Connect with us

News

Ford boasts over 167 percent growth in EV sales, announces Wal-Mart’s 1,100 E-Transit order

Ford reveals the 2022 E-Transit – an all-electric version of the world’s best-selling cargo van – featuring next-level connected vehicle technology with Built Ford Tough capability and electric vehicle-certified dealer support, all for a price starting under $45,000

Published

on

Ford released its January 2022 Sales Release, boasting some impressive figures in terms of electric vehicle sales. Ford states that its sales were up 167.2 percent in January compared to the same month in 2021. The growth is outpacing the industry average by almost four times, Ford said in its press release.

The Mustang Mach-E, currently Ford’s only available electric vehicle, accumulated 2,370 sales in January. The remaining sales can be attributed to the F-150 Lightning, whose Order Bank opened in January, finally allowing pre-orderers to finalize their trims and other options, and the E-Transit van.

Ford, who announced a massive $20 billion restructuring plan for its electric vehicle strategy, says its EV sales in January 2022 outpaced industry standards by “almost four times.”

“With a total of 13,169 vehicles sold, Ford electrified vehicles were up 167.2 percent, with share up 5.0 points to 10.9 percent of segment,” the company added. Ford also indicated that more than 300 businesses have put in orders for E-Transit vans. The most notable is Wal-Mart, which placed an order for 1,100 units of the E-Transit.

Update 5:34 PM EST: Wal-Mart reached out to comment on the story.

“Walmart placed an order for 1,100 Ford E-Transits that will be used to support our growing in-home delivery service. As we continue to build our last mile delivery fleet, we’re interested in working with electric van providers that help us achieve our goal of operating a 100% zero-emissions logistics fleet by 2040.”

Advertisement
-

Ford’s overall business saw just a 0.8 percent increase in overall retail sales. Truck sales actually declined, while SUV sales increased by 9.4 percent. Total sales of electrified vehicles increased by the 167.2 percent figure, while retail sales increased even more sharply. Ford reported 183.1 percent growth in this category.

If growth continues at this pace, Ford will need to prepare for a massive production ramp. CEO Jim Farley recently stated that he believes Ford will be one of the first to scale its EV lineup, vying to reach Tesla, who has gained mass notoriety as the industry leader. “We have to catch up,” Farley said in an interview with Grady Trimble in late January. “We’re going to do the investment in the product and capacity expansion and make vehicles as affordable as possible. We need the government’s help to make the switch to e-mobility through consumer incentives.”

Ford’s Farley commits to 600k units in 22 months: ‘I think we’re one of the first to scale’

The demand is not only coming from Ford’s EV program, unfortunately. Andrew Frick, Vice President of Sales for the U.S. and Canada, notes strong demand for several vehicles, including the Mustang Mach-E, contributed to the most successful months in terms of orders in company history. “Ford market share increased over a year ago on strong demand for our newest products such as Bronco, Maverick, and Mach-E,” Frick said. “Ford took in a record 90,000 new vehicle orders in January. Vehicles are turning at a record pace on dealer lots as we work to fill these orders. This year represents a turning point for Ford in electrified vehicles, as our electrified portfolio grew at nearly four times the rate of the industry segment, with E-Transit and F-150 Lightning set to hit the market.”

Ford will report its Earnings for Q4 and Full-Year 2021 tomorrow, February 3, at 4:05 PM EST. The company’s full January 2022 Sales Release is available below.

January 2022 Sales Release Final by Joey Klender on Scribd

Advertisement
-

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

Advertisement
Comments

News

Tesla Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms

Published

on

Credit: YouTube/Tesla Theater

The in-car Tesla Theater is among the most unique features available within the cars. When charging, parked, camping, or just hanging out, vehicle occupants can access a variety of streaming platforms on the large center screen, helping keep them entertained during downtime.

However, the Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms, something that owners have requested for some time.

Tesla owners recently discovered that visiting Apple TV in the vehicle browser can launch a fullscreen interface that looks and behaves like a dedicated application rather than an ordinary webpage:

Advertisement
-

The experience drops the usual address bar and browser chrome, presenting catalogs, continue watching rows, and playback controls in the same window Tesla Theater already uses for its listed services. Independent testers soon found similar treatment for HBO Max, Paramount+, Peacock, Disney+, and Prime Video when those sites are opened from the car browser.

This shift is a plausible early signal that Tesla is widening Theater support without a formal software note. Theater has long been a set of web views rather than native applications, so recognizing extra domains and stripping the browser frame is a small server-side change that can expand the catalog quickly.

Owners still lack permanent Theater icons for the newly recognized services, and video remains limited to Park, yet the smoother launch is a meaningful step toward a broader lounge while charging.

Tesla Theater arrived with software version 10 in September 2019. The first video services were Netflix, YouTube, and Hulu, available only while parked and originally tied to WiFi. Spotify arrived in the same era as music rather than Theater video. Disney+ joined officially in July 2021 with the 2021.24 update, giving owners another major catalog on the center screen. Twitch and TikTok later appeared among the default Theater tiles, and Tesla Tutorials remained a persistent educational tile.

Not every addition stayed put. In December 2023, a Holiday software build removed the Disney+ tile for many United States owners after a public dispute involving advertising on X. Hulu stayed visible even though Disney owned it. Visiting disneyplus.com in the browser often restored the tile, which suggested the removal was a recognition list change rather than a complete block. Owners have also reported occasional blank Theater grids after updates, usually fixed by language toggles, resets, or later firmware.

Tesla axes Disney+ from vehicles with Musk-Iger rivalry, but there’s a workaround

Advertisement
-

Code archives from 2024 listed many unused source names, including Apple TV and Prime Video, that never became official icons, which now looks like groundwork for the current fullscreen browser behavior.

Now that this hint toward an expanded Theater experience has been recognized, Tesla could follow through with these additional shortcuts as a sign that more streaming platforms are available in Teslas than ever before.

Continue Reading

News

Tesla Semi’s biggest adoptee gives an update on production timeline

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla recently received its largest order for the all-electric Semi from Einride, a Swedish transport service, for 500 units, a groundbreaking invoice to receive before the first deliveries begin.

Even more remarkable, Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli said in a recent interview that he expects his company to take delivery of all 500 — the entire order — before the end of 2027. He even expects to have 75 Tesla Semi units in the Einride fleet before the end of this year.

Charli said the Tesla partnership was part of a broader push, along with its earlier partnership with Amazon. Einride is assisting Amazon with the use of its Saga AI platform, which helps eliminate questions about budgeting and forecasting for logistics companies.

Advertisement
-

The Semi, as well as Tesla’s production and subsequent delivery of the units to Einride, will help the company “to have a good supply of vehicles that we can deploy on the [Saga AI] platform,” Charli said. “Tesla is also a relationship we’ve had for a while, and as the Tesla Semi deliveries are firming up, we decided to do a larger commitment to that and deploy that on our platform.”

In its initial announcement, Einride said it anticipated taking delivery of the trucks over the next two years, but now it appears the company is expecting all 500 units within the next 16 months.

Tesla Semi gets its largest order yet

Built at a dedicated factory in Sparks, Nevada, the Tesla Semi has been perhaps the biggest and most intensive testing process the company has ever had for a single vehicle model. For the past several years, Tesla has been working with many companies, most notably Frito-Lay and PepsiCo, to gain knowledge on the performance on regional routes.

Tesla plans to launch the Semi officially on September 24, five months after production started ramping.

Additionally, drivers have said they are happy about the Semi’s performance and that its numerous safety and productivity features have made their jobs and routes much easier.

Advertisement
-
Continue Reading

News

Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider

Published

on

Credit: ARTSIMAGE | X

Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.

Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.

This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.

Advertisement
-

Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.

Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.

Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.

Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.

Tesla will launch Cybercab on September 3

Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.

Advertisement
-
Continue Reading