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.
However, it recently brought the perk back to clear out Model S inventory among a steep decline in Model S sales, showing that Tesla is willing to reopen the Pandora’s Box of free supercharging if circumstances call for it. And now two weeks after doing that for Model S vehicles, it’s also doing it for Cybertrucks.
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).
Finally, a Cybertruck purchased this way is not eligible for the Powershare voucher included with other Foundation Series trucks. So, it looks like you’re swapping one perk for another (though Powershare can end up costing a lot more than that, for certain installations).
Electrek’s Take
This is another sign that Tesla isn’t seeing quite as much demand as once expected for the polarizing vehicle.
After it was first unveiled in 2019, the Cybertruck managed to tally over 250k pre-orders in less than a week, later reaching a peak of potentially 2 million reservations according to crowdsourced data.
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.
Despite all that, it’s still the best-selling electric pickup in the US and the third best-selling EV with a very high average transaction price, bringing in a good chunk of change for the company.
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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The new and improved 2026 Kia EV9 and 2025 EV6 are eligible for the $7,500 federal EV tax credit, but one trim is excluded.
Do the Kia EV6 and EV9 qualify for the federal tax credit?
Kia’s first dedicated electric vehicle, the EV6, received some pretty major upgrades for its mid-cycle update this year.
The 2025 EV6 features a bigger battery providing more range (now up to 319 miles), a stylish interior and exterior redesign, and an NACS port for charging at Tesla Superchargers.
Kia’s first three-row electric SUV, the EV9, also has a native NACS charging port and will be the first model year to offer a high-performance GT trim.
We got a good look at the EV9 GT at the LA Auto Show last year (check it out here). The sporty electric SUV boasts 501 hp, which is quite a bit more than the current GT-Line’s 379 hp. The added power is enough for the big-body SUV to move from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.3 seconds.
Although Kia America’s vice president of sales, Eric Watson, confirmed the EV6 and EV9 are now in “full-scale production” at its plant in West Point, Georgia, not all trims will qualify for the $7,500 federal tax credit.
According to CarsDirect, Kia told dealers that the 2025 EV6 and 2026 EV9 GT trims wouldn’t be eligible for the credit. A spokesperson said the exclusion is because Kia builds the EV6 GT and EV9 GT in South Korea, while all other trims are assembled in Georgia.
If Trump’s 25% tariff on South Korea is still in effect when the GT models launch in the US, it could create a significant price gap between trims.
Despite this, you will likely still be able to take advantage of the credit through leasing. Kia, like many, is passing the $7,500 on through lease cash, which can significantly cut monthly payments.
Kia will reveal more info, including prices, closer to launch. Check back soon. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.
With the new models arriving soon, Kia is offering clearance pricing on outgoing models. Monthly leases start as low as $179. You can use our links below to find deals on the Kia EV6 and EV9 near you.
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Donald Trump is expected to sign executive orders today to resuscitate the US coal industry – here’s why this is a complete waste of time.
Once again, using “emergency authority” by citing the growing power needs from data centers, EVs, and AI, the executive orders will allow some old coal-fired power plants scheduled for retirement to stay online.
The orders will also direct federal agencies to identify coal resources on federal lands, lift barriers to coal mining barriers, and prioritize coal leasing on US lands.
An Obama-era moratorium that paused coal leasing on federal lands will officially be acknowledged and federal agencies will be required to scrap policies moving away from US coal production. Trump also wants to boost coal exports and speed up coal technology development.
Electrek’s Take
The coal and mineral industry is happy about this executive order, as well as the EPA recently giving them a free pass to pollute, and the MAGA crowd might think this is great, but no one else thinks this clever.
Trump can try to pretend that coal is “clean,” but it doesn’t change the fact that coal is the dirtiest of fossil fuels – its emissions killed 460,000 people between 1999 and 2020. Plus, it’s not even cost-effective – even natural gas is cheaper than coal. And these plants are old – the average age of the plants that are online is 53.
Coal has been in decline for a long time – it peaked in 2007. As I just wrote last month, coal fell to a record low of 15% of total electricity generation in the US in 2024, and wind and solar accounted for 17% of total electricity generation. That’s right – wind and solar successfully provided more power generation in the US than coal last year.
And while electricity demand will indeed skyrocket over the following decades, clean energy is capable of meeting that demand. The Energy Information Administration projects that in 2025, 93% of new power added to the US grid will be from solar, wind, and battery storage.
In an emailed statement, Kit Kennedy, managing director for power at the Natural Resources Defense Council, questioned whether a mandate for Americans to commute by horse and buggy would be next. It’s a fitting sentiment because the fact that I’m even writing a story in 2025 about why trying to revive coal is a bad idea feels ludicrous. Trump seems to forget he’s not William McKinley and this isn’t 1900.
Read more: Renewables to continue driving US power generation growth – EIA
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After a few “technical advances,” BMW is upgrading its EVs with more driving range, features, and options. All BMW i5 models now have more range, while the 2026 iX has an EPA-estimated driving range of up to 364 miles.
BMW iX and i5 EVs gain more range
BMW announced 2025 model year updates coming this spring with a few exciting improvements to look forward to.
The BMW i5 eDrive40 features up to 310 miles of range, up from 295 miles in the outgoing model. Meanwhile, the i5 xDrive40 has a driving range of up to 278 miles, up from 266 miles in the 2025 model year.
BMW said that the improvements are due to “a number of technical advances that reduce energy consumption, and, thus, improve their range.” The new i5 uses a more efficient, more powerful SiC inverter, which also powers the new 2026 iX.
All BMW 5 Series models are available with a new Frozen Portimao Blue metallic paint color. Two new Merino leather interior colors have also been added: Dark Violet/Atlas Grey and Taupe/Atlas Grey.
| BMW i5 model | Driving Range (increase from MY2025) |
| i5 eDrive40 (19-in wheels) | 310 mi (+ 5%) |
| i5 eDrive40 (20-in wheels) | 300 mi (+ 8%) |
| i5 eDrive40 (21-in wheels) | 278 mi (+ 3%) |
| i5 xDrive40 (19-in wheels) | 278 mi (+ 5%) |
| i5 xDrive40 (20-in wheels) | 272 mi (+ 4%) |
| i5 xDrive40 (21-in wheels) | 259 mi (+ 4%) |
Although BMW revealed the 2026 iX earlier this year, the company now says it has an even greater EPA-estimated range than it projected.
The 2026 BMW iX xDrive60 is rated with a range of 364 miles when equipped with 20″ Aero wheels on summer tires, 7% higher than the 340 miles it initially expected. It’s also a drastic improvement from the 309-mile rating for the 2025MY.
Despite the upgrades, BMW’s electric SUV gets a $12,100 price cut thanks to a new entry-level xDrive45 model, which starts at just $75,150.
| Horsepower | Starting Price* | Driving Range | |
| 2026 BMW iX xDrive45 | 402 hp | $75,150 | 312 miles |
| 2026 BMW iX xDrive60 | 536 hp | $88,500 | 364 miles |
| 2026 BMW iX M70 | 650 hp | $115,500 | 303 miles |
BMW fine-tuned the exterior, which now includes new vertical headlights and a revamped Kidney Grille that illuminates.
The 2026 BMW iX is also the first BMW to feature its new Curved Display OS with video streaming, in-car gaming, and more.
Ready to try out BMW’s electric cars for yourself? We can help you get started. Check out our links below to find BMW iX and i5 models near you.
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