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The language used by Elon Musk about Tesla’s self-driving effort is changing, and it is muddying the timeline for the automaker to deliver on its promise.

Musk use to make statements that made him sound supremely confident that Tesla could soon deliver a self-driving system and virtually all vehicles the automaker produced since 2016 through a software update.

During Tesla’s Autonomy Day in 2019, he made so many comments that promised that Tesla would achieve full self-driving capabilities that we were able to produce a video of three straight minutes of Musk promising Tesla delivering a self-driving system:

As you can see in this video, Musk was talking about “robotaxis” and “not having to touch the steering wheel” or even not needing to “look out the window” at the time.

He was also talking about Tesla delivering those capabilities in 2020.

Two years later, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving Capability, or FSD, is still in beta – it requires the driver to be attentive at all times, and system disengagements are quite frequent.

Tesla is not only behind Musk’s schedule to deliver on the system, but now Musk has been changing the goalpost lately.

The CEO has already stopped talking about the biggest promises, like “1 million robotaxis by the end of the year.” Instead, he has been talking about a wider release of Tesla’s FSD Beta, which again is extremely far from a robot taxi service.

Now during a conference call following the release of Tesla’s Q3 2022 financial results, Musk is again being much more careful about the language he uses around Tesla’s self-driving effort.

He again talked about a wider release of FSD Beta:

This quarter, we expect to go to wide release of Full Self-Driving Beta in North America. So, anyone who has ordered a Full Self-Driving package will have access to the FSD beta program this year, probably about a month from now.

But where things got dicey was when Musk was directly asked by an analyst when will Tesla deliver a level 4 or level 5 self-driving system. Those are the levels where drivers don’t have to pay attention.

Musk’s answer was vague, to say the least, and the comment was much weaker than his previous promises:

Well, there’s this debate of what’s the interventions per mile and maybe safety interventions per mile. Like we’re not saying that that’s quite ready to have no one behind the wheel. It’s just that you will almost never have to touch the control, vehicle controllers. So, like when I came to Giga Texas from a friend’s house today, I never touched any of the controls already here.

And then there is a longer process called the march of 9s, which is how many 9s reliability do you need before you could really be comfortable saying that the car could drive with no one in it? And there’s some subjectivity as to how many 9s you need. But I think we’ll be pretty close to having enough 9s that you’re going to have no one in the car by the end of this year. And certainly, without a question, that’s in my mind next year.

The CEO then added that Tesla plans to have an FSD update next year that will be used to “show to regulators that the car is safer than the average human.”

Electrek’s Take

Musk is obviously being more careful in his choice of words, but he is still talking about Tesla achieving level 4 or 5 next year.

The most frustrating part is that he obviously doesn’t have much credibility when it comes to this timeline anymore, but he keeps justifying this prediction by saying “you just have to look at the performance of Tesla FSD beta.”

My experience with FSD Beta certainly doesn’t suggest that, but some have had better experiences, especially in California, where there are more owners to train the system.

However, talking to the more unbiased FSD Beta testers, I found it hard to see a clear path to Tesla achieving level 4 or 5 autonomy within the next year.

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Lucid (LCID) reassures investors on growth plans after its stock hits a new low

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Lucid (LCID) reassures investors on growth plans after its stock hits a new low

After Lucid Group’s (LCID) stock price reached a new all-time low this week, the company’s communication boss is out to set the record straight.

Lucid stock hits a new low as investors wait

Lucid is facing new headwinds in the US at a critical time as the EV maker looks to enter its next growth phase. It’s ramping up output of its first electric SUV, the Gravity, and is set to launch its midsize platform in late 2026.

Like all automakers, the company is facing new headwinds in the US under the Trump administration, but that isn’t stopping Lucid from continuing on its mission of “changing the world through innovation and efficiency.”

Lucid’s head of communications, Nick Twork, reassured investors on Thursday that while others are pulling back, the company is still plowing ahead.

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“We know it’s been a challenging period for our long-term holders,” Twork said, adding, “We are focused on execution and being transparent.” Twork reaffirmed investors that Lucid has “a strong liquidity runway,” including a $2 billion PIF credit facility, and another $2 billion in refinanced convertible notes that now mature in 2030/31.

While other automakers are scaling back EV plans, including Ford most recently, “we’re building through it and ramping,” Lucid’s communications boss said.

After a magnet shortage and other supply chain constraints hampered Gravity production early on, Lucid now expects the electric SUV to make up the majority of production and deliveries in the fourth quarter.

Speaking at the 53rd Annual Nasdaq Investor Conference last week, Lucid’s interim CEO, Marc Winterhoff, said the company “is on track” to hit its guidance of producing 18,000 vehicles this year. That’s at the lower end of its initial 20,000 to 18,000 target, but Winterhoff said output is picking up and Lucid now has “weeks where we are producing 1,000 vehicles” in a single week.”

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Lucid Q3 2025 production and deliveries (Source: Lucid Group)

Hitting that 18,000 target won’t be easy. Through the third quarter, Lucid produced 9,966 EVs, meaning it will need to build over 8,000 more in Q4. That’s more than double the 3,891 it made in the third quarter.

Lucid had about $4.2 billion in liquidity at the end of Q3, but after agreeing with PIF to increase the delayed draw term loan credit facility (DDTL), the company said total liquidity would have been around $5.5 billion.

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Lucid Q3 2025 earnings (Source: Lucid Group)

The capital is enough to fund it through the first half of 2027, Lucid said. Later next year, Lucid will begin production of its midsize platform, which will underpin at least three new vehicles priced around $50,000.

Lucid’s first midsize model will be an electric crossover SUV, followed by a more rugged version inspired by the Gravity X concept. The third is rumoured to be a midsize sedan that will compete with the Tesla Model 3.

During a fireside chat at the UBS Global Industrials and Transportation Conference earlier this month, Lucid’s CFO, Taoufiq Boussaid, said the midsize EVs will be positioned in “the heart of the market,” starting at around $50,000.

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Lucid (LCID) stock price in 2025 compared to Rivian (RIVN) and Tesla (TSLA) Source: TradingView

While Rivian (RIVN) and Tesla (TSLA) shares are trading up by over 50% and 27%, respectively, since the beginning of 2025, Lucid’s stock price has fallen by over 60%. Earlier this week, Lucid’s stock touched an all-time low of $11.09 per share.

Twork said Lucid will share more information about its growth plans during its Capital Market Day in the first quarter.

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Jeep is offering up to $16,750 cash back on select 2025 Wagoneer S

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Jeep is offering up to ,750 cash back on select 2025 Wagoneer S

Like a 90s “gifted” kid that was supposed to be a lot of things, the electric Jeep Wagoneer S was supposed to be sporty, luxurious, and appeal to a whole new Jeep buyer. Despite being a decent vehicle, it never really found its place — but now that Jeep is offering nearly $17,000 off select models, it might be time to give the go-fast Wagoneer S a second look.

Whether we’re talking about Mercedes-Benz, Cerberus, Fiat, or even Enzo Ferrari, there have been no shortage of corporate outsiders have labeled Jeep as a potentially premium brand that could, “if managed properly,” command luxury-level prices all over the globe. That hasn’t happened, and Stellantis is just the latest in a long line of companies to sink massive capital into the brand only to realize that people will not, in fact, spend Mercedes money on a Jeep.

“Stellantis bet big on electric versions of iconic American brands like Jeep and Dodge, but consumers aren’t buying the premise,” wrote CDG’s Marcus Amick, back in June. “(Stellantis’ dealer body) is now stuck with expensive EVs that need huge discounts to move, eating into already thin margins while competitors focus on [more] profitable gas-powered vehicles.”

To get its prices back in line with the market’s expectations, Jeep is slashing prices with lots of cash on the hood. That includes a hefty $15,250 incentive on select Wagoneer S trims listed as a “2025 National EV Credit Select Inventory Retail Bonus Cash” offer by Greenville Chrysler in Greenville, Texas — which seems like it would be stackable with $1,500 in National Stellantis Loyalty Retail Bonus Cash as well, for a total of $16,750 in incentives before any additional dealer discounts come into play.

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All of which is to say: if you’ve found yourself drawn to the Jeep Wagoneer S, but couldn’t quite stomach the $70,000+ window stickers, you might want to check in with your local Jeep dealer and see how you feel about it at a JCPenneys-like 30% off!

Original content from Electrek.


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Happy holidays! Volvo CE gifts new electric excavator to Mass school

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Happy holidays! Volvo CE gifts new electric excavator to Mass school

Volvo CE is getting into the spirit of the holidays with the donation of a band-new, $100,000 Volvo ECR25 Electric mini excavator to the Westfield Technical Academy’s horticulture department in Massachusetts.

School staff, including Nathan Sperry, the head of Westfield’s horticulture department, told Mass Live that he’s excited about the donation. And, because it has no harmful emissions, his students will be able to use the electric mini excavator indoors for training over the cold winter months, ensuring they’ll be able to take on jobs on live construction sites as soon as the weather clears. “Currently, students train on a simulator,” he told reporters. “Now, they can get on the real machine after lessons.”

Those students will be learning on a state-of-the-art machine. One that’s equipped with a 2.5 tonne (~5,500 lbs.) capacity that’s powered by an 18 kW (~20 hp) electric motor fed by a 20 kWh li-ion battery pack that promises up to four hours of continuous operation.

And, if you’ve ever driven past a job site and seen an idle machine, you already know that four continuous hours of work is plenty — but when it’s not enough, the ECR25 Electric can be connected to a 50 kW DC fast charger and be back to work in under an hour.

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The donation of the ECR25 Electric, valued at a total of $100,000, was made possible by a number of stakeholders, including J.L. Raymaakers Construction, Tyler Equipment Corp., and Volvo CE. You can learn more about the donation in the WWLP-22News report, below.

Electrek’s Take


There seem to be a number of fresh news stories about Volvo donating electric equipment to schools — and that’s awesome. Apple pursued a similar strategy getting into school computer labs a generation ago and now my kids are learning on iPads all day while Mac and iPhone sales continue to be the envy of the industry.

Mark my words, gang: a generation of operators and technicians who grew up wrenching on battery electric Volvo machinery won’t want to grease up and slide under a diesel.

SOURCE: WWLP-22News, via Construction Equipment; featured image by Volvo CE.


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Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.

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