Tesla is now offering free lifetime supercharging for Foundation-series Cybertrucks purchased as inventory vehicles, suggesting that it’s having a tough time getting rid of the highly-priced limited edition vehicles.
Tesla has often introduced vehicles with a limited-edition early series, such as the Founders’ and Signature series for early Roadsters, Model S and Model X. It didn’t do the same for the more everyman-focused Model 3 and Y, but brought back the practice for the Cybertruck with the Foundation series.
The Foundation series was a fully-loaded early model, with a $20k markup from base prices and including several options by default. It started delivery at the end of November, 2023.
The vehicle was selling well enough, and while Tesla’s limited editions usually only last perhaps a couple months and a few thousand vehicles, the Foundation series was extended for almost a year, with Tesla only starting to take non-Foundation configurations this October. As a result, Tesla sold somewhere on the order of 30,000+ Foundation series Cybertrucks, far more than its previous limited editions.
But eventually the well of customers willing to pay over $100k for a truck that was originally announced at a $40k base price seems to have ran dry, and Tesla is now having to figure out creative ways to get those vehicles out of inventory.
Recently, Electrek reported that Tesla is even going to the lengths of buffing Foundation series badges off of trucks and then sending them to Canada to sell them as non-Foundation trucks.
Even that, however, seems not to have been enough, as Tesla is now taking the limited amount of Cybertrucks left in inventory and offering free lifetime supercharging for those who purchase them – a perk that original Foundation series trucks did not get.
Lifetime supercharging is an old perk, which Tesla originally offered in its early days, both as an incentive to encourage purchase and because it was easier than building a payment system around a network that they were just building out. The perk went through various iterations, but it eventually became too much, and Tesla ended the free lifetime supercharging era in 2018.
You can find these vehicles on Tesla’s inventory website, and search for vehicles near you. Currently, there are 7 available here in Southern California – not that many, but it is just one region of the country.
To qualify, you must purchase a new Foundation Series Cybertruck after December 27, 2024 – which means original Foundation series owners who were first in line to spend $120k on this truck will not retroactively gain this benefit. The free supercharging perk is tied to your Tesla account and is not transferable to another person or vehicle.
You still have to pay idle and congestion fees at Superchargers, and you can’t use the car to run a taxi service (as the original Tesloop shuttle service did – which was one of the reasons the original perk went away).
But when the truck hit the road, things didn’t go exactly as planned. The vehicle came out late and over budget, also missing some of the specs that were originally promised. The first available “Foundation Series” models started at $100k – a far cry from the promised entry-level $40k. It’s now available at a base price of $79k – but a promised future $61k base RWD model was recently removed that from Tesla’s website.
But nevertheless, demand seems much lower than the sky-high expectations for the vehicle. That ~2 million vehicle backlog only lasted for about 30,000 vehicles, when Tesla started allowing orders without a reservation in October.
Tesla also recently shut down its Cybertruck line for 3 days, and didn’t make any public comment as to why. Various theories were advanced as to why, but during a time where Cybertruck sales don’t seem to be going as planned despite it being a critical time for the company in terms of deliveries, a sudden shutdown is in suspect.
But given the Cybertruck’s polarizing design, high price, and its clear association with Elon Musk who is becoming more and more distasteful by the day, it’s not a big surprise that there are fewer customers for the vehicle than projections might have suggested 5 years ago.
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MAN Trucks are always good for a headline, but despite the company’s pro-battery bluster they’ve barely managed to get 200 battery electric semi trucks on the road … until now that is: the company announced that series production of its heavy-duty eTruck prime mover is officially underway!
Since then, we’ve talked a bit about MAN’s early BEV customers — but with just 200 trucks on the road, they’ve been few and far between. That’s all set to change now that MAN Executive Board Member for Production Michael Kobriger, together with Manfred Weber, Member of the European Parliament and Chairman of the EPP, gave the go-ahead to start the eTruck production line at the company’s Munich plant.
From now on, both electric and diesel trucks will be produced in a fully integrated mixed production process on the same line, with enough capacity to produce up to 100 eTrucks per day. (!)
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“The start of series production of our electric trucks is historic. It marks a turning point in our history,” explains Vlaskamp, enthusiastically. “The future of MAN begins now, at this very moment. The entire MAN team is proud to be actively shaping the transformation from diesel to electric drive. Our highly efficient electric trucks will make locally emission-free freight transport a reality. This is an enormously important step towards achieving our goal of becoming CO2-neutral by 2050. The fact that we can manufacture the electric trucks on the same production line as our state-of-the-art diesel trucks also gives us enormous flexibility and increases production efficiency.”
MAN says the plant’s maximum capacity is 100 trucks per day, citing about 8 hours to produce one of its heavy-duty semis. The interesting thing, though, is that it doesn’t seem to matter whether those 100 trucks are diesel- or battery-powered.
Flexible assembly
“The production of electric or diesel trucks on a single line can be flexibly adapted to market developments, and the vehicles can be built exactly in the order in which they are ordered by customers. This innovative concept is accompanied by extensive changes along the assembly line as well as in the supply chain and logistics,” says Kobriger, citing that while ICE trucks are initially fitted with axles, tanks and exhaust systems, the electric models are instead fitted with two batteries under the cab together with a “power pack” of electrical components.
All 5,000+ Munich-plant MAN employees have been trained in high-voltage technology in preparation for this “transformation” of the facility. The company says it has 700 of its 740 km (about 450 mile) battery electric trucks already sold, with more sales sure to come as availability ramps up to meet demand.
Electrek’s Take
Historic: eTruck production begins; via MAN.
Betting against Tesla has been bad business for well over a decade now, but with MAN now capable of putting out about as many electric semi trucks in a single day as Tesla has in the last ::checks notes:: eight years since the official launch of the Tesla Semi concept, it’s hard to imagine them catching up — and harder still to see them catching up with Volvo or Renault, each of who have logged tens of millions of electric semi miles in recent years.
That said, Tesla has beaten legacy brands with massive, seemingly insurmountable leads before – but the good news is that, when it comes to EVs, whoever wins, we kind of all win, you know? Even Elon! That’s my take, anyway. Head down to the comments and let me know yours.
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New York City is creating a new department aimed at cracking down on e-bike delivery workers, and critics say it’s the latest move in a growing pattern of targeting micromobility riders instead of the real threats on the road.
Buried inside NYC’s new $116 billion city budget is a plan to hire 45 new unarmed peace officers tasked with enforcing laws against delivery cyclists, particularly those riding e-bikes and mopeds. The new officers will work under the just-announced Department of Sustainable Delivery, a division of the Department of Transportation set to deploy in 2028.
Mayor Eric Adams says the department will help improve street safety and hold delivery app companies accountable for the pressure they put on gig workers. “The newly created Department of Sustainable Delivery is yet another step that we’re taking to support delivery workers, keep pedestrians safe, and hold delivery app companies accountable for placing unrealistic expectations on their workers that put New Yorkers in harm’s way,” Adams explained in a published statement.
But the move is already raising red flags among advocates for delivery workers and cycling safety, who warn that these efforts could lead to increased surveillance and policing of low-income, often immigrant workers, many of whom already operate under grueling conditions just to make ends meet.
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The officers will be trained to issue moving violations and enforce commercial cycling laws, though city officials haven’t clarified exactly how they’ll distinguish between a reckless rider and one simply hustling to meet the often unrealistic delivery windows imposed by apps like Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub.
While Adams frames the effort as a safety initiative, critics argue it’s another example of micromobility scapegoating. Just last month, he imposed a 15 mph speed limit on e-bikes across the city, in a move that advocates say ignores the realities of urban riding and fails to address the vastly greater danger posed by cars and trucks. The administration also moved to undo a redesign of Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, rolling back a protected bike lane project that city data showed had improved safety.
Delivery riders in NYC, many of whom are immigrants working long shifts in all weather conditions, overwhelmingly use e-bikes to cover more ground, more quickly. These workers have been essential to the city’s economy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet they continue to face increasing scrutiny from law enforcement, often for minor infractions, even as drivers of multi-ton vehicles are rarely held to the same standard.
City Council spokesperson Mara Davis acknowledged the concerns, stating, “There are always concerns about any new policy that could give way to discriminatory policing of delivery workers and immigrants. We remain in discussions with advocates and constructive members of the mayoral administration to advance solutions on e-bike safety, sustainable delivery, and street safety.”
Despite the rhetoric about safety, the data paints a different picture. City statistics show that e-bikes account for less than 4% of traffic-related injuries, and Gothamist pointed out that only six pedestrian fatalities involving e-bike riders were reported between 2021 and 2024. Meanwhile, cars and trucks continue to kill hundreds of New Yorkers every year. But rather than increasing enforcement on reckless drivers or investing more in safe bike infrastructure, the city is spending taxpayer money to police bicycles.
Electrek’s Take
In a city desperately trying to transition to more sustainable forms of transportation, I just don’t think that increasing pressure on the people doing the most riding is the answer. Delivery workers are part of the solution to car dependence, not the problem.
If NYC wants cleaner, safer streets, the focus should be on supporting these riders with safe infrastructure, affordable bikes, and better labor protections – not treating them like traffic scofflaws. Yes, enforcement is important. And yes, dangerous riders should be penalized to the full extent of the law, especially when they pose a real threat to pedestrians. But let’s not pretend like that’s what this about. If we cared about pedestrian safety, we’d be increasing enforcement to prevent the hundreds killed every year by cars in NYC – not the two pedestrians killed by e-bikes.
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China’s EV leader, BYD, just reached another major breakthrough: its smart parking feature now offers L4 autonomy. To sweeten the deal, BYD says it will fully cover any losses associated with the new feature.
BYD becomes the first to achieve L4 smart parking
BYD said it was coming soon. Earlier this week, BYD posted on Weibo that it’s about to launch “the largest-scale smart driving OTA in history.”
On Wednesday, BYD confirmed that its smart parking system now offers L4 autonomy, becoming the first to achieve the feat. In a statement, the company said, “BYD is the first to achieve L4-level smart parking, and the official promise is to provide a safety guarantee.”
The company is also pledging to cover any losses tied to the feature. Instead of going through their insurance company, drivers can contact BYD’s after-sales team to handle the incident.
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All BYD vehicles equipped with its God’s Eye smart driving system can get the upgrade. Earlier this year, the EV maker upgraded 21 of its best-selling vehicles with its God’s Eye system, at no additional cost.
The breakthrough comes after BYD announced earlier this week that there are now over 1 million vehicles on the road with its God’s Eye smart driving system. With L4 smart parking, the vehicle can operate without human interaction under certain conditions.
And that’s not all. BYD also said it’s pushing new OTA updates for its God’s Eye B and C systems. God’s Eye B will gain new functions, including multiple U-turns, detours, and a three-speed parking feature. Meanwhile, God’s Eye C is set to receive front parking and lane change reminders.
BYD’s smart driving system has three levels: A, B, and C. The A system is primarily reserved for the ultra-luxury Yangwang brand, while B is used for Denza and some premium BYD brand models. The God’s Eye C system is used for lower-cost BYD vehicles, such as the Seagull EV, its top seller in China.
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