Foxconn begins rolling first Monarch electric tractors off assembly lines in Lordstown
Chinese contract manufacturer Foxconn has commenced production of the first MK-V all-electric tractors for Monarch under a previously announced manufacturing agreement. The first tractors recently rolled off assembly lines at the well-known Lordstown production facility in Ohio.
Hon Hai Technology Group, better known as Foxconn, is the world’s largest electronics manufacturer with half a century’s worth of experience building everything from iPhones to gaming consoles and, most recently, EVs, semiconductors, and AI tech.
In late 2021, struggling EV start-up Lordstown Motors agreed to sell its manufacturing facility in Ohio to Foxconn under an agreement that the Taiwanese experts could help get the automaker’s Endurance pickup into scaled production.
That asset purchase agreement (APA) was completed last May in exchange for $230M in cash. Hours later, Foxconn shared that its newly acquired facility would also be home to the assembly of Fisker’s second planned EV model, the PEAR.
As a fresh hub for EV production in the Midwest, Foxconn expanded its client list beyond passenger vehicles and into electric tractors, sharing news of a contract manufacturing agreement with Monarch Tractors to take over assembly of its all-electric MK-V, along with the battery packs to power them.
Eight months later, Foxconn has produced the first Monarch electric tractors in Lordstown.
Foxconn completes build of first five electric tractors
Monarch Tractors shared news of the start of contracted production of its MK-V electric tractors at Foxconn’s Lordstown facility, assembling the initial five models ready for customer deliveries. Both partners confirmed that MK-V production is on schedule, and these first five builds represent an important milestone in the partnership. Per Monarch CEO and cofounder Praveen Penmesta:
As a leader in manufacturing some of the world’s most influential electric and autonomous technologies, Foxconn is the ideal partner for us as we look to rapidly expand production of the MK-V. Today’s farmers need solutions like the MK-V now that will increase farm profitability and sustainability and we’re the first company that is able to fulfill the global demand for these solutions. This is also a massive opportunity to produce large volumes of smart tractors in this class. We are excited to partner with Foxconn as we forever change the future of electrified farming.
The MK-V can be operated with or without a driver inside and comes equipped with advanced safety technologies, including collision prevention, human detection, and power take-off (PTO) protection, enabling it to stop moving if it detects a person within six feet and shut down if it detects someone within one foot. That’s all within a tractor that is eerily quiet and produces zero emissions – perfect for a crucial agricultural segment.
After the initial five electric tractors are delivered, Foxconn plans to continue fine-tuning its assembly lines and material sourcing as it prepares for full-scale production in Lordstown. Per Foxconn:
We’re very pleased with the product quality ahead of full-rate production. This milestone is achieved thanks to our employees and the strength of our ongoing partnership with Monarch Tractor. Foxconn prides itself on our partnerships, and we believe the shared goal of promoting sustainability and safety in agriculture is one of the many reasons we have found the right partner in Monarch Tractor.
Here’s some footage of the Monarch MK-V electric tractors being built:
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Tesla has partnered with Steak ‘n Shake to deploy Superchargers at up to more than 100 restaurant locations.
The partnership between Tesla and the American fast food chain has been revealed through a strange series of posts on X.
First, Tesla CEO Elon Musk commented on Steak ‘n Shake’s announcement that it is switching from using seed oils to beef tallow.
The restaurant responded by proposing “Tesla charging stations at Steak n Shake”, but they apparently didn’t know that it was already happening as Tesla responded that they had already signed on 6 sites and they have over 20 more in review:
The Steak n Shake account responded by suggesting that the partnership extend to over 100 locations:
Thank you Tesla Charging! Let’s do over 100 locations. Consider all sites approved!
The chain operates over 400 locations around the world – many of them in the midwest. A lot of these locations are located near highways, where Tesla prefers to deploy charging stations.
It’s not the first time that Tesla has partnered with a restaurant for multiple Supercharger locations. It also has a deal with Ruby Tuesday.
Tesla is currently deploying its latest V4 Superchargers capable of 500 kW – with the first stations expected to come online in the US later this year.
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Volkswagen’s electric SUV is making a comeback. Last month, the Volkswagen ID.4 topped Tesla’s Model Y to become the best-selling EV in Europe, and it was even in the top three in the US.
Volkswagen ID.4 was EU’s best-selling EV, top 3 in the US
Although new vehicle registrations fell 2% in Europe last month, electric vehicles were a bright spot, with BEV sales up 37% from the year prior.
According to JATO Dynamics, 165,473 EVs were registered in Europe in January. The Volkswagen ID.4 took the top spot after registrations surged 195% to 7,177, overtaking the Tesla Model Y.
Tesla Model Y registrations plunged 46% in Europe last month to 6,155. The Model 3 refresh, which was launched in late 2023, had a 44% decline in registrations. Overall, Tesla registered only 9,913 vehicles in January 2025, a 45% decline from last year.
While the arrival of the new Model Y plays a role, backlash against Elon Musk’s increasingly outspoken political antics is also causing widespread hate among owners in the US and Europe.
Felipe Munoz, Global Analyst at JATO said the solid performance of EVs is “particularly impressive given the significant dip in sales that Tesla experienced” in January.
He explained, “it’s not unusual for sales to drop just before a new generation or an updated model is introduced to the market.”
Although sales are expected to pick up again, Munoz added, “The performance of both the Model 3 and Model Y is an indication of the declining popularity of Tesla in Europe overall.”
Volkswagen is taking advantage with the ID.4 taking the top spot, and the ID.7 placing third with 5,879 registrations, up 657% from January 2024.
Kia’s mass-market EV3h launched in late 2024, took fourth with 5,792, while the Skoda Enyaq rounded out the top five.
Chinese automakers, like BYD and MG, are starting to gain some real traction in Europe. With 37,134 vehicles registered last month, up 52% from January 2024, Chinese brands accounted for 3.7% of the market. That’s up from the 2.4% market share in January 2024.
Although still a relatively small number, combined, it would put them ahead of Ford, which registered 35,790 vehicles in Europe last month.
Electrek’s Take
The ID.4 appears to be making a comeback. After it went back on sale early last month, Volkswagen’s ID.4 was already the third best-selling EV in the US in January behind Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3.
Despite its success in Europe and the US, Volkswagen, like most global OEMs, is struggling in China. VW’s Chinese joint venture with SAIC cut the price of the ID.4 X, its version of the electric SUV sold in China, to under $20,000 (139,900 yuan) this week.
With leases starting as low as $189 per month in the US, it’s no wonder the ID.4 is already a top seller. If you’re ready to check it out for yourself, you can use our link to find deals on the Volkswagen ID.4 in your area.
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Elon Musk has reportedly ‘canceled’ a Tesla engineer for complaining about the CEO’s behaviors on social media.
As we recently reported, Tesla insiders are finally starting to speak out against Elon Musk over his increasingly unhinged social media presence.
For example, just today, he called CNN legal analyst Norm Eisen’s family a “crime family” because someone wrongly claimed that his daughter received millions of dollars from USAID when it was just someone with the same last name.
However, it looks like Musk and Tesla are actively suppressing employees speaking out.
The New York Times reports that Tesla has fired Jared Ottmann, a manager of battery thermal supplier industrialization engineering, over his complaints about Musk.
Ottmann, who has been at Tesla for 6 years, says that he has been raising concerns internally about Musk’s use of social media for the last 3 years, but he ramped up his effort last month after Musk’s salute at the Trump inauguration.
The engineer specifically took offense to a tweet that Musk posted in the aftermath of the inauguration. Instead of apologizing and saying that he didn’t mean to make a Nazi salute, Musk decided to attack the media for even suggesting that the gesture was a Sieg Heiland tweeted this:
Ottmann commented on the post:
This post by Tesla’s current CEO name drops genocidal assholes as a joke and has 308,000 likes.
The engineer says that he raised the issue with Tesla and while he gets “personally support”, he says the company remains silent about Musk’s behavior:
Starting in 2022 and especially the last week I’ve raised the issue internally multiple times, with managers, HR, legal compliance, investor relations. And while overwhelmingly people offer personal support, Tesla as a company has remained silent.
Ottmann, who has been promoted 4 times in 6 years at Tesla, has now been let go.
Electrek’s Take
For a guy who calls himself a “free speech absolutist” and “anti-cancel culture”, he canceled this engineer pretty quickly when he didn’t like how he was exercising his free speech.
This is obviously an attempt at scaring other Tesla employees from speaking out at Tesla.
It’s one of my main concerns about the automaker: it’s not a meritocracy that attracts top engineering talent anymore. One of the main criteria to work at Tesla now is to support its CEO, who is off the deep end.
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