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If you’re having trouble talking on the phone in the new electric Blazer, it’s not just you. GM issued a memo to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration due to poor phone call quality in the new Chevy Blazer EV. Here’s how you can fix it.

The new all-electric SUV is part of GM’s recent EV blitz, which includes new low-cost, luxury, SUVs and electric truck models. In other words, an “EV for everyone,” as GM claims.

With the Blazer EV rolling out to dealers nationwide, some owners are complaining about phone call quality when connected through Bluetooth.

GM issued a memo to the NHTSA stating due to “poor sound quality on a phone call.” The issue potentially impacts all 2024 and 2025 Blazer EV models.

The communication states, “A customer may complain during a phone call that the sound is muted or muffled.” Although the sound “will be good for the person in the vehicle,” the person on the other end may have trouble hearing you.

GM said the microphone may have been installed backward. Because the microphone holes may not align, it could prevent sound from reaching the device.

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2024 Chevy Blazer EV RS (Source: GM)

Chevy Blazer EV drivers complain over phone call quality

If you experience this issue, you can take it to a local dealer, and a technician will reinstall the microphone to correct it.

The 2025 Chevy Blazer EV launched last month with more range and lower prices. The new base FWD model will be available later this year, starting at $45,995. The current lowest-priced 2025 Chevy Blazer EV AWD starts at $48,995, with up to 300 miles range.

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2024 Chevy Blazer EV RS interior (Source: GM)

All new Chevy Blazer EVs are eligible for the $7,500 federal tax credit. GM will release more details on the FWD, and SS trims closer to launch.

The electric Blazer helped push GM to a record Q3 with 32,095 electric vehicles sold, up 60% from last year.

2025 Chevy Blazer EV trim Starting MSRP (includes DFC)   Range   Horsepower   Torque   Availability  
FWD   $45,995    TBC   220    243 lb-ft   Available to order soon  
AWD   $48,995   EPA-estimated 283 (previously 279)   300 (previously 288)   355 lb-ft (previously 333 lb-ft)   Available now  
RWD   $56,990   EPA-estimated 334 (previously 324)   365 (previously 340)   325 lb-ft   Available to order now  
SS   $61,995   TBC   595 with Wide Open Watts (previously announced 557) Wide Open Watts mode can accelerate from 0 – 60 in 3.4 seconds   645 lb-ft with Wide Open Watts   Available Q1 2025  
2025 Chevy Blazer EV prices and range by trim (Source: Chevrolet)

GM sold nearly 8,000 Chevy Blazer EVs in the third quarter, slightly less than the 9,772 electric Equinox models. With the $35,000 Chevy Equinox EV finally arriving at dealerships, the company expects electric vehicle sales to continue seeing demand.

Have you been eyeing Chevy’s new electric SUVs? We can help you find the right model at the best price. Check out our links below to find deals on the Chevy Blazer and Equinox EVs in your area.

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Tesla police cruiser, Trump voters love solar, and at least the mines will be nice

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Tesla police cruiser, Trump voters love solar, and at least the mines will be nice

On today’s episode of Quick Charge, I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords. I’d like to remind them that, as a trusted media personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves cobalt mines.

We’ve also got the world’s quickest police pursuit vehicle, an Amnesty International report highlighting Tesla and Mercedes’ efforts to improve worker conditions in the Congo, and an exploration of Trump voters’ love for solar power.

Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 50% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday pre-sale, now through November 11. Learn more by clicking here.

Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple PodcastsSpotifyTuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news!

Got news? Let us know!
Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!

Read more: Cybertruck dually, overland Kia concepts, and electric Mopars at SEMA.

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Trump won – what now for US clean energy?

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Trump won – what now for US clean energy?

Donald Trump will push fossil fuels and undo renewable energy policies, but it ultimately won’t stop clean energy’s momentum.

Trump has always pushed for more oil drilling and fewer regulations, left the Paris Agreement in his first term as president, says he hates “windmills,” promised to scrap offshore wind on “day one” if he won the 2024 election, and calls climate change a “scam.” And now that he’s won, this is a direct threat to the US’s pledge to reach net zero by 2050. After all, federal policy directly impacts the pace of renewable energy growth, especially when it comes to incentives and research funding.

The Biden administration’s groundbreaking Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which has spurred a clean energy boom, will be challenged under Trump. Because Republican states have received 80% of the IRA’s money with which they’ve built factories and created thousands of jobs, a complete IRA repeal is unlikely. What’s more probable is that the Republicans phase out tax credits earlier than planned or cap overall funding.

Federal financial support for innovative technologies and projects could also take a hit. Brendan Bell, COO of Aligned Climate Capital, who formerly led the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, told Electrek:

My partner Peter and I led the DOE Loan Program Office under President Obama. We supported the first utility-scale solar and storage projects, as well as early EV investments – including the first loan to Tesla.

Today, these technologies are commercialized and are propelling the clean energy transition. None of it would have been possible if these programs had been cut off 10 years ago.

Put simply, Trump can’t turn back the tide of clean energy – but he could delay tomorrow’s solutions and the birth of new industries.

BloombergNEF’s “2H 2024 US Clean Energy Market Outlook,” released at the end of October, examined the worst-case scenario, where control of both the Senate and the House leads to a full repeal of the IRA tax credits:

The wind, solar, and energy storage sectors jointly see a 17% drop in total new capacity additions over 2025-2035, with 927 gigawatts (GW) of cumulative build compared to 1,118GW in BNEF’s base case forecast. Wind sees the greatest fall in activity in this scenario with a 35% drop, followed by energy storage at 15% and solar at 13% relative to BNEF’s base case.

That’s a blow we can’t afford at a time when we need to reduce emissions by 50% from 2005 levels by 2030 to avoid climate disasters becoming even worse than they already are.

But all is not lost. The clean energy market isn’t solely driven by federal policy. Over the last decade, solar, wind, and EVs have become more cost-competitive and popular. State policies play a huge role too, and many states are committed to their own clean energy goals regardless of who sits in the White House. States like California, New York, and Washington have ambitious targets to combat climate change, and deep red Texas is No. 1 in the US for both solar and wind.

Corporations are also key players. Companies like Amazon, Google, and Walmart have committed to going 100% renewable, and they’re not about to reverse course. This demand keeps the market for renewables strong. Plus, there’s significant public support for clean energy jobs, and renewables create more employment opportunities than fossil fuels in many regions of the country.

JD Dillon, chief marketing officer of California-based solar tech manufacturer Tigo Energy (Nasdaq: TYGO), said to Electrek, “The march toward renewable clean energy is both inevitable and the right thing to do. In a perfect world, we would eliminate partisanship from the renewable energy conversation because everyone benefits from a cleaner environment and affordable energy. Unfortunately, none of us live in said perfect world.”

The US clean energy sector may slow down, but it’s hard to stop a train that has already left the station. What consequences this slower-moving train will have for the US and the world remains to be seen.

Read more: Trump says he’ll end the EV mandate. The only problem: there isn’t one.


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Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.

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CATL pushes forward with all-solid-state EV batteries

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CATL pushes forward with all-solid-state EV batteries

The world’s largest EV battery maker is advancing a new type of battery, promising higher energy density. According to a new local report, CATL is investing heavily while ramping up its workforce to bring all-solid-state EV batteries to market.

With trial production reportedly kicking off, we could see CATL launch all-solid-state EV batteries sooner than expected.

According to a new local report from LatePost (via CnEVPost), CATL has entered the trial production phase of 20 Ah samples. The news comes after the EV battery giant added over 1,000 workers to its R&D team this year.

The report claimed that CATL is now focused on the final Sulfide phase and has already commenced trial production of 20 Ah samples.

The company’s solution has an energy density of up to 500 Wh/kg for lithium ternary batteries, 40% more than current batteries. However, the report said charging speed and cycle life are not quite where they need to be.

At 20 Ah, the battery solution is finalized and ready for its next stage, production tech exploration.

CATL-all-solid-state-EV-batteries
CATL’s new EV experience center (Source: CATL)

CATL is advancing all-solid-state EV batteries

The report says after that it’s mainly manufacturing hurdles, that can be overcome with a bigger workforce.

In April, CATL’s chief scientist, Wu Kai, announced that the company had developed a verification platform for 10 Ah all-solid-state EV battery cells. Wu also said CATL aimed to produce all-solid-state EV batteries in small volumes in 2027, the first time the news was made public.

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CATL launches Shenxing Plus EV battery (Source: CATL)

In September, the company’s chairman, Robin Zeng, said CATL’s research into the new battery tech was “second to none.”

Several companies, including Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, and others, are betting on solid-state EV batteries as the future.

CATL-Super-hybrid-battery
CATL launches new Freevoy Super Hybrid Battery (Source: CATL)

According to data from CnEVPost, CATL is dominating the global EV battery market with a 36.7% share through September 2024.

China’s BYD is second with a 16.4% share of the market. BYD is also planning to launch solid-state batteries. At the September 2024 World New Energy Congress, BYD’s head scientist and engineer, Lian Yubo, said solid-state EV batteries could be widely used in five years.

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