Tesla’s Customer Satisfaction Dips Amid Industry Challenges, According to JD Power Study

Tesla, the electric vehicle pioneer led by Elon Musk, has seen a decline in customer satisfaction, falling nine points to 878 out of 1,000 in the 2023 JD Power US Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) study. This drop places Tesla behind luxury car brands such as Jaguar, which scored 887, and Land Rover and Porsche, both of which scored 883.

Despite the decline, Tesla remains a top performer in the industry, ranking well above the industry average of 845. The APEAL study evaluates new vehicle owners’ satisfaction across several categories, including exterior styling, fuel economy, and infotainment systems, among others.

This latest report is part of a series of challenges for Tesla, including another recent JD Power study that found Tesla vehicles to be experiencing more frequent breakdowns than in previous years, even more than traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. This finding challenges the commonly held belief that electric vehicles are simpler and more reliable than their internal combustion counterparts.

The 2023 customer satisfaction scores do not yet reflect the potential impact of significant layoffs ordered by Musk this year, which affected a double-digit percentage of Tesla’s global workforce, including key personnel responsible for maintaining and developing Tesla’s extensive Supercharger network. Although some employees were rehired following backlash, the layoffs have contributed to a growing sense of instability within the company.

Further complicating Tesla’s reputation are ongoing quality control issues, the controversial and delayed Cybertruck, and Musk’s ambitious but yet-to-be-realized plans for autonomous driving technology and robotaxis.

The automotive industry and Tesla enthusiasts will be keenly watching the next JD Power report in 2024 to see how these developments affect Tesla’s customer satisfaction and market performance.