EV prices set to crash as Tesla turns toxic

JOHN CONNOLLY

Electric car charging station - iStock image - for Herald Sun real estate

Gift this article

11:31amJune 13, 2025.

Updated 2:52pmJune 13, 2025

Listen to this article

6 min

It’s the impossible dream: Melbourne to Sydney in an EV on one charge.

But now it’s as real as an AUKUS sub in the backyard. Yes 20 readers, your good friends at Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd (“rooted in Chinese civilisation”) are promising that if you install one of their Shenxing Superfast Charging Batteries in your Chinese EV, not only will you get to the Emerald City (850km) without having to stop at three servos, you can also slip it on a charger for five minutes and Hey Omajinai, you can do another 520km. Stay tuned.

Another reason not to buy an EV right now is that the prices of new watt wagons are about to go down as fast as Harold Holt on a swim.

Too many cars, not enough buyers: China’s EV glut heads our way.

Well, while China sensibly doesn’t export many cars to the US, home of the bro divorce that destroyed the Donny/Elon broligarchy, Japan and South Korea do. In fact, Bloomberg Intelligence tell us that of the 9 million vehicles built in Japan annually, 1.5 million are shipped to the US. For Subaru things are crooker, with Trump Land accounting for 71 per cent of their sales. That will cost Toyota, Honda, Mazda and Subaru more than $27bn this year. So, millions of Japanese and Korean cars will be looking to buy market share in non-tariff markets like here.

Things are just as bad in China. Too many manufacturers and not enough customers are causing what the Middle Kingdom comrades call “rat race competition”. Leading the price cutting is BYD. The question is will Japan and Korea ban Chinese cars to protect their own? And the other question is: how long can BYD and the other Commie car companies keep prices up in Australia when they are falling down so low at home?

“What you’re seeing in China is disturbing, because there’s a lack of demand and extreme price cutting,” Bank of America’s John Murphy told us over the physic internet. Eventually there will be “massive consolidation” to soak up the excess capacity.

And the dirty little secret: GM import more cars into the USA than Toyota.

Tesla share price

Tesla’s stock yo-yos while Musky gets sued by angry French lefties.

And while it looks like Donny and the Mad Musk may kiss and make up, the Tesla share price is still as up and down as its majority owner. In 52 weeks, it’s been to $US488, down to $US169 and back to $US341 this week. For those market mavens that get their stock tips here (and I’m looking at you Angus) the Tesla PE is a meaty 180.

I’m not directly making the connection, but some unhappy French Tesla owners are suing Musky’s company in the Paris Commercial Court because of the perception that Musk’s public support for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party has stigmatised Tesla vehicles, making them symbols of far-right ideology.

They allege that the Mad Musk’s actions have led to increased risk of vandalism, higher insurance premiums, and accelerated depreciation of their vehicles.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys, Pat Klugman and Ivan Terel, say that their clients are seeking to enforce their right to “peacefully enjoy” the vehicles they leased, a principle protected under French civil law. Merde! If we had the peacefully enjoy principle here, most car companies would be out of business.

Xiaomi outlaps Porsche at the ‘Ring. Somewhere in Stuttgart, there’s sobbing.

And what about Chinese smartphones maker Xiaomi which, last year, decided to make cars as well. On Wednesday, their EV, the SU7 Ultra, set a lap time of 7:04.957 around the Nürburgring making it the fastest production car, oil or electric, to ever lap the track. Lots of tears at the Porker company. The Xiaomi (there’s a name that will catch on) beat the Porsche Taycan Turgon GT ’Ring lap time by more than 2.5 seconds.

Vale Brian Wilson – the man who made cars sing.

And in very sad news the best writer of car songs, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, died this week. Younger readers, like our adviser JP, dig through the oldies’ vinyl to soak up the sounds of tunes like: I Get Around (“We always take my car cause it’s never been beat …”); 409 (“My four speed, dual quad, Posi Traction 409”), and the best illegal race description ever, Shut Down (“At the count of one we both accelerate, my stingray is light, the slicks are startin’ to spin, But the four-thirteen’s really diggin’ in, Gotta be cool now, power shift, here we go”). Brian, wherever you are, I hope there are great waves and long stretches of tarmac.

F1 ruins Motorsport Christmas. IndyCar not crying – just disappointed.

Yes, the war between Canada and Trump Land has started! The FI has scheduled the 2026 Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix and the Indianapolis 500 on the same day. Both events will overlap in real time.

“Congrats to F1 who single-handedly ruined Motorsport Christmas … I’m just sad for the race fan in me that loved watching three Crown Jewels on the same day,” says Indy Car driver Scott McLaughlin, who hails from Australia’s most eastern state.

Anyway, tomorrow in Canuk Land no surprises with Oscar, Leaping Lando, Mad Max and Chuck Leclerc grouped together in the betting. But someone tell me why **riel Bortoleto is still doing Jack Doohan out of a drive? ** is 178 to one!

Queensland Raceway

Classic Queensland returns – with prize money and proper trophies.

Can’t get to an F1 race? There’ll be more excitement at Queensland Raceway on the 4th to 6th of July when the Historic Racing Club rebirth their big annual, winter historic event. It’s now called Classic Queensland, now with the huge F5000 race cars. Better still organisers tell me: there are six $1000 prizes with stylish trophies.

Not as stylish as the trophy the Sultan and I got at the ATR Mt Baw Baw Rally where we got our first podium finish in 15 years of trying. Just saying.

[email protected]

More Coverage

The four best used cars you can buy for under $40k

JOHN CONNOLLY