News
Ford F-150 Lightning prevails in two high-intensity towing tests in cold and warm climates
Ford announced today that its new F-150 Lightning all-electric pickup truck recently completed two grueling, high-intensity towing tests in various climates to fully assess the vehicle’s performance and capabilities while hauling. The 10,000-pound towing test revealed several strong suits, including the capability to perform under various climate settings.
However, customers will want to know what effect towing and the climate limitations had on the range, as the company recently confirmed its EPA-rated range ratings for several variants of the F-150 Lightning. Ford said it would release this information “in due course.”
Ford took the F-150 Lightning and 10,000-pound loaded trailers to Colorado’s I-70, which recorded its coldest day in February in Boulder in 123 years as temperatures sunk to -2° F near the Eisenhower Tunnel. This route was eight miles long, and ascends at a 7 percent incline to a maximum elevation of 11,158 feet.
Ford F-150 Lightning Range, efficiency revealed in Monroney sticker leak
To test the other side of things, Ford also tested the all-electric F-150 Lightning along State Route 68 between Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam. This route ascends from 550 feet to 3,500 feet in 11.4 miles, making for a grueling test of any powertrain, let alone one that is towing 10,000 pounds behind it.
Ford engineers completed the two tests in part of the F-150 Lightning’s development, which has gone on for “hundreds of hours” with towing alone.
While the tests show the incredible toughness of the trucks, which never was really in doubt due to Ford’s decades of expertise and its recognition as the leading manufacturer of pickups in the United States, the tests missed a critical piece of information: range.
Whether hauling snowmobiles to the cabin in the dead of winter or the pontoon to the lake in the dogdays of summer, the 2022 F-150® Lightning™ is tested to have customers covered. To help prove it, Ford engineers took the first all-electric F-Series to two of America’s toughest real-world towing routes during development – Davis Dam in the summer and TFLTruck’s Ike Gauntlet™ in the winter.
Towing is an extremely stressful test for any powertrain, but in electric vehicles, it contributes to significant loss of driving range due to the additional energy needed to pull. In the past, Tesla towing tests have revealed significant range losses, an understandable barrier due to the nature of the job. However, Ford’s testing in an extremely cold climate while towing would likely show major range loss, as frigid temperatures only hurt range, even when towing is not the task at hand.
A Ford spokesperson told Teslarati there was no information available on the tests’ effect on the F-150 Lightning’s range at the current time, but more information would be released in due course.
Last week, Monroney stickers from several Ford F-150 Lightning variants were released. The F-150 Lightning Base Pro Series had 230 miles of range, according to EPA estimates. Meanwhile, the Platinum Series with the extended range battery pack had a range rating of 300 miles. Ford later confirmed these range estimates in a statement.
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Investor's Corner
SpaceX IPO is coming, CEO Elon Musk confirms
However, it appears Musk is ready for SpaceX to go public, as Ars Technica Senior Space Editor Eric Berger wrote an op-ed that indicated he thought SpaceX would go public soon. Musk replied, basically confirming it.
Elon Musk confirmed through a post on X that a SpaceX initial public offering (IPO) is on the way after hinting at it several times earlier this year.
It also comes one day after Bloomberg reported that SpaceX was aiming for a valuation of $1.5 trillion, adding that it wanted to raise $30 billion.
Musk has been transparent for most of the year that he wanted to try to figure out a way to get Tesla shareholders to invest in SpaceX, giving them access to the stock.
He has also recognized the issues of having a public stock, like litigation exposure, quarterly reporting pressures, and other inconveniences.
However, it appears Musk is ready for SpaceX to go public, as Ars Technica Senior Space Editor Eric Berger wrote an op-ed that indicated he thought SpaceX would go public soon.
Musk replied, basically confirming it:
As usual, Eric is accurate
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2025
Berger believes the IPO would help support the need for $30 billion or more in capital needed to fund AI integration projects, such as space-based data centers and lunar satellite factories. Musk confirmed recently that SpaceX “will be doing” data centers in orbit.
AI appears to be a “key part” of SpaceX getting to Musk, Berger also wrote. When writing about whether or not Optimus is a viable project and product for the company, he says that none of that matters. Musk thinks it is, and that’s all that matters.
It seems like Musk has certainly mulled something this big for a very long time, and the idea of taking SpaceX public is not just likely; it is necessary for the company to get to Mars.
The details of when SpaceX will finally hit that public status are not known. Many of the reports that came out over the past few days indicate it would happen in 2026, so sooner rather than later.
But there are a lot of things on Musk’s plate early next year, especially with Cybercab production, the potential launch of Unsupervised Full Self-Driving, and the Roadster unveiling, all planned for Q1.
Tesla has added the 15th automaker to the growing list of companies whose EVs can utilize the Supercharger Network this year, as BMW is the latest company to gain access to the largest charging infrastructure in the world.
BMW became the 15th company in 2025 to gain Tesla Supercharger access, after the company confirmed to its EV owners that they could use any of the more than 25,000 Supercharging stalls in North America.
Welcome @BMW owners.
Download the Tesla app to charge → https://t.co/vnu0NHA7Ab
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) December 10, 2025
Newer BMW all-electric cars, like the i4, i5, i7, and iX, are able to utilize Tesla’s V3 and V4 Superchargers. These are the exact model years, via the BMW Blog:
- i4: 2022-2026 model years
- i5: 2024-2025 model years
- 2026 i5 (eDrive40 and xDrive40) after software update in Spring 2026
- i7: 2023-2026 model years
- iX: 2022-2025 model years
- 2026 iX (all versions) after software update in Spring 2026
With the expansion of the companies that gained access in 2025 to the Tesla Supercharger Network, a vast majority of non-Tesla EVs are able to use the charging stalls to gain range in their cars.
So far in 2025, Tesla has enabled Supercharger access to:
- Audi
- BMW
- Genesis
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Jaguar Land Rover
- Kia
- Lucid
- Mercedes-Benz
- Nissan
- Polestar
- Subaru
- Toyota
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
Drivers with BMW EVs who wish to charge at Tesla Superchargers must use an NACS-to-CCS1 adapter. In Q2 2026, BMW plans to release its official adapter, but there are third-party options available in the meantime.
They will also have to use the Tesla App to enable Supercharging access to determine rates and availability. It is a relatively seamless process.
News
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
Tesla has added a new feature that will be great for crowded parking lots, congested parking garages, or other confusing times when you cannot seem to pinpoint where your car went.
Tesla has added a new Vehicle Locator feature to the Tesla App with App Update v4.51.5.
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
While there are several new features, which we will reveal later in this article, perhaps one of the coolest is that of the Vehicle Locator, which will now point you in the direction of your car using a directional arrow on the home screen. This is similar to what Apple uses to find devices:
Interesting. The location arrow in the Tesla app now points to your car when you’re nearby. pic.twitter.com/b0yjmwwzxN
— Whole Mars Catalog (@wholemars) December 7, 2025
In real time, the arrow gives an accurate depiction of which direction you should walk in to find your car. This seems extremely helpful in large parking lots or unfamiliar shopping centers.
Getting to your car after a sporting event is an event all in itself; this feature will undoubtedly help with it:
The nice little touch that Tesla have put in the app – continuous tracking of your vehicle location relative to you.
There’s people reporting dizziness testing this.
To those I say… try spinning your phone instead. 😉 pic.twitter.com/BAYmJ3mzzD
— Some UK Tesla Guy (UnSupervised…) (@SomeUKTeslaGuy) December 8, 2025
Tesla’s previous app versions revealed the address at which you could locate your car, which was great if you parked on the street in a city setting. It was also possible to use the map within the app to locate your car.
However, this new feature gives a more definitive location for your car and helps with the navigation to it, instead of potentially walking randomly.
It also reveals the distance you are from your car, which is a big plus.
Along with this new addition, Tesla added Photobooth features, Dog Mode Live Activity, Custom Wraps and Tints for Colorizer, and Dashcam Clip details.
🚨 Tesla App v4.51.5 looks to be preparing for the Holiday Update pic.twitter.com/ztts8poV82
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 8, 2025
All in all, this App update was pretty robust.
SpaceX IPO is coming, CEO Elon Musk confirms
Tesla adds 15th automaker to Supercharger access in 2025
