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Rove, a new developer of full-service charging stations, has finished construction of its first charging station in Santa Ana, California, and invited us for a sneak peek ahead of its opening this month. The station includes 40 charging spots, a grocery store, indoor and outdoor seating, a car wash, and even a small dog park.

We first heard about Rove several years ago, and attended its groundbreaking for this site last year. The company plans several other sites around Southern California, but Santa Ana is the first to open.

Now, almost exactly a year later, the station is ready to open up to the public, offering a “full service” experience unlike any other charger we’ve seen yet.

The station aims to give EV drivers access to the types of services that might be useful on a longer charging stop, rather than just giving people access to chargers and letting them fend for themselves otherwise.

So, to start with, the site includes 40 charging points, with every format you might want to DC charge with. There are 28 V4 Tesla Superchargers (one of the first third-party Tesla Superchargers to open) which will soon be added to Tesla’s in-car navigation, each of which is equipped with a Magic Dock. In addition, there are 12 CCS chargers – 2 350kW chargers, and 10 184kW chargers (each with its own power, no shared power). The site even includes two CHAdeMO chargers!

Plenty of flexibility from both Tesla and CCS chargers. And note: they even have TRASH CANS!!!

Rove has maintained flexibility on these chargers too, and may install different heads on the charging cables as the market evolves. Each 184kW charger has two heads already, for different sides of the vehicle, but these could be replaced by 1 NACS and 1 CCS in the future.

These chargers are partially fueled by a large, 222kW solar canopy which provides shade for vehicles and power to offset vehicle charging or to charge the 4MWh of on-site battery storage. Battery storage helps to reduce peaks in demand and balance out loads and pricing – though this isn’t a particularly cheap charging stop, at 58 cents per kWh, which can be paid for through the Rove app or tapping your credit card.

But beside all these chargers there’s a large building, with the centerpiece being a small Gelson’s market. Gelson’s is a Southern California grocery store chain that mostly focuses on “upscale” locations and high quality – with prices that come along with.

So the store includes fresh fare like freshly-cut fruit, sandwiches, baked goods and even sushi, and definitely feels like a nicer experience than your typical gas station convenience store.

Gelson’s is calling the concept “ReCharge by Gelson’s,” and it’s the first store of this type the company has opened. They plan to partner at Rove’s future locations as well.

Beside the Gelson’s, Rove has included a lounge with tables and free wifi, for those who’d like to use their charging time to check up on emails or something of the sort. There’s outdoor and indoor seating available, and the site will have 24/7 security and clean bathrooms.

This particular site also has a car wash and fenced area for dogs. Rove will have different features for each site – for example, a future site in Corona will have larger parking spots for bigger vehicle. So we won’t necessarily see car washes and dog parks at every site site, but this one got the whole shebang.

And as for those things that you never get a chance to do in your EV since you never go to gas stations anymore, the site also has a complimentary vacuum, air, and windshield washer station.

The new location is just off the 5 freeway in Santa Ana, at 1008 E 17th Street. It officially opens on October 15th, though will have some soft-launch events over the course of the next couple weeks.

Rove is planning to expand elsewhere in Southern California next, with sites planned in Costa Mesa, Torrance, Corona and Long Beach, which should be opening roughly in that order. The company would like to expand outside of Southern California in the future, but that’s a long way away.

Electrek’s Take

We love to see concepts like these. There’s a lot of talk about EV charging being difficult, but for those of us who have taken EVs on roadtrips, it’s often a pleasant experience anyway. As long as there are clean chargers with something to do nearby, you really don’t feel restricted by the time you spend charging.

For example, I went on a 2,200 mile roadtrip with no prep, and never felt like I had to wait on my car to charge. This is because I stopped at some excellent charging stops (shoutout to my favorite charging stop at the Supercharger in Harrisburg, Oregon, run by Olsen Run Winery) which really improved the process.

The thing is, EV charging could be such an opportunity for businesses to offer services to captive customers who are happy to have something to do, and often won’t mind spending a few bucks anyway. There are some businesses who have already learned to take advantage of this, but it’s been a bit of a patchwork so far.

Rove shows how a business could provide all of these services under one roof. And we think this concept would work in a wide variety of areas. Gas stations already have something similar, with Buc-ee’s style travel stops, and people enjoy stopping at those even though they’re not waiting for their car to fill up. So why not offer something similar for EVs, and kill off all the complaints about EV charging being somehow inferior or weird or different?


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Ford beat every supercar at Goodwood with a truck because EVs are just better

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Ford beat every supercar at Goodwood with a truck because EVs are just better

The Goodwood Festival of Speed happened this weekend, and Ford’s electric SuperTruck managed to beat every other vehicle, gas or electric, to the top of the hill.

The Goodwood Festival of Speed is a yearly event on the grounds of Goodwood House, a historic estate in West Sussex, England. The event started in 1993, and has become one of the largest motorsports festivals in the world.

Many companies attend Goodwood to debut new models, and enthusiasts or race teams will show off rare or customized vehicles or race unique cars.

One of the central features of the event is the Goodwood hillclimb, a short one-way race up a small hill on the property. The track is only 1.17mi/1.89km long, with a 304ft/92.7m uphill climb. It’s not a particularly taxing event – merely a fun way to show off some classic or unique racing vehicles.

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As is often the case, companies brought out several interesting EVs to the event, including Honda’s Super EV concept, the recently-unveiled Hyundai Ioniq 6N, and the upcoming Porsche Cayenne EV, still in camouflage after recently setting an SUV record at another UK hillclimb.

Many of these cars came just to show off, to do a demonstration run up the hill and join the company of the world’s most exotic hypercars.

But some cars show up for the glory, and join “the shootout,” the sprint up the hill for the best time.

And Ford didn’t come to show off, it came to win. And in order to win, it brought…. a truck.

The F-150 “SuperTruck” / Source: Ford

Ford’s SuperTruck is a one-off, 1,400+ horsepower prototype electric vehicle, supposedly based on the F-150 Lightning, but in fact bearing almost no similarity or even resemblance.

It’s been festooned with aerodynamic elements all about, lowered, equipped with race tires, and power output has been boosted to the aforementioned 1,400hp. It was driven by Romain Dumas, who Ford have been using since 2022 to drive their electric prototypes.

For the purposes of a hillclimb, perhaps the most important aspect is the Ford’s electric drive. Hillclimbs are a popular form of racing in Britain, and often consist of a short sprint up a small hill, showcasing acceleration and nimbleness more than anything.

Electric cars do well in this sort of racing due to their instant low-end torque, being able to jump off the line faster than the gas competition. They also tend to have plenty of torque, which helps with carrying them up the hills involved.

EVs do well on longer hillclimbs too, because as races reach higher and higher altitudes, gas cars suffer from reduced power due to less oxygen being available for combustion. EVs don’t suffer from this, so they tend to do well at, say, Pike’s Peak hillclimb – which, incidentally, Ford also brought its SuperTruck to, and also beat everybody at.

This year was not the first time Ford has brought a ridiculous electric chonker to Goodwood. Last year, it brought the SuperVan, which has a similar powertrain to the SuperTruck, and also beat everybody.

The SuperVan’s main competition last year was Subaru’s 670hp “Project Midnight” WRX, piloted by Scott Speed, who Dumas handily defeated by over two seconds, 43.98 to 46.07. And this year, the SuperTruck’s main competition was… the same Subaru, piloted by Speed, who Dumas handily defeated by just under two seconds, 43.23 to 45.03.

Ford did not, however, set an all-time record with the SuperTruck, in fact coming in fifth on the list of fastest runs ever. In front of it are two gas cars and two electric – the gas-powered Gould GR51, a tiny open-wheel race car, with a 42.90; an F1 car driven by Nick Heidfeld that set a 41.6 in 1999; the electric VW ID.R, also piloted by Dumas with a 39.90 (which broke Heidfeld’s 20-year record); and the all-time record holder the electric McMurtry Spierling “fan car,” with a mind-blowing 39.08 in 2019.

You’ll notice something similar about all of these – they’re all small racecars that are actually built for speed, whereas the truck is… a big truck. And yet, Ford still managed to beat every single challenger this year, with its big honker of an EV, because EVs are just better.

Watch the run in full below, starting at 9:34. Blink and you’ll miss it.

And now, if Ford continues its pattern, we’re looking forward to seeing the Super Mustang Mach-E at Goodwood next year, which did well this year at a tough Pike’s Peak, getting first in its class and second overall, likely due to inclement conditions that limited running to the lower portion of the course, limiting the EV’s high-altitude advantages.

Given the Super Mustang is a real racecar, and not a chonky truck, it might even give VW’s ID.R time a run for its money (but, frankly, really has no shot at the overall record, because the Spierling’s “fans” give it an absurdly unbeatable amount of downforce).


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GM gears up to build low-cost LFP EV batteries in Tennessee after announcing new upgrades

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GM gears up to build low-cost LFP EV batteries in Tennessee after announcing new upgrades

GM is preparing to begin converting production lines at its battery plant in Tennessee later this year for low-cost LFP EV batteries. GM’s joint venture, Ultium Cells, announced additional upgrades at the facility on Monday as it prepares for a new era.

GM will build low-cost LFP EV batteries in the US

After beating out Ford and Hyundai last year to become America’s second-best EV seller, GM is widening its lead in 2025.

Ultium Cells, GM’s joint venture with LG Energy Solution, announced plans to upgrade its Tennessee battery plant on Monday as it prepares to introduce lower-cost lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery cells.

The upgrades build on the $2.3 billion investment announced in April 2021 to convert the facility into a key EV and battery hub. The company initially said the Tennessee plant was “at the heart of GM’s EV strategy,” but that was also when GM was still committed to an all-electric future.

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GM will begin converting production lines to accommodate the lower-cost LFP batteries at the facility later this year. By late 2027, the company expects to start commercial production.

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Ultium Cells Spring Hill, Tennessee plant (Source: Ultium Cells)

With LFP batteries, GM said it’s “targeting significant battery pack cost savings compared to today’s high-nickel battery pack while increasing consumer EV choice.”

The Spring Hill, Tennessee, plant currently employs around 1,300 employees. With the ability to produce multiple chemistries, GM said the facility will “guide the next phase of” its battery strategy.

GM-low-cost-LFP-EV-batteries
2025 Chevy Equinox EV LT (Source: GM)

After choosing Spring Hill for its LFP batteries, the next step, according to GM, is finding a home for lithium manganese-rich batteries. GM recently announced plans to become the first company to produce LMR prismatic battery cells at commercial scale.

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GM plans to build a “next-gen affordable EV) in Kansas (Source: GM)

Meanwhile, GM’s Warren, Ohio, plant will continue producing NCM batteries, which it says have helped it unlock over 300 miles of range.

Electrek’s Take

GM’s electric vehicle sales more than doubled in the second quarter, led by the hot-selling Chevy Equinox EV. The company sold nearly 46,300 EVs in Q2, up 11% from last year.

Chevy is currently the fastest-growing EV brand in the US, while Cadillac claims to have already achieved “EV leader” status in the luxury segment this year. However, that does not include Tesla.

Even GMC is building momentum with the new Sierra EV, seeing strong initial demand, and Hummer EV sales are picking up.

With new, lower-cost batteries on the way, GM aims to continue narrowing the gap with Tesla. GM offers 13 electric vehicles, covering nearly every segment of the market. It already calls the Chevy Equinox EV “America’s most affordable +315 range EV,” but GM has even lower-priced models on the way, including the next-gen Chevy Bolt EV.

Ready to test drive one for yourself? You can use our links below to find Chevy, Cadillac, and GMC EVs in your area.

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Elon Musk says Tesla is going to have ‘the most epic demo ever’, but we heard that before

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Elon Musk says Tesla is going to have 'the most epic demo ever', but we heard that before

Elon Musk is teasing Tesla doing “the most epic demo ever”, but we heard him claim that before and nothing came of it.

On X last night, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that he was shown something at the Tesla Design Studio and that the company will hold the ” most epic demo ever by the end of the year”:

Just left the Tesla Design Studio. Most epic demo ever by the end of the year. Ever.

I used to get excited about Musk making statements like that, but I was burned one too many times.

In 2016, Musk said this:

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Our goal is, and I feel pretty good about this goal, that we’ll be able to do a demonstration drive of full autonomy all the way from LA to New York … by the end of next year.

The end of 2017 came and went without this demonstration and now in 2025, Tesla can’t do it either.

However, since Musk referenced being at Tesla’s Design Studio, where it mostly works on car designs and advanced features, people are speculating that it’s something else.

A possibility is the next-gen Tesla Roadster, as Musk has made similar comments about it in the past, but they were again about demonstrations that never happened.

Shortly after the unveiling of the next-gen Roadster in 2017, Musk talked about adding cold air thruster to the supercar to allow it to have unprecedented racing performance and even possibly hover over the ground.

In 2019, Musk told me that Tesla aimed to do a demonstration of that by the end of 2020:

5 years later, it never happened, and the Roadster was initially supposed to come to market in 2020. It has never launched.

In 2024, Musk claimed that Tesla would unveil and demo the new Roadster by the end of the year:

It also didn’t happen, and the CEO instead said that Tesla was “close to finalizing design” at the end of 2025.

Electrek’s Take

The comment about the demo makes me think of the Roadster, but it could be something else. Maybe a bot, but I’m not sure out of the design studio.

Either way, for the reasons listed above, it’s hard to get too excited.

You can’t just believe what Musk says these days. Historically, he has been wrong or lied too often, especially about upcoming demonstrations like this new comment.

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