Stellantis Chief Muses EV Margins, Targets Tesla

On Wednesday, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares suggested that Tesla’s profitability was on the decline due to the automaker having to confront some of the issues of a legacy manufacturer.

"They are entering my world, the world of tight pricing, cost competitiveness, and the operational issues that a big company like ours may face," Tavares told the press during a presentation of Stellantis’ half-year financial report. 

Since everyone loves a little industrial drama, the statement became national news. But is Tesla really on the decline because it’s finally on the level of other multinational automakers or is Tavares just coping? 

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Tesla Wildly Overestimated Range and Turned Deaf Ear to Complaints, Allege Reuters

It will surprise precisely zero of our readers to learn that some carmakers apply optimistic range estimates to their electric vehicles. Prior to EVs taking the stage, it also wasn’t uncommon – especially prior to changes in methods at the EPA – for cars with internal combustion powertrains to bear outsized fuel economy ratings thanks to twisted testing protocols.

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Tesla Temporarily Allows FSD Transfer to New Vehicles

If you want to add what Tesla calls full self-driving capability (FSD) to one of its new vehicles, you’re looking at up to $15,000 on top of the price of a new model. In an effort to juice sales this quarter, the automaker is letting existing FSD customers transfer their services to a new model, but only in the next couple of months. 

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Tesla Driver Receives Felony For Fatal Autopilot Collision

Tesla drivers abusing Autopilot and the company’s “full self-driving” tech have almost become a meme at this point, but there are very real consequences when things go wrong. A California man was behind the wheel of a Tesla Model S in 2019 when it collided with another car, killing the two people inside. The Tesla was using Autopilot at the time, and the driver recently pleaded no contest to two counts of vehicular manslaughter.

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Tesla Cybertruck Production Has Begun - Sort Of

The Tesla Cybertruck has finally made it to production, but hopeful buyers shouldn’t be jumping for joy just yet. The company has already confirmed that volume production won’t start until 2024, and if a new Twitter rumor is correct, the truck will only be available in one battery variant at launch.

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Tesla Commits To IAA Mobility Show In Munich

We’ve been hearing for years that auto shows are a thing of the past and that the internet has killed the personal touches we all loved about the industry. But while it might be true that auto shows aren’t the extravaganzas they once were, it can also be true that there’s still life in the industry and a reason to attend. 

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2021 Tesla Model 3 Reader Rental Review, Part 1: The Future Is Interesting…And A Little Complicated

Tesla clearly isn’t just a car manufacturer anymore - it’s a buzzword. For some, it’s a synonym for disruption and innovation; for others, that disruption and innovation aren’t all that welcome. And Tesla’s existence is inextricably linked to politics, the ongoing “Full Self Driving” soap opera, and the Almighty’s gift to headline writers himself, Elon Musk. All of this tends to polarize people into “Love Tesla” and “Loathe Tesla” camps, but I think both camps would agree about the brand’s impact - the company has revolutionized the way mass-market cars are designed, powered, and sold.

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Leaked Video Appears to Show Tesla Bus Prototype

Tesla appears to finally be ready to start deliveries of the Cybertruck, nearly four years after its reveal event. Despite the delays surrounding the truck and the elusive Roadster, Tesla has a number of side projects going on, including an electric minibus.

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Volvo the Latest to Adopt NACS

The exodus from CCS charging ports to NACS plugs continues apace with Volvo announcing its plan to incorporate the Tesla-designed tech starting in 2025.

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ChargePoint to Offer Tesla Charging Plugs Going Forward

Tesla’s fortunes seem to have brightened in the last few weeks, as Ford, GM, and Rivian announced a switch to its Supercharger network and a new charging plug standard. Now it appears one of Tesla’s charging competitors is jumping on board, as ChargePoint recently announced the availability of the automaker’s NACS plugs at its locations. 

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Texas: New State-Sponsored Chargers Must Include Tesla Charging Standard

Tesla sparks controversy at almost every turn, but the company’s genius occasionally shines through. It’s becoming increasingly clear that Tesla’s Supercharger network is not only its competitive advantage in the EV space but is a significant asset that will help it remain the company to beat. After Ford, GM, and Rivian signed on to use Tesla’s NACS charging standard, the automaker’s home state of Texas issued new rules requiring that state-sponsored charging stations carry its plugs.

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Tesla Is The Most American-Made Car Brand

Many people think the Detroit Big Three brands are the most American cars on our roads, but that’s not the case. Cars.com recently released its list of the most American-made car brands, and the name topping the list may surprise you.

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Rivian Cuts Deal for Tesla Charging Network, Adopts Supercharger Connector

While most automakers were working out what their first all-electric model should be, Tesla was building up a proprietary charging network that helped assure that it would be the EV manufacturer other brands would envy. The vehicles themselves certainly became the benchmark for electric vehicles. But it was the network that guaranteed Tesla’s dominant position in the market. Simply having access to the Supercharger stations is one of the biggest perks of owning a Tesla, as they’re relatively common and suffer less downtime than rival networks.

Despite originally being exclusive to Tesla customers, the brand has decided to open its ports up to the whole world. Ford and General Motors have even signed agreements with the company so that their customers can utilize those charging stations in 2024. Now it appears to be Rivian’s turn.

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Tesla Model S and Model X Discounted By $7,500 and Offer Free Supercharging

For a while, it seemed like Tesla would never stop raising prices, but earlier this year, the numbers started falling. It appears Tesla isn’t done offering discounts, as it’s giving buyers up to $7,500 off Model S and Model X vehicles in its inventory and is handing out three years of free charging as a cherry on top.

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Plugged Up: GM to Adopt Tesla Charging Standard

It was only a few short days ago we brought you news of Ford announcing it will be granting its EVs the capability of hoovering electricity from Tesla-branded charging stations. If that news gave you whiplash, last night’s announcement of a similar move from General Motors will surely put yer back out.

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Some Tesla Owners Apparently Leave Service Visits Minus One Radar System

Tesla often comes under fire for running its business far differently from other automakers, which can lead to interesting outcomes with vehicle performance. The latest story comes to us from a Tesla forum, where The Drive noticed users claiming that the company was removing the radar systems from their vehicles without asking.

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Some California Buyers Could Get a Tesla Model 3 for Less Than a New Toyota Camry

Should you buy a Camry, or should you buy a car from Elon Musk? If you’re shopping on price alone and live in California, the choice might become a lot simpler after this news. Reuters recently reported that the Model 3 can become less expensive than a new Camry if buyers can capitalize on federal and California state incentives.

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NHTSA Ends Probe Into Tesla's Video Game Feature

On Tuesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it was wrapping up its investigation into Tesla’s "Passenger Play" feature. The service originally offered occupants the ability to play a slew of video games while vehicles were in motion. But this was changed after the automaker felt pressure from federal regulators.

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Tesla Model 3 Buyers in Texas Get a Year of Free Overnight Charging

Tesla has a new plan to draw in more car buyers and expand its electrification footprint in Texas. The automaker recently launched a new program through Tesla Electric that provides one year of overnight home charging to new Model 3 buyers. If you live in Texas and want to take advantage of the program, make sure you act before June 30.

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Tesla Cybertruck Interior Leaked

With rumors that Tesla’s Cybertruck is nearing production status, there’s been renewed interest in speculating about what the vehicle will be like. Suggestions have been made that the all-electric pickup’s body will need to be lightly restyled to adhere to certain safety regulations and curiosity has abounded regarding the truck’s interior design. Will it be as staid and minimalist as the cabin in the Model Y or would it include additional instrumentation like the Model X?

Thanks to some leaked photos, we appear to have our answer.

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Tesla and Ford Announce Surprising Charging Station Partnership

Ford hasn’t been shy about its ambitions to overtake Tesla as the leading EV producer in the U.S., but the two companies aren’t as angry with each other as you might think. Their chief executives recently sat down for a chat on Twitter Spaces and made a surprise announcement that has generated strong opinions from all corners of the automotive world: Ford EV owners will gain access to around 12,000 North American Tesla Superchargers starting next year.

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The Base Tesla Model 3 Is Now Even Cheaper

For a while, it seemed like Tesla's values would never come back  to Earth. Buyers lucky enough to get a new EV from the automaker were flipping their cars for way more than the asking price, and many people overpaid as a result. Tesla started cutting prices earlier this year, making all models more attainable, and now the company has slashed the price of an entry-level Model 3 to below $40,000.

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QOTD: Does Tesla Need to Advertise?

We mentioned yesterday that Tesla is going to advertise more. But does the company really need to?

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Tesla Will Do a "Little Advertising" After All

Tesla has long avoided advertising, opting instead to use the money to improve its products, or at least that’s what CEO Elon Musk initially said. That said, he’s changed his tune, and purchasing an ad-funded social media likely played a role. Musk recently told shareholders that Tesla would “try out a little advertising and see how it goes.”

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Tesla Owners Sue After Software Update Slashes Their Range

Tesla owners are passionate about their vehicles, especially when it comes to all the cool things they can do compared to other EVS. It wasn’t surprising to see them sue the automaker in 2016 over claims that a new software update limited their driving range, though it’s a little surprising to see it happening again in 2023. 

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The Long-Range Tesla Model 3 is Finally Available Again

Things change quickly at Tesla, including pricing and the models it sells. The automaker has listed a Model 3 long-range model on its site with a “coming soon” tag for a while, and buyers can now order the car after a several-month hiatus from the company’s catalog.

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Tesla Batteries Lose Little Capacity Over the Long Haul

If you’re “the automotive person” in your family or friend group, you’ve likely gotten at least a question or two about EV range and battery life. It seems that people are getting over range anxiety as automakers release vehicles with ever-longer estimates, but there are still a lot of questions about how long EV batteries last. The answer is “at least 100,000 miles” because everybody’s required to offer eight-year/100,000-mile warranties on the batteries, but it turns out that some can drive much longer than that with surprisingly little degradation. 

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Tesla Model 3 and Model Y Just Got Cheaper... Again

Not that long ago, there was a time when Tesla vehicles seemed to defy the laws of depreciation, and some actually gained value on the used market. That’s changing, as the automaker has cut prices more than once in 2023, with the latest round of decreases landing this week. 

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Tesla's EV Market Share Slips

Tesla's growth has cooled.

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Report: Your Tesla May Have Been Spying on You

We've often worried about inappropriate surveillance via in-car cameras. Sometimes, I personally wonder if that's irrational paranoia. A new report concerning Tesla suggests it probably isn't.

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Tesla Issues Semi Truck Recall Over Rollaway Risk

The worldwide wait for Tesla’s all-electric semi-trucks seemed unimaginably long due to the hype that had been built up around them. But Tesla ultimately made good on its promise by finally commending deliveries in December of 2022. Sadly, no manufacturer seems to be able to produce new models without a few hiccups these days and the company has issued a voluntary recall on the rigs.

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Rivian Issues OTA With Tesla Supercharger Location Features

As part of a deal with the White House, Tesla agreed to open part of its expansive, exclusive charging network to owners of other EV brands. The automaker made good on that promise a few weeks ago, opening a new world of possibilities for owners tired of searching for a charger in vain. Rivian has gone a step further for its owners with a new over-the-air update that adds Supercharger locations to its vehicles’ navigation systems. 

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Tesla Shareholder Claims to Have a Load of New Info on the Cybertruck

In case you were counting, the Tesla Cybertruck “debuted” more than three years ago, and there hasn’t been a single one sold to any of the thousands of deposit-paying reservation holders. Despite that, the automaker and its fans have continued to insist that it’s coming soon, and one lucky shareholder claims to have insider knowledge of the production version of the truck. 

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You Should Probably Charge Your EV Before Using It As a Robbery Getaway Car

I’m guilty of complaining about EV charging infrastructure, but I’ve never been in a situation where charging times or lack of access ruined my day. That’s the exact opposite of the experience two thieves recently had in Georgia, as their stop to charge their Tesla Model X was their undoing. 

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Tesla Model S and Model X Get Another Round of Price Cuts

Earlier this year, Tesla heavily cut prices, stirring anger from some owners over the steep decrease in vehicle values. That hasn’t deterred the automaker, as it recently lowered prices on the Model S and Model X.

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Tesla Heads South of the Border With Confirmed Mexico Gigafactory

Tesla just wrapped its annual Investor Day, where the automaker invites fans and shareholders to hear it brag about its accomplishments and future products. At yesterday’s event, Tesla confirmed the poorly-held secret that a Gigafactory is coming to Mexico.

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QOTD: Expecting Anything From Tesla?

Telsa's Investor Day will be starting soon after this publishes -- and I am wondering what, if anything, you're expecting in terms of news from the company.

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Walled Garden No More: Tesla Opens Part of Its Charging Network to Other EV Brands

One of Tesla’s most significant competitive advantages could be fading, as the White House recently announced a deal with the automaker that would open part of its previously-exclusive charging network to owners of other EV brands. The wheels are in motion, as Tesla tweeted last night that the first round of chargers is now open. 

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Toyota Execs Geek Out Over Disassembled Tesla Model Y

Despite its size and considerable resources, Toyota has been slow to develop and release new EV models. That will likely change under its new CEO, but the automaker has a long way to go, as its recent tear-down of a Tesla Model Y highlighted its deficiencies in EV engineering.

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Mexico’s President Says Tesla Building Mexican EV Plant

On Tuesday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced that Tesla will be building a plant south of the border. Confirmation comes following a call with CEO Elon Musk – held on Monday – with promises that the American company would be issuing a series of commitments designed to address regional water scarcity. The alleged plant is said to be located in Monterrey, which has historically struggled to cope with drought. 

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Tesla Recalls 362K Cars Over Full Self Driving Failures

Tesla is recalling more than 362,000 cars that have the company's so-called Full Self-Driving Beta system. The recall is voluntary.

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Tesla Employees Notified Company of Their Intent to Unionize, and Many Were Fired Shortly After UPDATED

Unlike many auto manufacturing jobs in America, Tesla’s employees are not unionized.  That could soon change, but not without some drama first. A group of Autopilot analysts in Buffalo, New York, recently notified CEO Elon Musk of their intent to organize, but the company responded by firing dozens of people, including many that were involved in the unionizing effort.

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Opinion: The Hertz EV Gambit Isn’t Paying Off

Hertz has reportedly fallen short of its promise to buy 100,000 electric vehicles from Tesla last year. Though, taking a look at the role EVs are playing in the rental industry right now, the company might actually have made the correct decision.

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QOTD: Will the Tesla Cybertruck Actually Bow Soon?

There are photos on the Intertoobz of the Tesla Cybertruck testing, undisguised, in California.

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Musk: Cybertruck Production Will Be "Very Slow At First"

Another day, another Tesla Cybertruck delay. After its reveal in 2019, CEO Elon Musk promised deliveries in late 2021, but a pandemic and global supply chain crisis threw a curve. The automaker’s next target is coming up soon, and Musk does not appear confident the company will meet that goal.

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Tesla Quietly Bumps Model Y Prices by $500 After Slashing Thousands Off the MSRP Earlier This Year

Tesla made waves when it slashed prices earlier this month, but it appears the fluctuations aren’t finished. The automaker cut Model Y prices by $13,000 earlier in January but recently re-raised the price by $500.

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Tesla's the Best at Retaining Customers, but Many Others Struggle

When we talk about car sales, we typically look at units sold and profit made, but automakers and analysts look at deep metrics. S&P Global recently an overview of customer retention metrics in the industry, and it showed that many brands are having trouble holding onto customers beyond a single vehicle purchase. 

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Report: Older Tesla Autopilot Demonstration Video Was Faked by Engineers

Regardless of how you feel about Tesla, there’s no amount of wishful thinking on anyone’s part that makes its “full self-driving” technology work as advertised. The company’s cars cannot drive themselves, do not operate without a human watching, and cannot safely manage complex situations on the road. That hasn’t stopped Tesla from trying to convince everyone, though, and as we’re now learning, its efforts haven’t always been above board.

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QOTD: What's Happening With Tesla?

Mr. Guy wrote this morning about Tesla and how it appears that the company's cars are being sold to rental fleets. As most of you know, large fleet sales are often seen as a negative mark on the health of a company and can also tank resale values.

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Tesla Drops Prices, Potentially Ramps Fleet Sales to Rentals

There’s never any shortage of topics to discuss about Tesla – whether it’s nattering about Musk’s behavior, the company stock price, or its hands-off driving aids allegedly causing a pile-up on a busy motorway. 


This morning, a pundit tweeted they saw beaucoup de Tesla sitting idle at a Hertz location, suggesting the company may be stuffing rental channels in a bid to inflate sales. In quick succession, it then became clear that Tesla has slashed prices on all its models – big time.

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QOTD: Is It Time for Federal Intervention on AV Testing?

Earlier today I wrote about how Tesla seems to be pushing for fewer safety guards on its so-called "Full-Self Driving" system even as it opens the program up to more "beta testers" and even as accidents involving the system and Tesla's Autopilot pile up. What I didn't mention, probably because I suspect it's common knowledge among our readership, is that there aren't federal rules governing these sorts of beta tests on public roads.

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Elon Musk Tweet Leads to Investigation of Tesla

Stop me if you've heard this before -- Elon Musk tweeted something that has him and/or one of his companies in trouble with regulators.

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QOTD: Why Are People Surprised That Tesla Is Facing More Competition?

Recently I got a bit annoyed with two New York Times columnists for seeming to be surprised that legacy automakers were pumping out EVs to compete with Tesla.

Today, it's the Washington Post's turn to annoy me.

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Tesla Deliveries Disappoint in Q4

Alert readers may recall a post just prior to New Year’s about Tesla putting $7,500 cash in the frunk of several models in an attempt to juice sales before year-end. Beyond the irony of that move in the first place, after years of the company and its fanbase raking legacy automakers over the coals for doing the same thing, reports are surfacing that numbers still failed to meet expectations.

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California Law Bans OEMs From False Self-Driving Claims

There are no fully self-driving cars on the market. That's a simple truth. The Society of Automotive Engineers has determined that there are five levels of autonomous driving, with level five being fully autonomous. As of last year, there were no cars that went beyond Level 2 -- a few potential Level 3 systems were awaiting regulatory approval.

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Opinion: NYT Pundits Finally See Tesla As It Is

As I wrote a week or two ago, the outside world is finally catching on to what automotive journalists, industry analysts, and car enthusiasts have long known about Tesla. This week, two columns in The New York Times showed that well-known pundits like Farhad Manjoo and Paul Krugman are catching on/catching up.

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Tesla Offers Rare Rebate on New, Prices Plummet on Used

After what seems like an eternity of supply chain troubles and other assorted headaches driving the price of new and used vehicles through the proverbial roof, Tesla – of all manufacturers – could be signaling a reversal in market trends. According to recent numbers, the average price of a used Tesla has cratered – and there’s plenty of money on the hoods of new ones, too.

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Used Car of the Day: 2019 Tesla Model 3

Would you buy a used Tesla right now, given all of Elon Musk's controversies with Tesla and Twitter?

Would you pay $44,000 for one?

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Watt's Up for the Week of 12/16/2022

As the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. and very nearly a brand (if not an entire economy) unto itself, major news about the Ford F-series pickup is almost always going to be the most significant automotive news of a given week – but, while there is huge F-150 news this week, the Blue Oval brand is going to have to take a back seat to this shocker: For the first time in well over a decade, the cost of making an EV battery has gone UP.

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Latest Tesla Update Adds Video Games From Steam, Cabin Monitoring, New Light Show

Tesla has introduced its Holiday Update which adds a bevy of features to newer versions of the Model S and X – including fresh light show features, Apple Music, an in-cabin camera view (extremely invasive and creepy), and video games from Steam. Though you may want to pull back on any fantasies you might have had about gaming on the go, even if you’re a passenger, because Tesla already got into hot water with the NHTSA for adding similar features in the past and ultimately had to remove some of them.

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  • SCE to AUX I've never been teased by a bumper like that one before.
  • 3SpeedAutomatic R&T could have killed the story before it was released.Now, by pulling it after the fact, they look like idiots!! What's new??
  • Master Baiter "That said, the Inflation Reduction Act apparently does run afoul of WTO rules..."Pfft. The Biden administration doesn't care about rules. The Supreme Court said they couldn't forgive student load debt; they did it anyway. Decorum and tradition says you don't prosecute former presidents; they are doing it anyway. They made the CDC suspend evictions though they had no constitutional authority to do so.
  • 1995 SC Good. To misquote Sheryl Crow "If it makes them unhappy, it can't be that bad"
  • 1995 SC The letters on the hatch aren't big enough. hard pass