Mercedes-Benz has seen the sale of its electric vehicles (EVs) increase significantly in the U.S. this year. However, a new report shows that dealers have had difficulty keeping up with inventory levels for the automaker’s EQ lineup, with sales times for the EVs exceeding the luxury segment average.
In the third quarter, Mercedes sold 10,423 EVs in the U.S., marking a 284-percent increase year over year. Despite the gradual increase in EV sales, the German automaker’s EVs are sitting on dealership lots and are not being sold off as quickly as other vehicles.
According to a report from Automotive News citing Edmunds data, Mercedes-Benz battery-electric EQ models took an average of 82 days to sell at dealerships in September. Comparatively, vehicles across the overall luxury segment averaged 57 days, while BMW vehicles took around 38 days to sell.
In various anonymous interviews with Automotive News, Mercedes dealers pointed to the brand’s lack of effort in responding to growing EV competition with sales programs and to the products themselves as the reasons for heightened inventory levels. One person who runs a Mercedes store said he currently has over six months’ worth of EVs and only a 50-day supply of the company’s gas cars.
“The EVs are coming whether or not you asked for them or earned them,” the retail store operator said. “There is too much of a price premium — especially at the top end of the EQ lineup — and almost no [lease] support.”
He added that the EQ models didn’t have the same “lust factor” as some of the automaker’s classic gas cars, including the S-Class sedan and the AMG-GT coupe.
“Our cars need to be ‘want’ cars,” he said. “The S-Class has maintained good loyalty because it’s aspirational. An EQS is not something that most people aspire to own.”
Credit: Automotive News
A Mercedes spokesperson declined to comment on internal discussions with its retailers.
CEO of Mercedes-Benz U.S., Dimitris Psillakis, blamed slow sales on a lack of product variety and on the EV segment being so new. Additionally, he pointed to issues in the supply chain as preventing variety at dealerships and keeping some more affordable models, such as the EQB compact EV, off of their lots.
“We are with a new lineup in a new world,” Psillakis said. “There is no past, there is no experience. We still face challenges around our product lines and have some restrictions coming from suppliers. We don’t always get the volume we want when we want it.”
Psillakis also said that Mercedes didn’t have any supply of the affordable EQB at the beginning of the year. Although this has changed, he says that it still takes time for the EV to reach dealers.
The Mercedes-Benz EV lineup and pricing structure is as follows, according to the automaker’s website:
- EQB (SUV); starts at $52,750
- EQE (sedan); starts at $74,900
- EQE (SUV); starts at $77,900
- EQS (sedan); starts at $104,400
- EQS (SUV); starts at $104,400
Other automakers have also faced difficulty in moving EVs alongside inflation and rising interest rates, and especially in the luxury segment.
The average EV overall sold in 36 days near the beginning of this year, according to a Cloud Theory report cited by Automotive News. By September, the report showed that this number had jumped to 80 days.
The problem is even worse for Mercedes and in the luxury segment overall. The average luxury EV sales time across brands increased by 73 percent in September compared to the same month last year, according to the aforementioned Edmunds data. For Mercedes dealers, the rate increased by 110 percent year over year.
“The ship of early adopters — willing to put a reservation down on virtually any EV announced — has sailed,” says Edmunds Insights Director Ivan Drury.
The report comes after Mercedes delayed its internal goals for electrification earlier this year, now aiming to reach a milestone of half of its auto sales being plug-in hybrids or fully electric by 2026 instead of a year prior. It also comes after Mercedes joined other automakers in adopting Tesla’s charging hardware, dubbed the North American Charging Standard (NACS).
Mercedes-Benz to launch Level 3 automated driving tech in the US by Q4
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News
Tesla FSD (Supervised) fleet passes 8.4 billion cumulative miles
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system has now surpassed 8.4 billion cumulative miles.
The figure appears on Tesla’s official safety page, which tracks performance data for FSD (Supervised) and other safety technologies.
Tesla has long emphasized that large-scale real-world data is central to improving its neural network-based approach to autonomy. Each mile driven with FSD (Supervised) engaged contributes additional edge cases and scenario training for the system.
The milestone also brings Tesla closer to a benchmark previously outlined by CEO Elon Musk. Musk has stated that roughly 10 billion miles of training data may be needed to achieve safe unsupervised self-driving at scale, citing the “long tail” of rare but complex driving situations that must be learned through experience.
The growth curve of FSD Supervised’s cumulative miles over the past five years has been notable.
As noted in data shared by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased from roughly 6 million in 2021 to 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025. In just the first 50 days of 2026, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles.
At the current pace, the fleet is trending towards hitting about 10 billion FSD Supervised miles this year. The increase has been driven by Tesla’s growing vehicle fleet, periodic free trials, and expanding Robotaxi operations, among others.
With the fleet now past 8.4 billion cumulative miles, Tesla’s supervised system is approaching that threshold, even as regulatory approval for fully unsupervised deployment remains subject to further validation and oversight.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system has now surpassed 8.4 billion cumulative miles.
The figure appears on Tesla’s official safety page, which tracks performance data for FSD (Supervised) and other safety technologies.
Tesla has long emphasized that large-scale real-world data is central to improving its neural network-based approach to autonomy. Each mile driven with FSD (Supervised) engaged contributes additional edge cases and scenario training for the system.
The milestone also brings Tesla closer to a benchmark previously outlined by CEO Elon Musk. Musk has stated that roughly 10 billion miles of training data may be needed to achieve safe unsupervised self-driving at scale, citing the “long tail” of rare but complex driving situations that must be learned through experience.
The growth curve of FSD Supervised’s cumulative miles over the past five years has been notable.
As noted in data shared by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased from roughly 6 million in 2021 to 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025. In just the first 50 days of 2026, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles.
At the current pace, the fleet is trending towards hitting about 10 billion FSD Supervised miles this year. The increase has been driven by Tesla’s growing vehicle fleet, periodic free trials, and expanding Robotaxi operations, among others.
With the fleet now past 8.4 billion cumulative miles, Tesla’s supervised system is approaching that threshold, even as regulatory approval for fully unsupervised deployment remains subject to further validation and oversight.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk fires back after Wikipedia co-founder claims neutrality and dubs Grokipedia “ridiculous”
Musk’s response to Wales’ comments, which were posted on social media platform X, was short and direct: “Famous last words.”
Elon Musk fired back at Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales after the longtime online encyclopedia leader dismissed xAI’s new AI-powered alternative, Grokipedia, as a “ridiculous” idea that is bound to fail.
Musk’s response to Wales’ comments, which were posted on social media platform X, was short and direct: “Famous last words.”
Wales made the comments while answering questions about Wikipedia’s neutrality. According to Wales, Wikipedia prides itself on neutrality.
“One of our core values at Wikipedia is neutrality. A neutral point of view is non-negotiable. It’s in the community, unquestioned… The idea that we’ve become somehow ‘Wokepidea’ is just not true,” Wales said.
When asked about potential competition from Grokipedia, Wales downplayed the situation. “There is no competition. I don’t know if anyone uses Grokipedia. I think it is a ridiculous idea that will never work,” Wales wrote.
After Grokipedia went live, Larry Sanger, also a co-founder of Wikipedia, wrote on X that his initial impression of the AI-powered Wikipedia alternative was “very OK.”
“My initial impression, looking at my own article and poking around here and there, is that Grokipedia is very OK. The jury’s still out as to whether it’s actually better than Wikipedia. But at this point I would have to say ‘maybe!’” Sanger stated.
Musk responded to Sanger’s assessment by saying it was “accurate.” In a separate post, he added that even in its V0.1 form, Grokipedia was already better than Wikipedia.
During a past appearance on the Tucker Carlson Show, Sanger argued that Wikipedia has drifted from its original vision, citing concerns about how its “Reliable sources/Perennial sources” framework categorizes publications by perceived credibility. As per Sanger, Wikipedia’s “Reliable sources/Perennial sources” list leans heavily left, with conservative publications getting effectively blacklisted in favor of their more liberal counterparts.
As of writing, Grokipedia has reportedly surpassed 80% of English Wikipedia’s article count.
News
Tesla Sweden appeals after grid company refuses to restore existing Supercharger due to union strike
The charging site was previously functioning before it was temporarily disconnected in April last year for electrical safety reasons.
Tesla Sweden is seeking regulatory intervention after a Swedish power grid company refused to reconnect an already operational Supercharger station in Åre due to ongoing union sympathy actions.
The charging site was previously functioning before it was temporarily disconnected in April last year for electrical safety reasons. A temporary construction power cabinet supplying the station had fallen over, described by Tesla as occurring “under unclear circumstances.” The power was then cut at the request of Tesla’s installation contractor to allow safe repair work.
While the safety issue was resolved, the station has not been brought back online. Stefan Sedin, CEO of Jämtkraft elnät, told Dagens Arbete (DA) that power will not be restored to the existing Supercharger station as long as the electric vehicle maker’s union issues are ongoing.
“One of our installers noticed that the construction power had been backed up and was on the ground. We asked Tesla to fix the system, and their installation company in turn asked us to cut the power so that they could do the work safely.
“When everything was restored, the question arose: ‘Wait a minute, can we reconnect the station to the electricity grid? Or what does the notice actually say?’ We consulted with our employer organization, who were clear that as long as sympathy measures are in place, we cannot reconnect this facility,” Sedin said.
The union’s sympathy actions, which began in March 2024, apply to work involving “planning, preparation, new connections, grid expansion, service, maintenance and repairs” of Tesla’s charging infrastructure in Sweden.
Tesla Sweden has argued that reconnecting an existing facility is not equivalent to establishing a new grid connection. In a filing to the Swedish Energy Market Inspectorate, the company stated that reconnecting the installation “is therefore not covered by the sympathy measures and cannot therefore constitute a reason for not reconnecting the facility to the electricity grid.”
Sedin, for his part, noted that Tesla’s issue with the Supercharger is quite unique. And while Jämtkraft elnät itself has no issue with Tesla, its actions are based on the unions’ sympathy measures against the electric vehicle maker.
“This is absolutely the first time that I have been involved in matters relating to union conflicts or sympathy measures. That is why we have relied entirely on the assessment of our employer organization. This is not something that we have made any decisions about ourselves at all.
“It is not that Jämtkraft elnät has a conflict with Tesla, but our actions are based on these sympathy measures. Should it turn out that we have made an incorrect assessment, we will correct ourselves. It is no more difficult than that for us,” the executive said.
Tesla FSD (Supervised) fleet passes 8.4 billion cumulative miles
Elon Musk fires back after Wikipedia co-founder claims neutrality and dubs Grokipedia “ridiculous”
