4 Tesla owners share what it's like owning the EV among Musk backlash and protests

• Tesla owners have found themselves in the crosshairs of political protests across the world.
• Elon Musk's involvement in the Trump administration has had a knock-on impact on his EV company.
• One Tesla owner sold his Cybertruck, another told BI they sold company shares but kept the car.

In recent months, backlash against Elon Musk has spurred a Tesla boycott movement, pushing some owners and shareholders to ditch the brand — and, in some cases, leading to vandalism incidents.

Business Insider spoke to four Tesla owners about their concerns on ownership amid a growing campaign against the EV giant.

While one owner returned his Cybertruck as a precaution for his kids, the other three owners said they don't plan to get rid of their vehicles, despite the rise in anti-Tesla sentiment.

The following stories are based on transcribed conversations with Tesla owners. Business Insider has verified their identities and vehicle ownership. Their words have been edited for length and clarity.

I'm a big Tesla fan, but returned my Cybertruck because my daughter was worried about getting bullied

Ben Baker is a Tesla owner living in Sacramento, California, who sold his Cybertruck.

I'm a huge fan of technology. I already own a Tesla, which I absolutely love, and I really wanted a Cybertruck.

I think Cybertrucks are freaking awesome. They're really fun to drive. They're roomy and spacious. I wasn't buying it for other people, I was buying the Cybertruck because I wanted to drive the future.

Not too long ago, after the election, somebody keyed my Tesla Model Y, and I was like, "OK, that's no big deal." I live in California, which is a Democratic state, and so I kind of figured that there would be some of that stuff. I didn't think it would be that big of a deal until I went and bought a Cybertruck.

The first week I drove the Cybertruck, I took my family to Starbucks in it. My family went in and I took some cool pictures. As I was doing that, three people walked behind me and started looking at me and laughing. Then one of them called me a Nazi.

I go, "What are you talking about? I'm just buying this awesome truck. I think it's awesome. I'm not a Nazi." They were like, "Whatever, Nazi."

I thought was weird.

Later on, one of my daughters told me that if I kept the Cybertruck, she was going to get bullied. My son, who leans right, said I should be able to drive the car I want.

I started thinking about if one of them is driving the Tesla Cybertruck and someone started vandalizing it. My daughter is young, she's had her license maybe a year. That's terrifying to me.

I'm a father and I have to do the right thing by my kids. If I could afford to own a Cybertruck myself and then send them to school with another vehicle, then great, it would be on me if it got damaged. But I can't have that happen to them in that vehicle. And who knows how far these guys will take it. They could harm my kids physically — and I couldn't live with myself if that happened. To me, it just wasn't worth seeing my daughter live in fear of the vehicle getting vandalized at their school.

I ended up taking it back, and Tesla was really cool about it. I was able to unwind everything.

I think people should have the right to protest — but they should have the right to protest without destruction. That's where the lines have been crossed.

Read more about Baker's story here.

I no longer align with Tesla, but I have no interest in taking down the company or selling my cars

John VonBokel is a 45-year-old Tesla owner living near St. Louis, Missouri. Business Insider has verified his shareholder status.

I have appreciated and admired Tesla for some time. I was under the impression that it aligned with my personal beliefs in terms of environment, which also overlaps with my personal political beliefs.

Now I feel as though I was wrong all along, or something has changed — but I certainly don't feel like I align with the company and the brand anymore. The shift has been uncomfortable and difficult.

As of October last year, I had hundreds of Tesla shares, and I sold all of them in the last few months.

My decision to sell was primarily financial. After the election, the stock just started going up, and I couldn't figure out how Elon Musk and Trump being together was beneficial to Tesla — and certainly not to the degree that warranted its market capitalization to nearly double.

For me, that meant it was overvalued and I needed to cash out. But I'm under no illusion that selling my shares had any impact on Elon's personal wealth or are somehow a repudiation of his actions.

I feel like what Elon Musk is doing politically is negatively impacting the brand and the company. But I'm more interested in protests that are focused on Elon Musk and Donald Trump's specific actions, or politics in general.

The name "Tesla Takedown" itself evokes something negative to me. They're trying to take down a company that I believe is still full of good people who just happen to be led by somebody I don't support anymore.

While I'm not interested in taking down the company, I'm also not interested in supporting it.

I drive a Tesla pretty much daily and haven't experienced vandalism, so I'm not worried about that. But I certainly would struggle to buy a new Tesla now.

Coincidentally, though, they don't have anything that I really want. I have multiple Teslas that I'm happy with. I have test-driven the newer versions, but there aren't any improvements that make me want to get a new loan at current interest rates.

The future is difficult to predict. My decision to purchase another vehicle would depend partly on what they come out with.

I've been laughed at for my Tesla, but I'm not deterred from buying another one

Mitchell Feldman is a Telsa owner living in the UK.

I'm a gadget enthusiast, and I was drawn to buying a Tesla because it had all the things I wanted in a car. It was easy to use and environmentally friendly. I liked the idea of never having to go to a gas station again. The safety features, like assisted driving and situational awareness, also drew me.

I bought my Model Y in 2022, and it's performed over and above my expectations.

In March, I experienced the first negative reaction to my Tesla since I've had the car. I went to a concert in London, and while I was in the parking lot, I saw a guy with his wife and daughter pointing at my car and laughing.

The guy came up to me in a very confrontational way and said, "Do you support Elon Musk, then, driving a Tesla?"

I was quite aghast. I felt quite violated by the question and didn't know what to say.

I've always admired Elon Musk because I think that a lot of the technology he creates is for betterment. I like that his businesses are data-driven, whether it's Neuralink, SpaceX, or Tesla.

I hadn't considered the impact his work at DOGE was having on the US government; as someone based in the UK, I'm somewhat removed from what's happening. I think Trump has brought in someone who will look at the situation through the lens of a CEO.

The incident made me realize how the perception of Musk impacts his brands. It hasn't put me off from buying another Tesla, however. I'm hoping to have the new Model Y in a few months.

Everyone is allowed an opinion, but I'm proud of the fact that I don't conform to the crowd and choose my personal preferences over listening to what everyone else says.

Read more about Feldman's story here.

I don't think people should make assumptions about my politics because I own a Tesla

Michele Pierog, a 57-year-old Tesla owner from New Hampshire.

I got myself a Tesla Model Y in 2023. I wanted something that was convenient, and I didn't think that any competitor brands had charging infrastructure as robust as Tesla's.

I wanted to try out the car, but thought I'd probably sell it in two years. After three months of driving it, I was amazed by how much I enjoyed never having to go to a gas station.

The utility has been great. I often use its self-driving driving capabilities. There's plenty of room, and it has a "frunk" — a trunk and the front where I keep games for my granddaughter when we're traveling. We call it the "frunk of fun."

I'm not a huge news watcher, so I wasn't really aware of the Tesla controversy. I knew Elon Musk had been put in a position of power, and people weren't happy, but I wasn't aware this impacted Tesla drivers until a friend called me a couple of weeks ago. She asked how I felt about driving my Tesla.

My response was that nothing had changed for me. The utility of the car was the same.

I did some research afterward and saw that there were protests at Tesla dealerships and some violent acts around Teslas. Regardless of what people's political views are about my vehicle, I think it's wrong that people are vandalizing Teslas.

Recently, when I was driving my granddaughter, someone in a truck behind me drove up aggressively close to me and sandwiched me between them and the car in front. They started beeping and yelling at me. I don't know if this was because of my Tesla, but I assumed that it was because it coincided with media reporting of Tesla vandalism, and there aren't many other Teslas in my area.

Even though this is speculative, I'm now wondering whether my vehicle choice is putting me in a bad position safety-wise.

I don't yet feel unsafe enough to get rid of my Tesla, but it saddens me that I may have to make a decision about changing my car based on other people's perceptions.

Driving a Tesla doesn't automatically mean I support what Elon is doing or have a particular political view. I don't think people should make assumptions about me because of the car I drive.

Do you have a story to share about the anti-Tesla movement? Contact these reporters at at aaltchek@insider.com and ccheong@businessinsider.com, or via Signal at aalt.19 and charissacheong.95.