This ‘crazy’ couple is driving an electric car all the way to the South Pole
Last year, we reported on an electric Nissan Ariya that would make a trip from the magnetic North Pole to the South Pole manned by Chris Ramsey of Plug in Adventures and his wife Julie, who were also the first to complete the Mongol Rally in an EV in 2017. The vehicle will be the first of any kind – gas or electric – to manage this feat.
The couple is now well along the way through their trip, and we caught up with them in Southern California to see how things are going.
The star of the show: Ariya-turned-monster truck
The Ariya in question was modified by Arctic Trucks – an Icelandic company that specializes in preparing vehicles for the most difficult conditions on Earth – and has been dubbed model “AT39.” The Pole to Pole Ariya is the first electric vehicle the company has ever modified and is being used as a proof-of-concept for future modifications of polar electric vehicles, potentially to replace the diesel vehicles currently used for Antarctic research and expeditions.
But the AT39 Ariya actually isn’t that far off from stock. It’s still using Nissan’s suspension (just lifted) and powertrain, but several tow hitches and other gear solutions have been added, along with some reinforcement to the frame and underbody. On a gas vehicle, a gearbox change would have been necessary for such heavy off-roading, but that isn’t needed with an EV due to the broad torque curve of electric motors.
The most striking change is the addition of huge 39-inch BFGoodrich KO2 tires, which required widening the wheel arches and adding large flared fenders – they only had to cut a little bit off the door to do it. On ice and snow, the duo has run the tires as low as four psi to help increase traction on rough or soft road surfaces.
Parked next to a standard Ariya, the AT39 certainly looks significantly more imposing:
Between the huge off-road tires, fenders, and roof rack with rooftop tent, the range has been cut significantly. But the Ramseys haven’t been able to test exactly how much range they’ve lost because the tire modifications mean their speedometer and odometer aren’t calibrated properly. According to GPS, the longest they’ve gone so far between charges is about 162 miles, with 18% left in the battery, giving them a “best” achieved range of ~200 miles out of the 272-mile rated Ariya.
These range losses are part of the message that the Ramseys want to send, anyway. If they can make it all the way from one end of the globe to the other with a 150-200 mile range, this shows that most people don’t “need” the huge range they claim they need.
Challenges behind & ahead
But when they get to the South Pole, things will be different. The rooftop tent will be swapped out for a larger deployable structure that can encompass the whole car, to trap some of the heat from the 24-hour summer polar sun to keep both the Ramseys and the car warm.
Driving over snow and ice in potentially -40º temperatures is going to eat into efficiency, and Chris estimates that the car will use about 1% of battery for every kilometer of travel. So, for the approximately 850 miles (~1,400 km) that they’ll be driving from the edge to the center of Antarctica, this means a lot of charging and then a lot of charging on the way back, too.
Some of this charging will be provided by solar panels, which the Ramseys plan to mount vertically rather than horizontally. At extreme latitudes, the sun is low in the sky, so vertical panels capture sunlight more directly and can benefit from light being reflected off snow and ice.
And when they can’t get enough solar, they’ll have a gasoline generator. This sounds like a surrender, but it actually brings up one of the strengths of EVs – EVs are energy-agnostic and can be fueled with solar, wind, tidal, a hamster on a wheel… or even oil. Whereas gas cars, well, they can only use oil and nothing else.
Previously, the two had planned to charge during stops by using a small wind turbine that they were carrying with them on a trailer. But the trailer ended up being more trouble than it was worth on rough Arctic roads, so that plan was abandoned. The solar plan will be less unwieldy to transport, but it remains to be seen how difficult deployment and teardown will be in frigid polar temperatures.
People have called them “crazy” for doing this expedition, but Chris thinks that he’s the right one for the job. He said he considered an around-the-world trip, but that’s been done before. As a “Plug in Adventurer,” Chris likes to push the boundaries of what EVs can do, and has experience both driving EVs in rough conditions and advocating for them to the public.
Chris said that, outside of the polar regions, finding a charge has not been a problem, even in the most remote areas. This has held true for this expedition and the Ramseys’ previous one, driving an original 30 kWh Nissan Leaf from London to Mongolia in the Mongol Rally in 2017 – again, a low-range vehicle that still managed a long trip. Electricity is everywhere, and electrical outlets are far more common than gas stations, after all.
Climate change in focus
The 17,000-mile trip will take a total of nine months, a timeline constrained primarily by weather conditions at the poles. By starting in the North Pole’s spring, the pair had sunlight available but plenty of sea ice (which is, unfortunately, retreating due to climate change). And finishing in the South Pole’s summer means they’ll have 24-hour sunlight to power the aforementioned solar panels – plus, Antarctic expeditions aren’t permitted before November anyway.
Or at least, that’s how the plan was supposed to go. The journey got off to a rocky start, as they had to rush to make it to the North Pole and back before the ice roads melted. This meant they basically did nothing but drive (oft through barely-passable slush) and charge between March 29 and April 8, getting out with just a day to spare before the ice road closed abruptly due to melting, almost two weeks earlier than it closed last year.
In previous years, the roads stayed open much longer – but due to climate change, they’ve been getting dangerous and undrivable earlier and earlier.
And this is what the trip is all about. The global shift to electric vehicles is necessary in the fight against climate change, to which auto emissions are a primary contributor. Julie wants to use the trip to see electrification efforts and highlight efforts to fight climate change from local communities along the way.
To that end, the pair have already toured a copper mine to see its electrification efforts, checked out an electric seaplane in the Pacific Northwest, stopped by the Formula E electric car race in Portland, and spoken at the Northwest Overland Rally to show a bunch of diesel RV owners that electric cars can handle the toughest travel conditions. And they hung out with the Tesla Owners Club of Orange County (where we met up with them), serendipitously showing off the wide range of EVs available today:
Going forward, they’re looking forward to visiting (and charging from) solar and wind farms run by trip sponsor Enel X, and hoping to participate in reforestation projects in South America.
But the most interesting part so far for Chris has just been meeting people. Both those who are familiar with EVs, like the Tesla club, and who are new to them, like the overlanders, some of whom told him that he’d sold them on EVs with his story.
If you want to follow Chris & Julie’s journey, check out their website or Linktree to find your preferred social media link. You can even track them live with this cool interactive map, showing locations of interest they’ve stopped at so far.
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Environment
Ram is once again delaying its first electric truck: Here’s when you can expect to see it now
If you’re waiting on Ram’s electric pickup, you’ll have to wait a little longer. Ram is yet again delaying its electric pickup truck, the 1500 REV, and the Ramcharger plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version. Here’s when you can expect to see them reach dealerships now.
When is Ram delaying its electric pickup truck until now?
Ram’s first electric pickup truck was initially scheduled to arrive by the end of 2024. Last year, former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said the launch date would be pushed back to the first half of 2025 and then 2026.
Here we are, and the Ram 1500 REV is still nowhere in sight. According to a new memo sent to suppliers, Ram is again delaying the electric pickup truck.
The note, viewed by Crain’s Detroit Business, said production is now being pushed back until summer 2027. It will now arrive as a 2028 model year. The plug-in hybrid (PHEV) Ramcharger version will also be delayed until the first quarter of 2026.
Stellantis confirmed the news in a statement to Crain’s, saying the delay was due to “extending the quality validation period.”
A company spokesperson explained in an email that Stellantis “continues to reassess its product strategy in North America to align it with our competitive advantage with the Range Extended Ram and in light of slowing consumer demand for half-ton BEV pickups.”
After pulling the PHEV Ramcharger ahead of the EV pickup last year, Stellantis blamed weak demand for electric trucks.
Outperforming the competition, or falling behind?
The Ram 1500 REV will be available with a massive 168 kWh battery, which provides an estimated 350-mile range. Ram said a larger 229 kWh battery option would be available later, with at least 500 miles range.
Tavares promised for years that Ram’s EV pickup would “outperform all competitors” where it matters most in range, towing, and charging times. The Ram 1500 REV is expected to arrive with a towing capacity of up to 14,000 lbs and a 2,700 lb max payload.
In comparison, Ford’s F-150 Lightning offers a driving range of up to 320 miles, a 10,000-lb max towing capacity, and a 2,000-lb max payload capacity.
The 2025 Chevy Silverado EV offers up to 492 miles of range, 12,500 lbs of towing capacity, and 1,800 lbs of max payload capacity.
Tavares said last year that Stellantis is “facing a very significant amount of workload” with the first electric Jeep and Dodge models, the Wagoneer S and Charger Daytona, rolling out.
Stellantis sold 2,595 electric Jeep Wagoneer S and 1,947 Dodge Charger EV models in the US in the first quarter of 2025.
Ford F-150 Lightning sales are down 7% compared to last year, with 7,187 models sold through March. Meanwhile, GM sold 2,383 Chevy Silverado EVs, 3,479 GMC Hummer EVs (including the SUV), and 1,249 GMC Sierra EV models in the first three months of the year.
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Tscherning, a large Danish construction company, announced that it returned its entire corporate fleet of Tesla vehicles because of Elon Musk.
In Europe, Tesla is suffering from major brand damage due to its CEO’s involvement in politics.
Sales had already been declining in 2024, but the decline dramatically accelerated in 2025 after many people started to become increasingly concerned about Musk’s backing of Trump and far-right political parties in Europe.
The problem is that not only is Tesla missing out on new sales, but current Tesla owners are also rushing to sell their vehicles because they don’t want to be associated with the brand at all.
This is also true of corporate sales, which are popular in Europe.
Last year, we reported on Rossmann, one of the largest pharmacy chains in Europe. Rossmann had a large Tesla corporate fleet and decided to sell it because of Musk’s actions.
Tscherning, a large Danish construction company, was in a similar situation. It had electrified its corporate fleet using Tesla vehicles, but it announced this week that it returned them all:
At Tscherning, we not only decide how we drive – but also who we drive with. That’s why we’ve chosen to hand over the keys to our Tesla company cars – not because Tesla has become a bad car, but in light of Elon Musk’s political commitment and the opinions he has publicly expressed (and which are increasingly hard to overlook), we as a company have chosen to say “thank you for the ride.”
The company added that it doesn’t want to be “associated with the values and political direction that currently accompany the Tesla brand.”
It will instead buy “European alternatives” to Tesla vehicles.
Tscherning shared a video of returning its Tesla vehicles:
Electrek’s Take
The situation for Tesla in Europe right now is not sustainable. I’m afraid there will likely be major layoffs and even store closures.
Despite the availability of the new Model Y for the full quarter, Q2 is currently tracking about the same as Q1, which was down 40% year-over-year:
The two lines at the bottom are Q1 and Q2 2025. As you can see, they are tracking way bellow every single quarters in the last 3 years.
And now with corporate fleets being returned and existing owners selling their cars, if you really want a Tesla, you are way better off buying it used with those cratering prices.
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North American homeowners who drive EVs can bump up against limited residential electrical capacities when it comes to installing Level 2 chargers. ELECQ is changing the game with the debut of its Power Monitor, which places smart EV charging at the core of home load balancing and solar integration.
ELECQ Power Monitor solves home energy headaches
Home EV charger installation can be tricky due to limited electrical panel capacity and the high cost of upgrading a home’s service. Without smart systems, that often means wasted solar power, higher energy bills, and chargers that trip the system when too much is running at once.
Active Load Management (ALM) solves this by dynamically balancing a home’s total energy usage, allowing EVs to charge without overloading the system or requiring costly upgrades. This is where ELECQ’s home energy management system comes in. The ELECQ Power Monitor tracks your home’s load and communicates with the ELECQ Level 2 EV Charger.
ELECQ Power Monitor automatically balances residential loads in real time, eliminating the need for expensive electrical infrastructure upgrades. It intelligently prevents overloads, enhancing the safety and reliability of your home’s electrical system. By proactively managing your home’s energy use, ELECQ ensures you avoid overload risks, keeping your family safe and your electricity stable.
Seamless solar EV charging
ELECQ’s real-time monitoring and intelligent algorithms maximize EV charging directly from solar-generated energy. This reduces reliance on the electrical grid and fully utilizes your solar investment, and it also improves household energy efficiency. The ELECQ Power Monitor unlocks three solar charging modes to maximize the use of excess solar energy to charge your EV:
- Only Solar mode: Exclusively uses solar-generated power for EV charging, entirely bypassing grid power.
- Solar Priority mode: Prioritizes solar power for EV charging but supplements with minimal grid power if necessary.
- Unlimited mode: Utilizes solar power primarily while the grid provides supplementary energy as needed, ensuring maximum charging speed.
Using the ELECQ app is a breeze
ELECQ’s intuitive app offers homeowners effortless management and scheduling of EV charging, providing real-time visibility into your home’s energy consumption and solar production.
The ELECQ EV charger hooks up to both 2.4G and 5GHz Wi-Fi, plus Bluetooth, so you can manage charging straight from the Elecq app—anytime, anywhere. Set it to juice up during off-peak hours and save cash on your energy bill. And you’ll automatically get the latest over-the-air updates.
The ELECQ app makes setting up and using the Power Monitor a breeze, too. You can schedule charge times, track how much power you’re pulling from the grid or your solar panels in real time, and see exactly what each session costs. Need the receipts? You can export detailed reports for every charge, right from the app.
Safe and reliable technology
The ELECQ Power Monitor and Level 2 EV charger are built with safety and reliability at the core, so you don’t have to worry when the weather or the grid gets unpredictable. The system keeps an eye on your home’s electrical load and solar production, using high-precision sensors that help it operate smoothly with panels up to 200 amps. Everything is UL certified, RoHS compliant, and tested to prevent overheating, short circuits, or fire risks.
Whether it’s a lightning strike or a power surge, ELECQ has your back. With 10kV/5kA surge protection and tough NEMA 4 and IK10 certifications, this setup is made to handle just about anything, from blizzards to blazing heat. That means it not only protects your home, but also your EV battery and charging hardware. The EV charger is safe to install indoors or out. Plus, the ELECQ Power Monitor uses Wi-Sun technology to automatically communicate with the ELECQ Level 2 EV Charger – it doesn’t even need wifi.
The ELECQ Power Monitor is UL-certified, ensuring it meets strict U.S. safety and performance standards.
Why choose ELECQ?
ELECQ stands distinctively apart from other home energy solutions like Tesla and other traditional chargers because it’s universally compatible with solar installations and actively optimizes energy consumption.
- Unlike Tesla’s more closed ecosystem, which often requires proprietary components like the Powerwall and Gateway, ELECQ offers an open and flexible solution. This reduces installation complexity and minimizes ecosystem lock-in, ensuring broader compatibility with diverse home energy setups.
- Compared to traditional chargers, ELECQ enables millisecond-level data transmission with high reliability and strong wall penetration by adopting Wi-SUN, and minimal interference—unlike traditional Wi-Fi connections, which often suffer from instability and limited coverage.
ELECQ saves money and energy
The ELECQ Power Monitor and Level 2 EV charger not only combines smart home energy management with Level 2 charging but also delivers substantial savings on money and energy.
ELECQ smartly taps into your solar setup to make sure you’re squeezing every drop of clean energy out of it. That means less grid power, lower energy bills, and more money in your pocket. And since you’re using more renewable energy and less fossil-fueled electricity, you’re also shrinking your home’s carbon footprint without even thinking about it.
Order the ELECQ Power Monitor on Amazon here.
Order the ELECQ Level 2 EV charger 50A on Amazon here.
Transform your home energy future with ELECQ
ELECQ empowers homeowners across North America to manage energy more efficiently, reduce energy costs, enhance safety, and fully capitalize on solar investments. With ELECQ, smarter, greener home energy management is finally accessible and effortless.
Discover how ELECQ can redefine your energy future today. Follow ELECQ on Facebook here and on LinkedIn here.
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