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ABB E-Mobility announces EV charger production in the U.S.

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ABB E-Mobility has announced that it will construct another EV charger production facility in South Carolina.

As the States and U.S. federal government look to spend billions on new electric vehicle charging infrastructure, more EV chargers are needed than ever before. And to meet this new demand, ABB E-Mobility is constructing a new EV charger production facility in Columbia, South Carolina.

According to the company, ABB is currently constructing a new production facility in Columbia, South Carolina, to meet electric vehicle charger demand. They will attempt to do so as early as next year. The company has stated that it will supply public networks, school bus fleets, and other commercial customers.

The new facility aims to produce 10,000 chargers annually and will produce chargers with output ranging from 20-180kW. This is a significant departure from ABB’s previous U.S.-based manufacturing operations focusing on high power output chargers with rates of between 150 and 450 kW.

ABB has invested $14 billion in the U.S. via ” plant expansions, operational improvements, state-of-the-art equipment, products, and people.” this new production facility is one of a series of recent U.S. projects announced over the past two years. ABB is also constructing a training facility in Sugar Land, Texas, and a new R&D facility in Southern California.

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This move is part of a more significant trend of numerous companies in the EV space constructing new production facilities in the U.S. We have previously covered the wave of battery material and battery manufacturing facilities coming from South Korea and China to the U.S. Still, even products such as EV chargers will now be more domestically sourced.

While perhaps not entirely attributable to the Inflation Reduction Act, it is clear that the funding has proved to be an influence on manufacturers around the world. But some have questioned what will happen after federal and state incentives end. Will manufacturers be as eager to come to the U.S. or even as keen to stay?

What do you think of the article? Do you have any comments, questions, or concerns? Shoot me an email at william@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @WilliamWritin. If you have news tips, email us at tips@teslarati.com!

Will is an auto enthusiast, a gear head, and an EV enthusiast above all. From racing, to industry data, to the most advanced EV tech on earth, he now covers it at Teslarati.

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Tesla rolls out new life-saving feature for kids in Europe

On average, 37 children die every year from being left in vehicles unattended.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is rolling out a new life-saving feature in the European market, one that has been available in the United States for some time and can be considered potentially invaluable.

One of the most preventable causes of death for children is being left in cars unattended. On average, 37 children die every year after being left in hot vehicles. The cause of death is usually heatstroke, and it is incredibly avoidable.

Tesla rolls out new crucial safety feature aimed at saving children

However, there are instances where kids are left in vehicles and lose their lives, something that many companies have tried to fight with alerts and features of their own.

Tesla is one of them, as it has rolled out features like ultrasonic sensors to detect heartbeats, interior cameras to detect movement, and alerts to notify parents if they leave someone in the car.

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A few months ago, Tesla rolled out a new feature called “Child Left Alone Detection” in the United States. It was described as:

“If an unattended child is detected, the vehicle will flash the exterior indicator lights, play an alert tone, and send a notification to your Tesla app. This will repeat at regular intervals until you return to your vehicle. Cabin data is processed locally and is not transmitted to Tesla.

This feature is enabled by default. To disable, go to Controls > Safety > Child Left Alone Detection.”

This feature was only rolled out in the U.S. at the time. It is now making its way to the European market, according to Not a Tesla App, which detected the rollout in the 2025.32.6 software update.

The rollout of this feature could specifically change many unfortunate situations. For many of us, it seems hard to think about leaving something as precious as another human life in a hot car. Many of us won’t leave our vehicles without our cell phones, so it seems unlikely that someone would do it without a child.

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Tesla gets another NHTSA probe, this time related to door handles

“Although Tesla vehicles have manual door releases inside of the cabin, in these situations, a child may not be able to access or operate the releases even if the vehicle’s driver is aware of them.”

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is facing another investigation into its vehicles by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this time related to an issue with its door handles.

In a new Open Investigation named “Electronic door handles become inoperative,” the NHTSA says that it has received nine complaints from owners of the 2021 Tesla Model Y stemming from “an inability to open doors.”

These issues were reported after “parents exited their vehicle after a drive cycle in order to remove a child from the pack seat or placing a child in the back seat before starting a drive cycle.” Parents said they were “unable to reopen a door to regain access to the vehicle.”

Tesla door handles become unlikely hero as they stump road rager

Four of the nine complaints ended with having to break a window to regain access to the cabin.

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The NHTSA goes on to explain that, while Teslas do have a manual door release inside the cabin, a child may not be able to access it:

“Although Tesla vehicles have manual door releases inside of the cabin, in these situations, a child may not be able to access or operate the releases even if the vehicle’s driver is aware of them. As a result, in these instances, an occupant who remains inside a vehicle in this condition may be unable to be rapidly retrieved by persons outside of the vehicle.”

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It appears that the agency is attributing the issue to a low voltage in the vehicle’s 12V DC battery. This would mean there needs to be some sort of notification to the driver that the battery is running low on power and should be replaced to avoid this issue.

The NHTSA estimates that 174,290 vehicles are potentially impacted by this issue. It plans to assess the scope and severity of the condition, the agency says. The NHTSA also wants to see what approach Tesla uses to supply power to door locks and the reliability of the applicable power supplies.

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Tesla won’t implement strange Grok character as Musk dispels rumor

It is nice to see that Tesla is not forcing this kind of character upon owners of their vehicles, especially considering that many people had a real problem with it.

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Tesla is not going to implement a strange character as a Grok assistant in its vehicles, as CEO Elon Musk dispelled the rumor, which seemed to truly invoke some quite polarizing reactions.

Yesterday, there was some controversy within the Tesla community as rumors of a Grok assistant, named Mūn (pronounced like Moon), being implemented into the vehicles started to circulate.

It had some legitimacy. It was initially posted by an employee, and it appeared to be a relatively confirmed development.

However, it really did rub some people the wrong way. Mūn was an Anime-style female dressed in promiscuous clothing, so it was not everyone’s style, and I’m sure not everyone’s significant other’s cup of tea. It seemed a very strange decision to add it, especially considering that, at the time, there was no confirmation to dispel the arrival of the Grok assistant.

That was until Tesla CEO Elon Musk stepped in to put the speculation to bed once and for all.

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It was somewhat strange that this type of issue arose in the first place, but given that it was initially released by an employee, the entire situation is self-explanatory.

It is nice to see that Tesla is not forcing this kind of character upon owners of their vehicles, especially considering that many people had a real problem with it. Many owners did not shy away from the fact that they would like the option to opt out:

For now, Grok remains a part of Tesla vehicles, and personally, it is very nice to have in my Model Y to answer some quick questions I might have or even to entertain some people in the car.

Nevertheless, I am relieved I won’t have this character forced upon me in my vehicle.

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