I had the chance to drive the updated Mustang Mach-E, including the new top-of-the-line Rally version, and I think it marks an important step for Ford, or more specifically, Ford Model e.
The automaker is getting more comfortable and better with electric vehicles.
Last week, the automaker invited me to Bellevue, Washington to come check out the new version of its popular electric SUV.
I’ve already reviewed the Mach-E on several occasions and I love the car. My main gripe has always been the charging for long-distance, but the deal with Tesla to get access to the Supercharger network as virtually solved that.
In fact, one of the main updates with the 2024 model year Mach-E is the charging time, which is now down to 36.2 minutes from 10 to 80% for the Mach-E trims with extended battery.
Even though Tesla vehicles have a higher peak charger rate of 250 kW, the Mach-E ends up charging as fast if not faster depending on the conditions due to its impressive charge curve.
This is really helpful since it will help manage the increased load on the Supercharger network coming from Ford EVs. I tested the new Mach-E GT at a Supercharger in Renton, Washington with the CCS to NACS adapter and it was a sight to see as many Ford EVs as Tesla EVs at a Supercharger station:
This is a sight to see. Two years ago, I would t have thought this possible.
Giant kudos to Tesla for opening the network and Ford to get the ball rolling with NACS. pic.twitter.com/36y4tTGclo
Ford is getting better at electric vehicles and software
Most of the improvements enabling better charging and range have to do with the improved thermal management system and new and updated electric motors.
While talking to Ford engineers at the media event, it felt like the automaker, which now operates its electric vehicle division as ‘model e’ led by former Tesla and Apple engineering leader Doug Field, is getting more comfortable as an electric automaker.
Ford was always great at making cars, and everything with the Mach-E that has to do with a traditional car is great, but the electric powertrain seemed to be conservative, which shouldn’t be too surprising for a 100-year-old company jumping in a whole new market.
The same can apply to software. Ford was never a big software company, CEO Jim Farley was one of the rare legacy automaker executives to appreciate how Tesla was able to implement over-the-air software updates throughout most of its vehicle subsystems by vertically integrating electronic modules.
Now, 85% of the Mustang Mach-E’s modules are OTA updatable. That means that the existing vehicles will get better over time.
The new Ford Pass app is also a good example of Ford’s improvements in software.
The Mustang Mach-E Rally
The Rally is a brand-new trim in the new 2024 Mach-E line-up. It’s a GT when it comes to the powertrain, but the Rally comes “raised 1” higher than GT, tuned for both on road and off-road, with rally-inspired appearance wheels, tires, spoilers, and stripe package.”
Both the GT and the Rally now come standard with Ford’s adjustable MagnaRide dampers, which is incredible. Ford’s dynamics team knows what it is doing.
However, after having driven both, I think the combination of tuning of the suspension in the Rally combined with its bigger tires makes for a better ride – on road and obviously off-road, which the GT is not geared for.
I’m not much of an off-road driver and certainly no rally driver, but I had the change to do a hot lap on DirtFish’s rally course in Snoqualmie, Washington with professional rally driver Adrien Fourmaux and it was quite experience:
As you can imagine, there are not many electric rally cars out there and therefore, it was Fourmaux’s first time driving one. He told me that the Mach-E Rally was so good it basically made it too easy for him. I believe him since he barely seemed to have his eyes opened for this while I was holding on to my life, testing the Mach-E Rally seats’ side support.
When it was time to drive the Rally on the road, I was more in my element and I was pleasantly surprised. The road was incredibly smooth, but not too much boat-like, which can happen with vehicles geared toward off-roading.
Now, you do lose some efficiency with version, but I think the 15 fewer miles over the GT version might be worth it for ride experience, especially in places like I’m from where roads often look like warzones.
Tesla’s EV registrations in the UK, its biggest market in Europe, took a dramatic hit in October 2025 — just 511 units — marking one of the brand’s weakest showings in recent memory. That’s a steep drop from 971 in October 2024 and 2,677 in October 2023. The tone of the market is shifting.
Maybe Tesla’s CEO stoking a civil war in England isn’t helping the automaker’s demand in the important market.
Tesla’s sales have been struggling in Europe over the past two years, and the decline has been accelerating in 2025.
While some believed that things were stabilizing for the American automaker in Europe, the October data tells a different story. Tesla had its worst month of deliveries of the year in 12 of its 15 biggest European markets.
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As Tesla sales in Germany crashed over the last year, partly because Tesla CEO Elon Musk supported the far-right AfD party, the UK became Tesla’s biggest market in Europe.
But now it looks like the UK is going in the same direction.
According to registration data, Tesla delivered only 511 vehicles in the UK in October 2025. Tesla has over 50 stores in the country – that’s an average of roughly 10 vehicles per location for the whole month.
It’s the worst monthly performance since October 2022.
Much as Tesla’s demand crashed in Germany, Elon Musk’s politics might be behind the lower demand in the UK.
The CEO regularly comments on UK politics and often shares inflammatory reports about crimes perpetrated by immigrants. He also shares misleading crime and immigration statistics aimed at spreading hatred.
After he tweeted that “Civil war is inevitable. Just a question of when.”, he was accused of stoking a civil war in the country.
Musk’s public commentary on UK topics has sparked backlash and resulted in his “unfavorability rating” reaching 80% in the country.
Electrek’s Take
Meanwhile, Tesla’s demand cliff is opening the door to competitors. BYD is now expected to outsell Tesla in the whole year of 2025 in the UK despite Tesla having a presence in the market for much longer.
Not many industry watchers thought it would happen this fast.
Tesla appears to be completely missing out on the surge of EV sales in Europe due to a mix of having a stagnant EV lineup, brand problems brought on by a controversial CEO, and increased competition.
Rondo Energy and energy producer EDP are installing a massive 100 MWh renewable-powered heat battery at HEINEKEN’s brewery in Lisbon, Portugal. The project will deliver round-the-clock renewable steam and reduce emissions without altering the facility’s beer brewing process.
Photo: Rondo
Brewing HEINEKEN with zero-carbon steam
The Rondo Heat Battery (RHB) will be the biggest deployed in the beverage industry worldwide. It can store electricity as high-temperature heat using refractory bricks, then convert that heat into 24/7 steam, all without burning fossil fuels.
At HEINEKEN’s Central de Cervejas e Bebidas Brewery and Malting Plant, the heat battery system will supply 7 MW of steam, powered by renewable electricity from onsite solar and the grid. That steam is identical to steam created by gas-fired boilers, but without the carbon pollution.
EDP is providing the renewable electricity and will deliver the steam directly to HEINEKEN via a Heat-as-a-Service model. Rondo is supplying the battery, and HEINEKEN gets to ditch fossil fuels without retooling its brewing process.
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Why this matters
This project is a big win for industrial decarbonization. High-temperature steam is one of the most complex parts of manufacturing to electrify, and the beer industry runs on it. HEINEKEN’s Lisbon site already uses solar panels for electricity and electric heat pumps for hot water, and this move helps it go even further.
It’s part of HEINEKEN’s “Brew a Better World” plan to hit net zero emissions by 2040 and decarbonize all of its global production sites by 2030.
Additionally, the deployment aligns with Portugal’s national target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030.
The bigger picture
With the European Investment Bank and Breakthrough Energy Catalyst backing this and other Rondo projects with €75 million in funding, this Lisbon installation is just the beginning. Rondo’s technology enables energy-hungry industries to switch from fossil fuels to renewable electricity without compromising 24/7 operations.
Rondo CEO Eric Trusiewicz sums it up: “We are thrilled to be installing our first Rondo Heat Battery in Iberia, and to support HEINEKEN to reach its goals. We look forward to helping industries across Iberia cut costs and carbon, and help Iberia capitalize on the opportunity.”
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Lucid Group (LCID) reported third-quarter earnings after the market closed on Wednesday, missing top and bottom-line estimates.
With 4,078 vehicles delivered in Q3, Lucid marked its seventh straight quarter with higher deliveries. Through the first nine months of 2025, Lucid delivered nearly 10,500 vehicles, more than the roughly 10,200 it handed over in 2024.
Although supply chain issues hampered production in the first half of the year, Lucid’s CEO Marc Winterhoff said the company made “significant progress ramping production of the Lucid Gravity through Q3,” including adding a second manufacturing shift at its Casa Grande, Arizona, plant.
Lucid produced 3,891 vehicles in Q3, missing estimates of around 5,600. With 9,966 EVs produced through the third quarter, Lucid will need to build over 8,000 more to meet its full-year production goal of 18,000 to 20,000.
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According to estimates, Lucid is expected to report an adjusted quarterly loss of $2.27 per share on revenue of $352 million in Q3 2025.
Lucid Q3 2025 production and deliveries (Source: Lucid Group)
Lucid Group Q3 2025 earnings breakdown
Lucid missed top and bottom-line estimates as it continues to address industry-wide supply chain issues that are hampering production of the Gravity SUV.
Although it missed estimates, Lucid reported Q3 revenue of $336.6 million, which is still up 68% from $200 million in the same period last year.
Lucid’s net loss narrowed to $978.4 million in the third quarter, or $3.31 per share, from $992.5 million, or $4.09 per share, in Q3 2024. On an adjusted basis, Lucid posted a loss of $2.65 per share.
Lucid Q3 2025 earnings (Source: Lucid Group)
In addition, Lucid said it agreed with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) to increase the delayed draw term loan credit facility (DDTL) from $750 million to around $2 billion.
Given the increase, Lucid said total liquidity would have been around $5.5 billion at the end of Q3, up from the $4.2 billion it reported. Lucid ended the third quarter with $1.6 billion in cash and equivalents.
Lucid’s midsize crossover SUV (left) and Gravity SUV (right) Source: Lucid Group
Lucid said liquidity is enough to fund it through the first half of 2027, up from the second half of 2026, as previously forecast. Lucid plans to launch production of its more affordable midsize platform in late 2026 with vehicles starting at around $50,000.
Lucid confirmed it was still on track to start production of the midsize platform later next year. However, given the supply chain issues, it now expects to hit the lower end of its production goal at around 18,000.
The Lucid Gravity debuts in Europe (Source: Lucid)
Winterhoff said the company “remains intensely focused on ramping up production and addressing the significant supply chain disruptions impacting the entire industry.”
Lucid is advancing other emerging tech, including autonomy and intelligent mobility. Through a new partnership with NVIDIA, Lucid aims to be among the first to offer Level 4 autonomous driving.
The third-quarter earnings miss comes after Rivian (RIVN) beat expectations this week, reporting higher revenue and improving gross margins.
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