Category Archives: Tesla

News and reviews of Tesla electric cars (including plug-in hybrids).

Hyundai creating “a stir” in fleet with fully-electric Ioniq 6 saloon

July 17, 2023BMW, Electric Cars, Hyundai, i4, IONIQ Electric, Model 3, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

Hyundai is looking to follow up the success of its Ioniq 5 by targeting conquest sales from traditional premium brands with its new Ioniq 6 fully-electric saloon.

The car, which launched earlier this year, is being positioned to appeal to user-chooser drivers who are in the market for a Tesla Model 3 or a BMW i4, seeking a long range and an engaging drive.

Tim White, head of fleet at Hyundai Motor UK, said: “The Ioniq 6 has certainly been causing a stir since it went on sale a few months ago.

“Just as Ioniq 5 did, we are hoping it will attract more new customers to the brand who previously may not have considered Hyundai, especially from drivers that may have previously chosen a more traditionally-perceived premium brand.”

The brand is strategically positioning Ioniq 6 with the corporate end-user side of its business as this segment continues to be its core focus.

“The launch of Ioniq 6 has kept the team busy, with fleets looking to either offer the car at a higher car policy grade to Ioniq 5 while others have placed it parallel to the car,” said White.

To come later in the year is the new Kona Electric. To prepare for this, Hyundai has operated with minimal volume of the existing Kona Electric, which means it has focused on positioning both Tucson PHEV for fleet drivers not yet ready for a full EV and ensuring Ioniq 5 maintains a competitive position.

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An electric car is the world’s best-selling car

June 19, 2023Electric Cars, Model Y, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

An electric car has toppled the Toyota Corolla from the top spot.

We have previously reported that an electric car became Sweden’s best-selling car during the first quarter of 2023. And that an electric car became Europe’s best-selling car during the same period.

New data shows that an electric car also became the world’s best-selling car in the first three months of this year.

New number one: Tesla Model Y

The electric car in question is Tesla’s Model Y.

According to Jato Dynamics, 267,200 Model Y were sold in the first quarter, ahead of Toyota’s Corolla with 256,400. Third place went to another Toyota, the Hilux, with 214,700.

Elon Musk was almost completely correct

In 2021, Tesla’s founder, Elon Musk, said that he believed that Model Y would soon become the world’s best-selling car:

“We think Model Y will be the best selling car or vehicle of any kind in the world. Probably next year. I’m not 100 percent certain next year, but I think it’s quite likely… more likely than not, that 2022 Model Y is best selling car or truck… in the world.”

He missed by one quarter. For the full year 2022, the Model Y came in third place. (Of course, it remains to be seen whether Model Y can hold first place for the whole year 2023.)

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Tesla (TSLA) Model 3 dominates reliability study, outperforming ICE counterparts

June 12, 2023Buying/Leasing, Electric Cars, ID.3, Model 3, News, Reviews and Comment, Tesla, VolkswagenRepost

Tesla’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) participated in a new reliability study by the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (ADAC) in Germany where their electric Model 3 crushed its internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts.

It should come as no surprise that electric vehicles (EVs) are generally more reliable than their fossil-fuel-powered counterparts, given their remarkable mechanical simplicity. The superiority of EVs in terms of reliability has been emphasized in a recent study conducted by the ADAC, a German vehicle analysis firm. The study found that the Tesla Model 3 outperforms a large majority of gas-powered vehicles, further solidifying the reliability advantage of electric cars.

The ADAC study is an annual analysis that primarily examines vehicles that are older than three years. The group’s latest study encompassed four electric vehicles available in the German market: the Tesla Model 3, BMW i3, Volkswagen ID.3, and Renault Zoe. According to the findings from the ADAC’s data, electric vehicles not only outperform their gasoline counterparts on average, but the Tesla Model 3 exhibits a significantly higher level of reliability compared to both gasoline vehicles and other electric cars.

The study found that only 1.1 out of 1,000 2020 model-year Tesla Model 3s broke down annually, which is, surprisingly, a slight increase from the 2019 Model 3, which only had 0.9 breakdowns per 1,000 units. Comparatively, the average gas vehicle had 6.9 breakdowns per 1,000 units, and the average EV had 4.9 breakdowns per 1,000 units.

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Britain left eating France’s dust after Macron’s Tesla PR coup

June 9, 2023Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

After partying into the early hours of Sunday morning, Elon Musk boarded his GulfStream jet to cross the Atlantic for meetings with a European head of state.

He was not heading to Berlin, where Tesla has its one and only European gigafactory. Nor was he on the way to London, despite hopes that he will build his second facility in Britain.

Instead, Musk was flying to France to meet Emmanuel Macron.

Paris rolled out the red carpet: first, the Tesla and SpaceX boss was whisked to the Elysee Palace for a private audience with French president Emmanuel Macron.

Tesla Supercharging Station at Westfield, London (Image: Tesla)

Musk then had a tête-à-tête with Bruno Le Maire, the finance minister, before dinner with 200 other business executives at the “Choose France” summit in the spectacular Palace of Versailles.

It would be easy to dismiss Musk’s visit as unserious: hours earlier he was pictured partying at electronic music events in both Los Angeles and Cabo, Mexico. While the billionaire donned a suit for his meeting with Macron, he was unshaven and joked that he had slept in the car.

Yet the tycoon’s visit was an undeniable boost for Macron and their meeting ended with Musk hinting at “significant investments in France” to come.

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10 Reliable Electric Cars That’ll Reach 250,000 Miles

May 19, 2023Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Opinion, Tesla, VolkswagenRepost

These cars of the future are robust and dependable enough to actually stay and thrive with you when the future comes.

As Bob Dylan once said, The Times They Are A-Changin’, and it rings true for the automobile industry more than one might think. Whether we like it or not, the future seems to hold predominantly electric cars for us. The depletion of non-renewable energy sources like petroleum and the rise of climate change will force us to let go of the gas guzzlers we hold near and dear to us.

But the advent of electric cars also brought problems with them, notably reliability and long-term ownership expenses. Take a look at Volkswagen for example; they once used to make supremely reliable cars, but their reliability standards have taken a hit lately, and shifting to EVs seems to keep it that way for a while.

Leading EV manufacturer Tesla is also notorious for making cars that tend to break down or even blow up. But it’s not all bad news, as there are some durable EVs that point to a bright future. Let’s check out some of the most reliable EVs we got so far.

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Going green for Earth Day? These are the EVs with the longest range

April 25, 2023Electric Cars, Hyundai, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

You’ll be able to skirt range anxiety with these 10 EVs

Charging continues to be one of the main problems with electric vehicle ownership. Having a vehicle that requires less maintenance and doesn’t run on gasoline are some major benefits of making the switch to an EV, but then you have to worry about finding a place to get electricity. Range anxiety might be blown out of proportion in the U.S., but it’s a very real thing.

Luckily, automakers are making impressive strides when it comes to range. New battery chemistry, larger battery packs, and innovative charging features mean most modern electric vehicles are now hovering around 300 miles of range. Keep in mind that getting an EV with an impressive amount of range isn’t cheap. But if money isn’t an obstacle, these 10 EV cars are some of the longest-range electric cars that are currently on sale.

1. 2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring: 516 miles

Lucid practically came out of thin air and usurped Tesla with the impressive Air sedan. The California-based automaker’s first electric vehicle, the Air, has the longest range of any EV on sale with up to 516 miles. To get that kind of range out of the Air, you’ll have to go with the Grand Touring trim with 19-inch wheels.

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Here are 10 of the longest-range electric cars you can buy in 2023

April 12, 2023Electric Cars, Mercedes, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

The EVs that’ll make range anxiety a thing of the past

WHAT IS IT?

The Tesla Model 3 is an American four-door saloon car with rear- or -four-wheel drive, seating for five people at a pinch, and a touchscreen inside. Sure, it’s all-electric, but it hardly sounds A Verified Big Deal, does it? But the Tesla Model 3 is one of the most important big deals of the 21st Century so far.

This is Tesla’s affordable entry-level car, designed to take on the best-selling likes of the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4, and Mercedes C-Class, not to mention their slow-off-the-mark electric cousins. And thanks to Tesla’s viral, household name status and the ambition of the car’s features, the Model 3 has become a phenomenon.

HOW AFFORDABLE ARE WE TALKING?

It sits below the Model S saloon in the range, and in standard guise is priced from £48,490. That gets you rear-wheel drive, and a claimed 305 miles of range between visits to a public Supercharger, or your home wallbox.

Above that in the ‘3’ pecking order lie two all-wheel drive versions: the Long Range (good for up to 374 miles), and the Performance, which sacrifices a few miles of range but will outrun a Lamborghini Huracán up to the national speed limit.

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Inside the industry: Is it finally time to make electric cars slower?

April 4, 2023Electric Cars, Model X, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

The Tesla Model S Plaid beats the original Ford Focus RS from 0-60mph by 4.41sec

The car industry has scored plenty of own goals over the years, but it’s hard to fathom why it’s so comfortable with the idea of pleading forgiveness rather than seeking permission when it comes to electric cars’ acceleration times.

For context, the Mk1 Ford Focus RS took 6.4sec to race from 0-60mph, the Mk2 5.9sec and the Mk3 4.7sec. They were each era-defining hot hatchbacks, and while their legendary status is down to far more than their straight-line pace, I can’t recall anyone arguing that any of them was too slow in a drag race. Yet today the industry is awash with family SUVs (and occasionally hatches) that will comfortably match or beat those numbers.

Tesla showroom in Milton Keynes (Image: T. Larkum)

This list is by no means exhaustive, but standouts include the Volkswagen ID 4 (6.2sec),

Tesla cuts prices for its most expensive electric vehicles to drive demand

March 20, 2023Cost of ownership, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaRepost

Cuts range from 4% on performance version of Model S to 9% on more expensive Model X

Tesla has cut prices on its two most expensive electric vehicles in the United States, according to the company’s website, days after its chief executive, Elon Musk, said recent price cuts on other models had stoked demand.

The price cuts, Tesla’s fifth adjustment since the start of the year, ranged from 4% on the performance version of the Model S to 9% on the more expensive Model X.

Musk has said repeatedly in recent months that Tesla would focus on bringing prices down to drive demand and that it had seen success in sparking orders with global discounts introduced in January.

“The desire for people to own a Tesla is extremely high. The limiting factor is their ability to pay for a Tesla,” Musk said last week at Tesla’s investor day.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the most recent price cuts.

Tesla slashed prices on its cars across all its markets in January, offering discounts of up to 20% in what many analysts saw as the start of a price war by the electric vehicle market leader.

I’ve driven 20 electric cars — here are the 7 most important things I’ve learned about charging, range, and why Tesla still dominates

February 24, 2023Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Porsche, TeslaRepost

As electric vehicles have taken the world by storm in recent years, I’ve gotten to drive heaps of clean cars from Tesla, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Rivian, and more.

I’ve tested 20 electric cars, SUVs, and pickup trucks from Tesla, Ford, Porsche, Polestar, and more.
I learned that their advertised range isn’t always accurate and charging can be a major pain.
But electric cars are quick, convenient, fun to drive, and quiet.

Hours behind the wheel taught me some important lessons about range, charging, and our electric future.

The range you see isn’t always the range you get

I learned this one the hard way. During my first long trip in an EV, I put a little too much trust in the range estimates that the Ford Mustang Mach-E I was driving provided. I watched anxiously as the SUV’s battery level drained lower and lower until I was left with just a 6% charge at my destination, which was miles away from the nearest fast-charging station. (When I set out, the Mach-E claimed I’d arrive with plenty of mileage to spare.)

Long story short, an electric car’s advertised range — on paper or from its software — isn’t always what you experience in the real world. Sometimes it exceeds expectations, and sometimes it falls short due to factors like frigid temperatures, speedier driving, a heavy payload, or hilly roads.

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