLA price target of $299.52 per share implies 10.3% downside risk.
Eater
19 hours ago
- Automotive
- Eater
Everything Eater Editors Ate at the New Tesla Diner in Los Angeles
The long-awaited retro-futuristic Tesla Diner opened in Los Angeles on July 21 to lines stretching down the block, with some Angelenos waiting for hours for the restaurant to open at exactly 4:20 p.m. Eater LA was in line when the doors finally opened at the scheduled time — Tesla tends to delay most of their product launches, sometimes for years — with screens at the front counter showing a photo menu and ordering system that will reflect the ones found inside Tesla vehicles. What it's like inside Tesla Diner Workers and guests at the curved counter of Tesla Diner in LA. Waiting for orders at Tesla Diner. A circular banquette and view of the street from inside Tesla Diner. Dining areas of Tesla Diner. The Tesla diner occupies the site of the former Shakey's, just across the street from a luxury apartment building whose decks overlook the 45-foot screens and Supercharger stalls. The curved structure is cloaked in metal and strips of lights, which make it resemble the waiting area for Disneyland's Star Tours or Space Mountain more than a diner. Inside, a stark white floor runs the length of the first level, punctuated by curved booths along the other edge and a lengthy service counter that looks into the kitchen. On the second floor, a deck wraps around the entire building, with a humanoid robot serving popcorn and handing out fist bumps at the bar. Food comes out of the first-floor kitchen, served in Happy Meal-esque Cybertruck boxes by human staff. The center of the building features a mini-museum of Tesla's humanoid robots, with three models placed in display cases along the somewhat cramped staircase. It's almost as if Tesla were taking a page right out of a scene in Terminator, chronicling humanity's unchecked development of artificially intelligent machines. A glass case by the doorway holds a lineup of Tesla diner merchandise, from a $95 hoodie to $35 'supercharged' gummies. The only silverware available is blocky wood forks, spoons, and knives emblazoned with the Tesla logo that resemble the off-putting shape of a Cybertruck. On the first day open, Teslas and Cybertrucks lined the streets of the neighborhood, almost blocking traffic in some areas. In the parking lot, custom-wrapped trucks stood out from the pack — one in a DOGE-style print emblazoned with the meme-ified Shiba Inu heads and another with twin American flags affixed to its rear. While the diner's first day offered both in-store and in-car ordering, soon drivers will be able to place orders in advance with Tesla's new geofencing technology. Once they arrive within a 15 to 20-minute radius of the restaurant, a notification will be triggered to both the driver and the cooks that their order will commence. Musk's goal of opening a diner that could also host a fleet of Tesla superchargers dates back to 2018, when he posted on X (then Twitter) that he was planning to 'put an old school drive-in, roller skates & rock restaurant at one of the new Tesla Supercharger locations in LA.' Seemingly, the goal was to address the issue of Tesla drivers having nowhere to go while their cars charge, which can take between just a few minutes and almost an hour at a Supercharger. The diner is also located in a bit of a Supercharger desert — the next closest option is in West Hollywood, alongside Sunset Boulevard. A retro-futuristic take on a diner A view of Tesla Diner from the parking lot. The sweeping, futuristic design meant to recall the side of a stainless steel Cybertruck was conceived by Franz von Holzhausen, the chief designer of every Tesla vehicle, including the Model S, Model 3, and Cybertruck. The balcony offers clean views of the 45-foot screens that show short films, animations, and sometimes strange futuristic screen savers during the day and a single, longer feature film during the evening, beginning at 9 p.m. Given the light pollution the screens emit and the venue's proximity to nearby residential buildings, the screens will likely have to turn off at 11 p.m. The rest of the facility basically accommodates over 100 cars, no surprise given Los Angeles's already car-drenched culture. The ancillary charging stations are partially covered by large solar panels, but the main lot is uncovered. Though the Tesla Diner is meant to be a model for numerous other locations around the world, this one, built right into the urban fabric of Hollywood, feels almost claustrophobic, a potential traffic chokepoint and likely destination for those wanting to protest Elon Musk. Currently, there is only parking for Teslas and other electric vehicles — gas-powered cars will have to find street parking. Yes, there are robots A later version of Optimus, the robot designed by Tesla, at Tesla Diner. The entire restaurant, while seemingly functional and granularly designed, also seems to serve as a living, breathing promotion of Tesla's proprietary technology, from the focus on the Supercharger stations to the Tesla OS ordering screen to the Optimus bot serving diners popcorn (and fist bumps). There are not one, not two, but four robots on site (although only one is interactive; three are encased in glass in the stairwell). The diner also serves as a reminder that, as far as food is concerned, many people yearn for the old school: smiling servers, a well-stocked condiment table with glass ketchup bottles and Zab's hot sauce, and a semi-open, diner-style kitchen. Still, the company's clear mission of building the Googie dream we were 'promised' is stunningly clear here, from the bathroom, which offers a simulation of being aboard Tesla's Starship craft, to towering screens that were playing (you may have guessed it) The Jetsons when we arrived. Yes, there is some impressive technology. As mentioned above, Tesla vehicles will start receiving notifications if they're near the diner and be able to order directly from the screens within their cars; for walk-in customers, there's on-screen ordering and other now-standard integrations of modernity into the dining experience. But overall, the effect is 1950s space-age with a Tomorrowland fantasy. On tips and service charges Chait tells Eater that gratuities will not be accepted at the registers or car ordering screens. Instead, the company will pay 20 percent of total sales as a gratuity to staff. The restaurant currently supports a staff of 140 employees. On the dishes Patrons waiting in the parking lot at Tesla Diner with a screen showing a cartoon. Cybertruck food box at Tesla Diner. Matthew Kang Biscuits and red gravy Biscuits and gravy at Tesla Diner in a Cybertruck box. The only savory breakfast item we tried, this was a fairly excellent preparation of the Southern morning classic. Layered, flaky, golden-brown buttermilk biscuits cut into square shapes look just right inside the ridiculous Cybertruck box. For a fast-food diner, this dish is somewhat surprising, as one imagines preparing hundreds of servings of biscuits requires a lot of labor. Along with the egg sandwich and breakfast tacos, it serves as another solid breakfast dish available throughout the day. Red-tinted chorizo gravy offers a gentle paprika spice while the organic egg comes sunny-side-up, ideal for breaking into the sauce. The only real downside might be that guests have to attempt to eat it with the angular wooden spoon or fork; biting into the sandwich may result in the sticky gravy adhering to the roof of your mouth. However, among all the breakfast items, this rib-sticking dish stood out as the most sophisticated. Maybe bring your own metal utensils to maximize enjoyment. — Matthew Kang Cinnamon roll Cinnamon roll at Tesla Diner. On the Tesla diner's website, the cinnamon roll appears quite classic: interlocking rounds of dough get topped with an opaque frosting that has a slight fatty sheen. But what arrived at the table, ensconced in the Cybertruck paper box, was less a cinnamon roll and more a cinnamon swirl slab. At first glance, the entire table had the same concern: Will it be dry? After a bite, those fears were quickly assuaged, though it became clear that 'cinnamon roll' may not be the most apt descriptor for this dish. Set in the box was a square slab of a pastry that would fall into the babka family. The slice is a little more than an inch thick and chock-full of cinnamon swirled through tender dough, which seemed less yeasted than usual. The texture, like a traditional babka, falls between cake and bread, with some lift from the yeast, while still maintaining a denser crumb. The topping has the impact of a fluffy frosting, with a gently whipped texture that allows it to sit on top of the roll without making the outside too damp. If only there were some more useful cutlery, instead of the incredibly frustrating wooden 'Cyber Fork' and 'Cyber Knife' which are astoundingly blunt and look like they carry the risk of giving splinters. —Rebecca Roland Cheeseburger A cheeseburger at Tesla Diner. Tesla's cheeseburger forsakes the classic charbroiled diner burger for a more trendy smash burger, but it doesn't quite work here. While the ingredients themselves check out — Brand Beef for the patty, Martin's for the bun, and Greenspan's own New School American cheese — the execution is still lacking. The burger has the crispy, lacy edges that have become the platonic ideal of the smash burger, but achieving that requires the patty to cook for so long and be smashed so thin that it becomes dry. An 'Electric' sauce is slathered on top, plus the usual accoutrements of pickles, caramelized onions, and shredded lettuce. The Martin's Potato Roll is as good as ever, usually plush and savory enough to stand up to the patty and toppings, but it gets lost in how overcooked the patty is. There's a lot of room for this burger to improve, especially with the base quality of ingredients, but at least on day one, it's not a must-order. The burger, currently priced at $13.50, does not come with fries or any sides. —Rebecca Roland Tuna melt The tuna melt. Tesla Diner's tuna melt might be the best item on its menu. As any tuna melt enthusiast can tell you, they are not all created equal. There are multiple variables that must all align to create a great tuna melt, from the bread and its toasted exterior to the cheese, and the composition of the tuna salad itself. So it was an incredible surprise to discover that the tuna melt at the Tesla Diner is, honestly, fantastic; our staff unanimously agreed on its excellence. The tuna melt starts with grilled Tartine buttermilk bread, toasted until golden, while still retaining a soft, brioche-like interior. Within, a well-seasoned wild-caught albacore tuna salad is dotted with lots of fresh dill and the perfect ratio of mayonnaise to make it creamy but not watery; an abundance of snappy, garlicky dill pickles; and two slices of New School American Cheese, which this very publication has described as 'astoundingly better' than the stuff served at a high school cafeteria. Temporarily putting aside all other thoughts on Tesla and its diner, this is one really good tuna melt that starts with elite ingredients and results in something at least on par with the sum of its parts, if not greater. —Hilary Pollack 'Epic' bacon Tesla-branded box with 'epic' bacon. Elon Musk personally ate through the Tesla Diner menu the week prior to opening and demanded that everything on it be 'epic.' Somehow, only the maple-glazed bacon comes with the epic tag on the menu; its presence affirms the bro-tastic, hypermasculine base that tends to attract Tesla fans. High in protein and dusted with black pepper, the strips we got certainly had a good, smoky flavor and meatiness, but lacked an appropriate crispy or crunchy texture that marks the best kinds of bacon. It is respectable that this bacon comes from Bakers Bacon, a small-batch producer from Marina that uses heritage-breed pork and applewood smoke. Unfortunately, this set of bacon wasn't particularly epic, though it was at least serviceable. —Matthew Kang Wagyu beef chili Wagyu chili with onions at Tesla Diner. Wagyu is now so prevalent that the Japanese breed cow is now splashed onto diner menus like it's just another label. The menu says this chili was developed 'in collaboration with RC Provisions,' the producer that also makes Langers' pastrami and virtually all of the quality Jewish deli meats in Los Angeles. This tiny $8 cup isn't the best deal on the menu, but it's thick and substantial, probably better as a hot dog topping than a standalone dish. Topped with a blob of New School American cheese and shredded white onions, it's another protein-laden bite for those avoiding gluten or carbs, exactly the kind of fare Cybertruck drivers will want to wash down their 'epic' bacon slices. —Matthew Kang Soft serve swirl Swirled soft serve with vanilla and chocolate flavors. While the soft serve swirl arrived decidedly half-melted, the flavor (chocolate-vanilla swirl, in this case) and creaminess were rich and old-school, somewhere between Shake Shack's frozen custard and Fosters Freeze's classic soft serve. This is the exact intersection where a modern diner's soft serve should land; don't mess with a good thing. Speaking of messing with a good thing, the ice cream was served with what was colloquially described as a 'Cyber Spoon,' a flat wood paddle. This rang annoying at first, but it is also, in some sort of backwards futuristic way, reminiscent of the mass-produced individual mini sundaes with Popsicle-stick-like 'spoons' that were popular in the 1980s and 1990s. As for the meltedness — well, it's day one. Either this issue will be remedied over time, or the Tesla diner could become a victim of the ice cream machine drama that many fast food chains suffer (soft serve equipment is notoriously temperamental). —Hilary Pollack Creamsicle Orange creamsicle. The Creamsicle is one of the diner's 'Charged Sodas,' essentially dirty sodas fortified with green-coffee-extract-based caffeine that are reminiscent of Panera's caffeine-laden lemonade. The Creamsicle is a combination of orange soda, cream soda, and fresh orange with a vanilla foam and a surprising orange popping boba. These drinks might be the most experimental items on the menu; while you can certainly find a burger or even a tuna melt on any American diner menu, a 'Dirty Kombucha' or boba-laden energy Creamsicle feels very Tesla Diner-specific. We had mixed feelings on the Creamsicle; while the flavor is fine, if not nostalgic and refreshing — can't really go wrong with orange and vanilla — the foam felt unsettling on a carbonated beverage, and the popping boba felt unnecessary. The Creamsicle seems to come from the same school of thought that led Del Taco to start offering boba: a sense of wanting to tap into a more specialty (nonalcoholic) drink experience and perhaps a pervasive belief in the novelty of popping boba from people who probably don't drink a lot of boba (popping boba have been around for a couple of decades). The wooden boba straws at least hold up better than the commonly found paper ones, staying structurally sound while being environmentally friendly. —Hilary Pollack Strawberry shake Strawberry shake. While it seems like Musk is constantly trying to reinvent things that already exist (including the underground transit Boring Company, which is shaping up to be a less efficient version of a metro system, a concept that has been around since the 1800s), the Tesla Diner seems to know where to respect the classics. A prime example is the strawberry shake, which is on par with those found at Mel's Diner or other classic institutions. Its choice to be a bit boring is its greatest strength, leaning on quality dairy from Strauss Farms and flavorful strawberries, rather than trying to redefine what a milkshake should be. The texture is just right, sippable through a wide straw, but not too thin where it becomes milky. It straddles the line of feeling like a treat to be enjoyed on the upper deck on a warm Los Angeles day without being too sweet. There are options to add pie as a mix-in to the shake, but resist the urge. Adding any more sugar in this setting would likely be difficult to stomach and would only detract from how good the milkshake already is. —Rebecca Roland Final thoughts Tesla Diner's lines of cars and people. The popularity of Tesla Diner's first day, with dozens of Cybertrucks, some heavily modified with unique wraps, and numerous other Tesla vehicles parked in the charging station, confirms the Elon Musk-led company's enduring fandom. The entire experience feels pulled out of left field for Tesla, a technology company whose multi-trillion-dollar value is based on the sales of electric vehicles. As Tesla tries to enter a notoriously difficult business, questions swirl around how long Greenspan, Chait, and company will be able to maintain the quality if the company is trying to maximize profits, and if it will continue to be committed to using sustainable and expensive ingredients. Does the project need to be profitable, or can it be a loss leader given the revenues from electric vehicle charging? Musk hinted that the Tesla Diner in Los Angeles would eventually be a model for charging stations around the world. A few years ago, Tesla built a charging station lounge in Kettleman City, California, around the halfway point between Los Angeles and San Francisco off the 5 Freeway. That facility only had some beverages and vending machines with some comfortable seating, but the Tesla Diner is a quick-service restaurant with a full menu and 24/7 service. Operating multiple locations with the same commitment to local ingredients and consistent cooking will be a very difficult, though not impossible, task. It's only the first week of Tesla Diner's operation, so time will tell if Angelenos will adopt this restaurant into the city's diverse dining scene, or if the marketing ploy will fade back into being a glorified charging station.
New York Post
a day ago
- Automotive
- New York Post
Elon Musk's ‘retro-futuristic' Tesla Diner debuts in Hollywood with Optimus robots, Cybertruck food boxes
Elon Musk's Optimus robots greeted hungry fans as the mogul's long-awaited Tesla Diner finally opened its 'retro-futuristic' doors along the famed Hollywood strip. The all-night drive-in offers '80 V4 Supercharger stalls' and two giant entertainment screens — where Tesla's humanoid Optimus robots handed out popcorn to customers who showed up for Monday's debut. The location opened up for orders at 4:20 p.m. local time Monday – Musk's favorite marijuana-themed reference. 5 People wait in line during the opening of the Tesla Diner and Drive-In restaurant and Supercharger on Santa Monica Blvd in the Hollywood neighborhood Los Angeles, California on July 21, 2025. AFP via Getty Images The Tesla CEO shared a number of posts touting the Tesla Diner's features and urged customers to 'try it out.' 'Aiming to be a fun experience for all, whether Tesla owners or not. Will keep improving,' Musk wrote on X. The menu features a number of classic options with locally sourced ingredients, including fried chicken and waffles, a Tesla burger and a Diner club sandwich. Some diners received their food in 'Cybertruck'-themed boxes resembling Tesla's stainless steel pickup trick. Cups and cartons of fries featured a distinctive Tesla lightning bolt logo. If the original diner concept is successful, Musk said in separate post that Tesla would 'establish these in major cities around the world, as well as Supercharger sites on long distance routes.' Musk has teased his diner concept online for several years. 5 Tesla Cybertruck food boxes were given to customers. AFP via Getty Images 5 Tesla's Optimus robots greeted customers and handed out popcorn. Tesla Club- SoCal / SWNS In 2023, Tesla gained approval to move forward with construction on Santa Monica Blvd. Customers are able to watch movies on the diner's giant screens or in their own vehicles by accessing the Tesla diner app. Tesla shares were up about 1% in trading Tuesday. Musk has refocused his efforts on Tesla after stepping back from President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. 5 Musk said the diner will expand if it proves to be successful. AFP via Getty Images 5 The Tesla Diner was described as a retrofuturistic experience. The two had a public falling-out over the president's 'Big Beautiful Bill,' with Musk even declaring plans to launch his own political party. Meanwhile, Tesla is looking to reverse a recent vehicle sales slump. Musk has touted the long-term prospects of the company's technology, especially its Optimus robots and self-driving Robotaxi fleet, which recently debuted in Austin, Texas.
