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Ford’s EV sales grow over 168 percent in July, second-best EV brand in U.S.

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Ford’s electric vehicle sales grew over 168 percent in July compared to the same month last year. The automaker’s July 2022 EV delivery figures were good enough for second-best in sales for the month in the United States behind only Tesla.

According to Ford’s press release, EV sales this July are up 168.7% compared to last year. More specifically, the brand saw EV sales rise by 168.7% compared to the previous year, Mach-E sales increased by 74.1%, the Lightning delivered the most vehicles per month yet, and E-Transit sales grew by 13.9% in the commercial market and 46.3% in government sales. The E-Transit owns 95 percent of the electric van segment, Ford said.

Ford’s EV production has increased as the company now offers the F-150 Lightning, which it did not sell until this year. Deliveries began on May 26, 2022.

Ford’s sales from July make them “America’s #1 Brand,” and their EV sales “outpaced segment,” which has become the norm at Ford. Over the past six months, the Detroit-based company has grown EV sales with consistency.

“F-Series hit the 60,000-truck mark for the first time this year, with our all-new electric F-150 Lightning having its best sales month yet,” Andrew Frick, Ford’s VP of Sales, Distribution & Trucks under the “Ford Blue” division, said. “Ford SUVs were up 70 percent, while E-Transit leads the electric van space with 95 percent of the electric van segment.”

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In June of this year, Ford saw a 76.6% growth in EV sales compared to last year. In May, they grew EV sales by 221.5%. In April, they grew sales by 139%. In March, sales increased by 16.9%. In February, sales grew by 55.3%. And in January, sales grew by 167.2%.

ford electric vehicle sales 2022

Credit: Teslarati

Ford’s EV models helped the brand to grow overall sales by 36.6% compared to last year and 7.7% compared to June of this year. The company’s overall share of the EV market is expanding as the company established 10.9 percent of EV sales in the U.S. in July. The company only held a 7.7 percent market share in Q2, with 4.4 percent in Q1. The automaker continues to see more growth with its electrified models, which are contributing to unprecedented levels of interest from consumers.

Other brands have not been able to replicate Ford’s sales success this month. According to their respective sales reports released for July, Honda America sales were down 47.4% compared to last year, Toyota North America sales down 21.2%, Subaru America sales down by 17.1%, and Mazda sales down by 28.5%. While most manufacturers no longer provide monthly sales reports, these results indicate a possible trend of electrified sales siphoning away from ICE alternatives.

It isn’t obvious what is defining Ford’s success in the market right now, but their wide selection of EVs fitting a variety of lifestyles and needs certainly isn’t hurting them. Many are wondering how long this growth will continue, but for now, Ford is on a great path to success.

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!

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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 hosts Rome Mayor for first Italian FSD Supervised road demo

The event marked the first time an Italian mayor tested the advanced driver-assistance system in person in Rome’s urban streets.

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Credit: @andst7/X

Tesla definitely seems to be actively engaging European officials on FSD’s capabilities, with the company hosting Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri and Mobility Assessor Eugenio Patanè for a hands-on road demonstration. 

The event marked the first time an Italian mayor tested the advanced driver-assistance system in person in Rome’s urban streets. This comes amid Tesla’s push for FSD’s EU regulatory approvals in the coming year.

Rome officials experience FSD Supervised

Tesla conducted the demo using a Model 3 equipped with Full Self-Driving (Supervised), tackling typical Roman traffic including complex intersections, roundabouts, pedestrian crossings and mixed users like cars, bikes and scooters.

The system showcased AI-based assisted driving, prioritizing safety while maintaining flow. FSD also handled overtakes and lane decisions, though with constant driver supervision.

Investor Andrea Stroppa detailed the event on X, noting the system’s potential to reduce severe collision risks by up to seven times compared to traditional driving, based on Tesla’s data from billions of global fleet miles. The session highlighted FSD’s role as an assistance tool in its Supervised form, not a replacement, with the driver fully responsible at all times.

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Path to European rollout

Tesla has logged over 1 million kilometers of testing across 17 European countries, including Italy, to refine FSD for local conditions. The fact that Rome officials personally tested FSD Supervised bodes well for the program’s approval, as it suggests that key individuals are closely watching Tesla’s efforts and innovations.

Assessor Patanè also highlighted the administration’s interest in technologies that boost road safety and urban travel quality, viewing them as aids for both private and public transport while respecting rules.

Replies on X urged involving Italy’s Transport Ministry to speed approvals, with one user noting, “Great idea to involve the mayor! It would be necessary to involve components of the Ministry of Transport and the government as soon as possible: it’s they who can accelerate the approval of FSD in Italy.”

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Tesla FSD (Supervised) blows away French journalist after test ride

Cadot described FSD as “mind-blowing,” both for the safety of the vehicle’s driving and the “humanity” of its driving behaviors.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) seems to be making waves in Europe, with French tech journalist Julien Cadot recently sharing a positive first-hand experience from a supervised test drive in France. 

Cadot, who tested the system for Numerama after eight years of anticipation since early Autopilot trials, described FSD as “mind-blowing,” both for the safety of the vehicle’s driving and the “humanity” of its driving behaviors.

 

Julien Cadot’s FSD test in France

Cadot announced his upcoming test on X, writing in French: “I’m going to test Tesla’s FSD for Numerama in France. 8 years I’ve been waiting to relive the sensations of our very first contact with the unbridled Autopilot of the 2016s.” He followed up shortly after with an initial reaction, writing: “I don’t want to spoil too much because as media we were allowed to film everything and I have a huge video coming… But: it’s mind-blowing! Both for safety and for the ‘humanity’ of the choices.”

His later posts detailed FSD’s specific maneuvers that he found particularly compelling. These include the vehicle safely overtaking a delivery truck by inches, something Cadot said he personally would avoid to protect his rims, but FSD handled flawlessly. He also praised FSD’s cyclist overtakes, as the system always maintained the required 1.5-meter distance by encroaching on the opposite lane when clear. Ultimately, Cadot noted FSD’s decision-making prioritized safety and advancement, which is pretty remarkable.

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FSD’s ‘human’ edge over Autopilot

When asked if FSD felt light-years ahead of standard Autopilot, Cadot replied: “It’s incomparable, it’s not the same language.” He elaborated on scenarios like bypassing a parked delivery truck across a solid white line, where FSD assessed safety and proceeded just as a human driver might, rather than halting indefinitely. This “humanity” impressed Cadot the most, as it allowed FSD to fluidly navigate real-world chaos like urban Paris traffic. 

Tesla is currently hard at work pushing for the rollout of FSD to several European countries. Recent reports have revealed that Tesla has received approval to operate 19 FSD test vehicles on Spain’s roads, though this number could increase as the program develops. As per the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT), Tesla would be able to operate its FSD fleet on any national route across Spain. Recent job openings also hint at Tesla starting FSD tests in Austria. Apart from this, the company is also holding FSD demonstrations in Germany, France, and Italy.

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Tesla Optimus shows off its newest capability as progress accelerates

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Optimus showed off its newest capability as progress on the project continues to accelerate toward an ultimate goal of mass production in the coming years.

Tesla is still developing Optimus and preparing for the first stages of mass production, where units would be sold and shipped to customers. CEO Elon Musk has always marketed the humanoid robot as the biggest product in history, even outside of Tesla, but of all time.

He believes it will eliminate the need to manually perform monotonous tasks, like cleaning, mowing the lawn, and folding laundry.

However, lately, Musk has revealed even bigger plans for Optimus, including the ability to relieve humans of work entirely within the next 20 years.

Development at Tesla’s Artificial Intelligence and Robotics teams has progressed, and a new video was shown of the robot taking a light jog with what appeared to be some pretty natural form:

Optimus has also made several public appearances lately, including one at the Neural Information Processing Systems, or NeurIPS Conference. Some spectators shared videos of Optimus’s charging rig, as well as its movements and capabilities, most interestingly, the hand:

The hand, forearm, and fingers have been one of the most evident challenges for Tesla in recent times, especially as it continues to work on its 3rd Generation iteration of Optimus.

Musk said during the Q3 Earnings Call:

“I don’t want to downplay the difficulty, but it’s an incredibly difficult thing, especially to create a hand that is as dexterous and capable as the human hand, which is incredible. The human hand is an incredible thing. The more you study the human hand, the more incredible you realize it is, and why you need four fingers and a thumb, why the fingers have certain degrees of freedom, why the various muscles are of different strengths, and fingers are of different lengths. It turns out that those are all there for a reason.”

The interesting part of the Optimus program so far is the fact that Tesla has made a lot of progress with other portions of the project, like movement, for example, which appears to have come a long way.

However, without a functional hand and fingers, Optimus could be rendered relatively useless, so it is evident that it has to figure this crucial part out first.

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