But once again, Musk has bigger issues at Tesla that came to a head July 2. Tesla had a rough start to the year as Musk's political outspokenness has turned off many potential buyers. After record sales in Q4 2024, the company has now reported two straight quarters of falling sales.

Tesla's EV deliveries — a close proxy for sales — fell 13.5% to 384,122 in Q2, compared with a year earlier. Sellside analysts had projected a range of 380,0

After a political detour that angered customers and tanked profits, the billionaire CEO returns to a Tesla in crisis.