Donald Trump went on a rant about electric vehicles during a rally this weekend, and it was full of lies and hilarious nonsense.
Note: I don’t like to get too political at Electrek. Those who know me personally know I’m as apolitical as it gets. I don’t believe the biggest changes come from politics. I’m not biased toward any side in politics, but I am biased toward electric vehicles and I do like policies that encourage them, especially those that incentivize them in a way that represents their benefits for the environment. Since Trump has a real chance of becoming president again, it’s important to cover his views and policies on electric vehicles.
The former president has been all over the place with his comments on electric vehicles.
Most of the time, in his rallies, he has brought them up as a talking point to ridicule them – focusing on the premise that “don’t go far” and “charging is a pain”. He went as far as calling them a “hoax”.
But he has also claimed that he is “all for electric cars” and during his 2020 campaign, he tried to take credit for incentives put in place during the Obama administration.
President Biden did make electric vehicles an important part of his administration and therefore, it’s not surprising to see Trump taking a more consistent negative stance on them.
At a new rally in Las Vegas over the weekend, the former president talked about electric vehicles for a minute:
Trump made several false or misleading statements about electric vehicles in his speech:
There are no charges.
Electric trucks weigh more than twice – triple as much as gasoline and diesel trucks
“they have to fix every bridge in the US to handle the weight”
Insinuates that electric boats would “sink because of their weight”
Implies that electric boats are a serious electrocution risk in the open ocean
Forget about the ridiculous hypothetical choice between electrocution and a shark attack, there are a lot of misleading statements in there.
There are definitely a lot of charging stations in the US. There are over 168,000 EV chargers in the US, including over 37,000 fast-chargers.
However, it’s true that the US needs to continue the build out of charging infrastructure to continue supporting the growing fleet of electric vehicles.
Electric trucks don’t weigh “twice” and certainly not “three times” as much as diesel trucks.
If we are talking about pickup trucks, it’s true that battery-powered pickup trucks generally weigh more, but it’s closer to 20% more rather than 100 or 200%, as Trump is claiming. For example, the Ford F150 Lightning is about 1,000 lbs heavier than its fossil-fuel-powered counterpart, depending on the trim.
However, it’s more likely that Trump was referring to class 8 trucks since he was talking about the effect on the infrastructure, and semi-trucks account for the vast majority of the impact on infrastructure.
This is where his argument completely falls apart since class 8 trucks have an overall 80,000 limits of tractor, trailer, and load combined, which has been raised by 2,000 lbs for electric trucks. Therefore, they can only be 2.5% heavier overall.
In short, there’s zero evidence that electric trucks are destroying infrastructure. Bridges are indeed being replaced in the US right now, but that’s because the current administration recently passed a massive bi-partisan infrastructure bill.
Finally, no, electric boats don’t “sink because they are heavy,” and electrocution is not a major concern of electric boats because batteries are well sealed and isolated, and also electricity dissipates quite fast in any significant body of water, like an ocean since Trump was talking about sharks being present.
Electrek’s Take
That was a lot of nonsense. If you found the above interesting, I would ask you to do a quick exercise and this is not particularly about Trump. It applies to any public figure.
When a public figure talks about something you are well versed in, in this case, for me, electric vehicles, it often exposes that they talk confidently about subjects they have little to no knowledge about.
Then, you have to ask yourself, do they do the same about every other subject, but I don’t realize it because I’m not as well versed in those?
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Lectric Ebikes appears to be preparing for a major new product launch, teasing what looks like the next evolution of its wildly popular folding fat tire electric bike. Based on the clues, it looks like a new Lectric XP 4 could be inbound.
In a social media post released over the weekend, the company shared a minimalist graphic reading “XP4” along with the message “Tune in 5.6.2025 9:30AM PT.” That date – this Tuesday – suggests we’re just hours away from the big reveal of the Lectric XP 4.
If true, this would mark the next generation of the most successful electric bike in the U.S. market. The current model, the Lectric XP 3.0, has become an icon of accessible, budget-friendly electric mobility. Starting at just $999, the XP 3.0 offers a foldable frame, fat tires, a 500W motor, a rear rack, lights, and hydraulic brakes – all packed into a highly shippable design that arrives fully assembled. It’s the kind of package that has helped Lectric claim the title of best-selling e-bike brand in the U.S. for several years in a row.
With the XP 3.0 still going strong, the teaser raises plenty of questions. Will the XP 4.0 be a modest update or a major leap forward? Could we see new features like torque-sensing pedal assist, a location tracking option, or upgraded performance? Or is Lectric preparing a more comfort-oriented variant, maybe even with upgraded suspension or even more accessories included standard?
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The teaser image, which features stylized stripes in grey, blue, and black, may hold some clues. One theory is that the colors represent new trim options or component upgrades. Another possibility is that Lectric is preparing multiple variants of the XP 4.0 – perhaps targeting commuters, adventurers, and off-road riders with purpose-built versions. We took the liberty of a bit of rampant speculation late last year, so perhaps that’s now worth a revisit.
At the same time though, Lectric’s penchant for launching new models at unbelievably affordable prices has never run up against such strong pricing headwinds as those posed by uncertainty in the current US-global trade war fueled by rapidly changing tariffs for imported goods.
Previous versions of the Lectric XP e-bike line have seen sky-high sales
Whatever the case, Lectric’s knack for surprising the industry with high-value, customer-focused e-bikes means expectations will be high. The brand has built a loyal following by delivering reliable performance at a price point that few can match, and any major update to the XP lineup is likely to ripple across the market.
As a young and energetic e-bike company, Lectric is also known for throwing impressive parties around the launch of new models. It looks like I may need to hop on a red-eye to Phoenix so I can see for myself – and so I can bring you all along, of course.
Be sure to tune in Tuesday at 9:30AM PT to see what Lectric has in store – and you can bet we’ll have all the details and first impressions as soon as they drop.
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Logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
Andrey Rudakov | Bloomberg | Getty Images
U.S. crude oil futures fell more than 4% on Sunday, after OPEC+ agreed to surge production for a second month.
U.S. crude was down $2.49, or 4.27%, to $55.80 a barrel shortly after trading opened. Global benchmark Brent fell $2.39, or 3.9%, to $58.90 per barrel. Oil prices have fallen more than 20% this year.
The eight producers in the group, led by Saudi Arabia, agreed on Saturday to increase output by another 411,000 barrels per day in June. The decision comes a month after OPEC+ surprised the market by agreeing to surge production in May by the same amount.
The June production hike is nearly triple the 140,000 bpd that Goldman Sachs had originally forecast. OPEC+ is bringing more than 800,000 bpd of additional supply to the market over the course of two months.
Oil prices in April posted the biggest monthly loss since 2021, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have raised fears of a recession that will slow demand at the same time that OPEC+ is quickly increasing supply.
Oilfield service firms such as Baker Hughes and SLB are expecting investment in exploration and production to decline this year due to the weak price environment.
“The prospects of an oversupplied oil market, rising tariffs, uncertainty in Mexico and activity weakness in Saudi Arabia are collectively constraining international upstream spending levels,” Baker Hughes CEO Lorenzo Simonelli said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call on April 25.
Oil majors Chevron and Exxon reported first-quarter earnings last week that fell compared to the same period in 2024 due to lower oil prices.
Goldman is forecasting that U.S. crude and Brent prices will average $59 and $63 per barrel, respectively, this year.
In a bid to keep up with the rapid growth of EVs, Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT is currently seeking public feedback on a plan called “Chicago Moves Electric Framework.” The city’s first such plan, it outlines initiatives that include a curbside charging pilot through the city’s utility, ComEd, and expanded charging access in key areas throughout the city.
Unlike other such plans, however, the new plan aims to focus on bringing electric vehicle charging to EIEC and low income communities, too.
“Through this framework, we are setting clear goals and identifying solutions that reflect the voices of our residents, communities, and regional partners,” said CDOT Commissioner Tom Carney. “By prioritizing equity and public input, we’re creating a roadmap for electric transportation that serves every neighborhood and helps drive down emissions across Chicago.”
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Neighborhoods on the south and west sides of Chicago experience a disproportionate amount of air pollution and diesel emissions, largely due to vehicle emissions according to CDOT. Despite that, most of Chicago’s public charging stations are clustered in higher-income areas while just 7.8% are in environmental justice neighborhoods that face higher environmental burdens.
“Too often, communities facing the greatest economic and transportation barriers also experience the most air pollution,” explains Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. “By prioritizing investments in historically underserved areas and making clean transportation options more affordable and accessible, we can improve both mobility and public health.”
The Framework identifies other near-term policy objectives, as well – such as streamlining the EV charger installation process for businesses and residents and implementing “Low-Emission Zones” in areas disproportionately impacted by air pollution by limiting, or even restricting, access to conventional medium- and heavy-duty vehicles during peak hours.
The Chicago Moves Electric Framework includes the installation of Level 2 and DC fast charging stations in public locations such as libraries and Chicago’s Midway Airport, “supporting not only personal EVs but also electric taxis, ride-hail and commercial fleets.”
Chicago has a goal of installing 2,500 public passenger EV charging stations and electrifying the city’s entire municipal vehicle fleet by 2035.
Electrek’s Take
ComEd press conference at Chicago Drives Electric, 2024; by the author.