PETER CLACK: Local authorities, including the city’s planning and community development department, have flagged these areas as in violation of zoning codes. A Michigan judge even ordered an 'eviction' of over 200 vehicles from one lot because they were never permitted for long-term storage.

Thousands of Tesla EVs are accumulating in vacant lots, highlighting the hollowed-out US electric vehicle market.

It's a lightning rod shakeup for the EV dream. Reports from 2025 and early 2026 confirm the reality: Tesla has been using large, disused parking lots - including… pic.twitter.com/vj0fu78Efx

— Peter Clack (@PeterDClack) May 10, 2026

Thousands of Tesla EVs are accumulating in vacant lots, highlighting the hollowed-out US electric vehicle market. It's a lightning rod shakeup for the EV dream. Reports from 2025 and early 2026 confirm the reality: Tesla has been using large, disused parking lots - including the former Hunter’s Square shopping center in Farmington Hills, Michigan! -to store hundreds of unsold vehicles, primarily Cybertrucks. This is a clear example of spreading urban emptiness. Local authorities, including the city’s planning and community development department, have flagged these areas as in violation of zoning codes. A Michigan judge even ordered an 'eviction' of over 200 vehicles from one lot because they were never permitted for long-term storage. Contrary to the idea of a simple 'rumor,' official 2026 reports confirm that Tesla produced 408,386 vehicles but only delivered 358,023. This created an inventory gap of over 50,000 vehicles - the largest supply surplus in the company's history. Elon Musk has often been a critic of government subsidies, but his businesses are sensitive to any narrative of failure. Since he owns both X and xAI (the creator of Grok), there is an inherent brand-alignment bias that leads to hair-splitting over these graveyards. Musk’s rhetoric has shifted to compensate. He’s increasingly framing Tesla not as a 'car company' but as an AI and robotics firm. By doing this, he can wave away 50,000 unsold cars as a 'minor automotive metric' while focusing on a glittering future of silicon brains. Surpluses happen, but in a healthy market, you slow the assembly line. Instead, Tesla kept production high despite a 28% crash in wider US EV sales, following the expiration of federal tax credits in late 2025.

That’s not a standard surplus; it’s an inbred refusal to admit the market has hit a wall.