Despite many problems, Tesla far out front in market sales

Although it has become the world’s most valuable automaker, Tesla still has to figure out how to become consistently profitable, reduce quality problems in its luxury cars and more quickly turn alluring prototypes into mass-produced vehicles.

One area where it hasn’t had much to fret about: competition.

Over the past year or so, several automakers, including Audi, Jaguar and Porsche, have added heralded new models intended to cut into Tesla’s electric dominance. But they have barely made a dent, at least in the United States. Sales of the Jaguar I-pace, an electric sport utility vehicle similar to the Tesla Model Y, have totaled just over 1,000 this year. Porsche reported similar sales for its electric sedan, the Taycan.

Audi, which has grown steadily in the United States over the past decade, introduced an electric SUV, the E-tron, last year, and sales have sputtered. So far this year, Audi has sold just under 2,900. In many states, the car is advertised at prices 13% or more below its list price -- unusual for an Audi.

‘‘Obviously from the numbers we’re seeing, these cars aren’t setting the world on fire,’’ said Karl Brauer, an independent auto analyst. ‘‘It was a mistake to think that just because these cars were on the market that people were going to buy them.’’

General Motors has fared somewhat better with its Chevrolet Bolt, which the company introduced in 2016. The company has sold over 8,000 Bolts this year. Sales of the Nissan Leaf have topped 3,000.

Tesla, which does not break out sales by country, is clearly operating at a different level. State data analyzed by Cross-sell shows that 56,000 new Teslas have been registered this year in 23 states, including California, Florida, New York and Texas. Analysts said Tesla’s 50-state sales total probably exceeded 70,000 cars. Globally, the company delivered about 180,000 cars in the first six months of the year.

Of course, electric vehicles, including Tesla’s, represent a tiny proportion of auto sales, which totaled more than 17 million in the United States last year. Electrics are a bigger part of the new-car market in Europe, and Tesla faces more competition there than in the United States -- but not a lot more. China has many homegrown electric carmakers, but they tend to make cheaper vehicles that do not directly compete with Tesla’s offerings.

Regardless of the market, though, EVS are the fastest-growing segment of the auto industry.