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Elon Musk says the Cybertruck will be Tesla’s ‘best product ever’

Credit: Nattanan Sirivadhanabhakdi/Facebook

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk said after a recent sighting of the upcoming Cybertruck that he believes it will be the company’s “best product ever.”

The Cybertruck was spotted at the Moss Landing Battery System’s commissioning event in California earlier this week, sporting its 30X Cold-Rolled Stainless-Steel exoskeleton and its somewhat challenging wiper blade, which has been in development for some time, along with other portions of the vehicle, which have been modified since the vehicle’s unveiling in late 2019.

The images and videos released on Monday showed the Cybertruck at the event, and new interior images showed slight modifications to the cabin design. Along with a new dashboard design and instrument cluster, the accelerator and brake pedals were also newly-designed, and it appeared to be running a version of the new Model X software.

However, amongst the most noticeable alterations to the futuristic electric vehicle is a new windshield wiper, which replaces the truck’s previous unusually huge wiper arm, which was on display at Tesla’s Cyber Rodeo event in Austin, Texas, in April. Elon Musk was not too happy and commented on the photos on Twitter, writing, “The wiper is what troubles me most. No easy solution. Deployable wiper that stows in front trunk would be ideal, but complex.”

Tesla Cybertruck’s interior changes teased in Moss Landing appearance images

Despite the new modifications to the Cybertruck, which is expected to hit production early next year after several delays, CEO Elon Musk still continues to vocalize his excitement for the pickup. In the past, Musk has spoken highly of all of his company’s products, especially the Model S Plaid. However, his expectations for the Cybertruck continue to be lofty, as he recently stated he believes it will be Tesla’s best product in its short-but-storied history.

Musk went on to say in another Tweet that his favorite part about the Cybertruck is the appearance. “It looks like the future,” he said in response to Tesla Owners Silicon Valley.

In 2019, the Cybertruck made its debut. The electric pickup truck was expected to be in production by now, but the manufacturer postponed production as it battled with supply chain issues and parts shortages. The Cybertruck is not projected to start delivering until late 2023, with production slated for early next year.

Tesla’s Megapack lineup at Moss Landing is one of four battery projects proposed by local utility company Pacific Gas & Electric for the area but is the only one owned and operated by PG&E itself. The 182.5 MW / 730 MWh system is comprised of 256 Megapacks and will be able to power an estimated 136,500 homes for several hours during periods of high demand.

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Energy

Tesla launches Powerwall Lease for affordable home backup

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Energy has introduced the Powerwall Lease in conjunction with Tesla Electric, making the service available in Texas. This new option delivers whole-home backup power using two Powerwall units for a net monthly cost of $35 after credits, accompanied by a low fixed electricity rate.

Under the lease terms, customers pay a one-time order fee of $100. The base lease payment for the two Powerwalls is approximately $122 per month during the first year, subject to a 3 percent annual escalator thereafter. Enrollment in a qualifying Tesla Electric Backup plan or Virtual Power Plant plan provides an $87 monthly credit.

This credit lowers the effective cost to roughly $35 per month plus applicable tax.

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Installation of the standard system carries no additional charge. The package features Storm Watch for outage protection and allows complete management through a single Tesla application. The system supplies continuous whole-home backup capability.

The Powerwall system enables households to maintain electricity during severe storms that disrupt the utility grid. When outages occur, the batteries automatically provide seamless backup power to the home.

Tesla announces 100k Powerwalls are participating in Virtual Power Plants

Tesla Storm Watch monitors weather forecasts and ensures the units are fully charged ahead of anticipated severe weather events so that power remains available throughout the disruption, keeping lights, refrigeration, and other essential systems operating without interruption.

Availability is restricted to select Texas locations where retail electric choice exists. Participants must lease exactly two Powerwall units and maintain continuous enrollment with Tesla Electric. Solar panels cannot be included under this particular lease arrangement.

The monthly credit activates automatically once the system is installed, receives permission to operate, and enrollment is confirmed. To retain the credit, customers are required to stay enrolled in Tesla Electric and fulfill all program conditions.

Nonstandard installations that involve electrical upgrades or special permitting may lead to extra expenses and might impact eligibility for the credit, so be sure to check with either your installer or Tesla to ensure you will still qualify.

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Elon Musk teases Tesla Roadster unveiling once again

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tesla roadster
Credit: Tesla

Elon Musk continues to tease the unveiling event for the Tesla Roadster, a continuing trend that has grown into a bigger game of “When” for fans who have been waiting years for the car to finally enter production.

A video shared on X of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Musk appeared on last year, teasing the Roadster unveiling, was shared once again on the social media platform. The poster said the Roadster event will be “unforgettable.”

Musk agreed:

The timing is interesting because just yesterday, Musk said that we will be getting flying cars, and for years, Tesla has hinted that it could develop a SpaceX cold gas thruster package that would help the car float or fly for a short period of time.

It would be reasonable to assume Tesla’s major delays with this unveiling event are likely caused by the company’s need to break the rules and push the envelope on nearly everything. Last July, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, said:

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“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind blowing. We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on and he got a little excited.”

The latest updates that Tesla has given us are that the Roadster is in design development, and it did have several potential dates for an unveiling event this year, including April. It was then pushed to August.

However, there are no clues as to when Tesla will be ready, and fans are certainly getting frustrated with the delays.

For what it is worth, Franz von Holzhausen told Jay Leno this week that the event would be “very soon.”

We sure hope.

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Lifestyle

Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor

Florida’s governor rode Tesla’s Cybercab at a closed test track and called the experience impressive.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rode in a Tesla Cybercab on a closed test track this week and came away impressed, posting on X that the vehicle “successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.” He called the ride “impressive.”

The stop was part of a broader event Monday at SunTrax, a 775 acre state owned proving ground in Auburndale that Florida built specifically to test autonomous and connected vehicles before they reach public roads. Standing next to a gold Cybercab, DeSantis described the car in plain terms: “You go in there and you just sit. You have a screen. There’s no steering wheel, no pedals. Clearly these things could be very beneficial.”

DeSantis paired the praise with a caveat that has followed autonomous vehicles since the category existed. “You don’t want to be in an autonomous vehicle and it drives you into a ditch. That would not be good,” he said, framing safety validation as the gate before wider deployment.

SunTrax, the 2.25 mile oval which the state calls the only high speed autonomous vehicle test track in the Southeast, can simulate rain, pedestrian crossings, hills and crowded urban conditions at highway speeds, letting companies push a car past what an early public rollout would risk. Tesla, Waymo and Beep all use the facility, and Florida’s regulatory approach, among the most permissive for autonomous vehicles in the country, doesn’t require a human operator inside a fully autonomous car.

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Tesla has reason to want the blessing of Florida and states beyond, as the Cybercab entered volume production at Gigafactory Texas this spring and has since self certified as SAE Level 4 under Texas law. Public road testing so far has kept a safety monitor in the passenger seat, and Florida is where Tesla has been expanding its existing Model Y based Robotaxi service instead, adding Miami in July and then Orlando and Tampa two weeks later. A closed track endorsement from a sitting governor doesn’t change any of that, but it does put Tesla’s newest hardware in front of a state that has already shown it will move fast on rules.

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