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Aptera’s Gamma Alpha Prototype is as crazy as it is efficient in first hands-on look

Credit: Fully Charged Show | YouTube

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Update 8/12: Headline and any reference to the vehicle has been changed to “Gamma Alpha Prototype.”

Aptera offered a hands-on look at a prototype of the Gamma Alpha solar-powered vehicle today, which is as crazy looking as it is efficient, thanks to a world-class drag co-efficient and incredibly sleek design.

The Fully Charged Show was given access to what Aptera called the “Alpha prototype” of their upcoming Gamma model. This vehicle was significantly more finished-looking than the “beta prototype,” where the complete drivetrain, suspension setup, and software were being tested, yet also looked quite different than the vehicle that was teased earlier this week.

Incredible efficiency with a world-class drag coefficient

The prototype shown in the video above has a 0.13 drag coefficient, which is significantly lower than other EV offerings on the market. The Lightyear Zero solar car has a 0.20 drag coefficient, while the Tesla Model 3 holds a 0.22 rating. The Lucid Air Dream Edition has a 0.21 drag coefficient, while the Tesla Model S Plaid has a 0.208.

Drag coefficients are a significant factor for electric vehicle efficiency. While Aptera has already achieved a world-class energy usage metric in terms of miles driven per kWh. The Tesla Model 3 will offer 5 miles of range per kWh, but the solar-powered Aptera Gamma prototype will give drivers an efficiency rating of double what the Model 3 will offer, and that is in no way an insult to the mass-market sedan from Tesla, which was noted as the “poster child of efficiency” by Fully Charged.

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Polarizing interior designs

The Alpha Gamma prototype had some significant differences compared to the teased Aptera interior. A more normal-looking steering wheel replaced the ever divisive yoke, the driver dash screen was revealed to be the rearview mirror system, and the center divider/console appeared significantly more finished with a center armrest and center storage area. However, the interior matched the teaser image’s minimalism, lacking many physical controls, sunshades, and air conditioning vents.

One area shown on the video that was absent from the teaser images was the door. The interior door panel included a leather strap that would hang down to help close the door when sitting, a set of window controls that control the Subaru SVX style split windows, and otherwise remained sparse, matching the rest of the interior.

Technical information shared in the video includes Aptera’s “skin cooling” technology, whereby the vehicle’s underside is used as a heat sync to cool the batteries as the vehicle drives. The charging port was a Tesla connector underneath the rear license plate. And finally, the UI was described to have a lot of features that aimed to help the driver increase range whenever possible, mainly discouraging the use of AC and seat heaters.

Aptera has over 27,000 reservations for the Gamma so far. With the company holding a plan to start deliveries by next year, the vehicle could be introduced with a starting price under $20,000, which is amazingly affordable considering the efficiency the vehicle could ultimately offer.

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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 teases new market entrance with confusing and cryptic message

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla teased its entrance into a new market with a confusing and what appeared to be cryptic message on the social media platform X.

The company has been teasing its entrance into several markets, including Africa, which would be a first, and South America, where it only operates in Chile.

In September, Tesla started creating active job postings for the Colombian market, hinting it would expand its presence in South America and launch in a new country for the first time in two years.

Tesla job postings seem to show next surprise market entry

The jobs were related to various roles, including Associate Sales Manager, Advisors in Sales and Delivery, and Service Technicians. These are all roles that would indicate Tesla is planning to launch a wide-scale effort to sell, manage, and repair vehicles in the market.

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Last night, Tesla posted its latest hint, a cryptic video that seems to show the outline of Colombia, teasing its closer than ever to market entry:

This would be the next expansion into a continent where it does not have much of a presence for Tesla. Currently, there are only two Supercharger locations on the entire continent, and they’re both in Chile.

Tesla will obviously need to expand upon this crucial part of the ownership experience to enable a more confident consumer base in South America as a whole. However, it is not impossible, as many other EV charging infrastructures are available, and home charging is always a suitable option for those who have access to it.

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Surprisingly, Tesla seems to be more concerned about these middle-market countries as opposed to the larger markets in South America, but that could be by design.

If Tesla were to launch in Brazil initially, it may not be able to handle the uptick in demand, and infrastructure expansion could be more difficult. Brazil may be on its list in the upcoming years, but not as of right now.

@teslarati 🚨🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving and Yap is the best driving experience #tesla #fsd #yapping ♬ I Run – HAVEN.

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Tesla expands crucial Supercharging feature for easier access

It is a useful tool, especially during hours of congestion. However, it has not been super effective for those who drive non-Tesla EVs, as other OEMs use UI platforms like Google’s Android Auto or Apple’s iOS.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has expanded a crucial Supercharging feature that helps owners identify stall availability at nearby locations.

Tesla said on Tuesday night that its “Live Availability” feature, which shows EV owners how many stalls are available at a Supercharger station, to Google Maps, a third-party app:

Already offering it in its own vehicles, the Live Availability feature that Teslas have is a helpful feature that helps you choose an appropriate station with plugs that are immediately available.

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A number on an icon where the Supercharger is located lets EV drivers know how many stalls are available.

It is a useful tool, especially during hours of congestion. However, it has not been super effective for those who drive non-Tesla EVs, as other OEMs use UI platforms like Google’s Android Auto or Apple’s iOS.

Essentially, when those drivers needed to charge at a Supercharger that enables non-Tesla EVs to plug in, there was a bit more of a gamble. There was no guarantee that a plug would be available, and with no way to see how many are open, it was a risk.

Tesla adding this feature allows people to have a more convenient and easier-to-use experience if they are in a non-Tesla EV. With the already expansive Supercharger Network being available to so many EV owners, there is more congestion than ever.

This new feature makes the entire experience better for all owners, especially as there is more transparency regarding the availability of plugs at Supercharger stalls.

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It will be interesting to see if Tesla is able to expand on this new move, as Apple Maps compatibility is an obvious goal of the company’s in the future, we could imagine. In fact, this is one of the first times an Android Auto feature is available to those owners before it became an option for iOS users.

Apple owners tend to get priority with new features within the Tesla App itself.

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Elon Musk’s Boring Co goes extra hard in Nashville with first rock-crushing TBM

The Boring Company’s machine for the project is now in final testing.

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Credit: The Boring Company/X

The Boring Company is gearing up to tackle one of its toughest projects yet, a new tunnel system beneath Nashville’s notoriously tough limestone terrain. Unlike the soft-soil conditions of Las Vegas and Austin, the Music City Loop will require a “hard-rock” boring machine capable of drilling through dense, erosion-resistant bedrock. 

The Boring Company’s machine for the project is now in final testing.

A boring hard-rock tunneling machine

The Boring Company revealed on X that its new hard-rock TBM can generate up to 4 million pounds of grip force and 1.5 million pounds of maximum thrust load. It also features a 15-filter dust removal system designed to keep operations clean and efficient during excavation even in places where hard rock is present.

Previous Boring Co. projects, including its Loop tunnels in Las Vegas, Austin, and Bastrop, were dug primarily through soft soils. Nashville’s geology, however, poses a different challenge. Boring Company CEO and President Steve Davis mentioned this challenge during the project’s announcement in late July.

“It’s a tough place to tunnel, Nashville. If we were optimizing for the easiest places to tunnel, it would not be here. You have extremely hard rock, like way harder than it should be. It’s an engineering problem that’s fairly easy and straightforward to solve,” Davis said.

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Nashville’s limestone terrain

Experts have stated that the city’s subsurface conditions make it one of the more complex tunneling environments in the U.S. The Outer Nashville Basin is composed of cherty Mississippian-age limestone, a strong yet soluble rock that can dissolve over time, creating underground voids and caves, as noted in a report from The Tennessean.

Jakob Walter, the founder and principal engineer of Haushepherd, shared his thoughts on these challenges. “Limestone is generally a stable sedimentary bedrock material with strength parameters that are favorable for tunneling. Limestone is however fairly soluble when compared to other rack materials, and can dissolve over long periods of time when exposed to water. 

“Unexpected encounters with these features while tunneling can result in significant construction delays and potential instability of the excavation. In urban locations, structures at the ground surface should also be constantly monitored with robotic total stations or similar surveying equipment to identify any early signs of movement or distress,” he said.

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