Ahead of the General Motors (GM) earnings call this week, the automaker has new union contracts and is expected to report around $10 billion in earnings. However, challenges remain for GM, including electric vehicle (EV) production constraints and the ongoing effects of an accident involving one of its self-driving subsidiary Cruise’s robotaxis in October.
GM will report Q4 and FY 2023 earnings on Tuesday, and the company said in November it expected to earn almost $10 billion throughout 2023—despite around $1.1 billion being lost during historic six-week strikes from the United Auto Workers (UAW) union.
Analysts will be looking to see how GM plans to manage its upcoming launch of the Equinox EV, despite past production issues. In addition, onlookers will want to see how the automaker can navigate its self-driving unit Cruise this year, after an accident with a pedestrian in October rocked operations at the startup.
ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood: Ford and GM’s EV slowdown may benefit Tesla
Morningstar U.S. Auto Equity Analyst David Whiston says he hopes to see what kind of tone CEO Mary Barra and CFO Paul Jacobsen are setting for 2024 during the call, along with the company’s financial expectations given the recent events (via Automotive News).
According to Whiston, this year “should be at least a solid year for them, if not better.”
Other analysts expect the effects of the UAW strikes to have a larger impact on GM’s 2023 numbers, as highlighted by Bank of America analysts in a BofA Global Research note published last week.
“GM and Ford are likely to post a lighter finish to 2023 given pressures from the UAW strike, which impaired production,” the note said. “The greatest focus [will] be on EV expectations since sentiment on electrification has quickly soured.”
In November, GM also announced a $10 billion share buyback plan to help boost Wall Street confidence following the new UAW labor agreement.
EV Production Constraints at GM
GM has struggled to ramp up production of its Ultium EV platform, partially due to an issue with an automation equipment supplier that significantly delayed assembly of battery modules. Last month, the automaker was forced to issue a stop sale on the Blazer EV to address software quality issues.
In November, Barra highlighted the recent production issues, saying that GM “didn’t execute well this year as it relates to demonstrating our EV capability.” In 2024, however, Barra said she expects production to be “significantly higher.”
GM plans to begin production of its upcoming Equinox EV later this year, expected to be a mass-market vehicle priced around $35,000 with shipping.
“That needs to be a flawless launch,” Whiston added. “There’s a space of affordable EVs that Tesla is not in yet, and you don’t want Tesla to be first.”
GM Self-Driving Subsidiary Cruise Runs into Trouble
Along with GM’s need to smooth things out on the production side, the company’s robotaxi company Cruise has been spiraling since one of its driverless vehicles dragged and pinned a pedestrian in October. The startup’s license to operate self-driving vehicles was immediately revoked by the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), which went on to say that the company “misrepresented” and “omitted” critical details about the accident in its follow-up correspondence with the state.
Since then, the company founders have resigned along with several executives, and the GM subsidiary has laid off almost a quarter of its workforce. Following an independent review of the accident from GM-hired law firm Quinn Emanuel, the results of which were shared last week, it was discovered that a lack of internet connectivity may have hindered Cruise’s ability to share video from the incident with regulators.
Cruise is set to appear before the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in a hearing on February 6.
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send your tips to us at tips@teslarati.com.
News
Tesla Australia celebrates 150k vehicles on domestic roads
The milestone was announced by the electric vehicle maker on social media platform X.
Tesla has reached a major milestone in Australia, celebrating 150,000 vehicles on local roads.
The milestone was announced by the electric vehicle maker on social media platform X.
Sustainability for all
In its post on X, Tesla Australia and New Zealand noted that the 150,000-vehicle milestone is a notable accomplishment as it accelerates “sustainable abundance for all.” The company also thanked its customers down under for supporting its vehicles over the years.
“Accelerating sustainable abundance for all. Celebrating 150k Teslas on the road. Thank you, Australia,” Tesla Australia and New Zealand wrote in its post on X.
The post was accompanied by a photo of what appeared to be a Quicksilver Model Y premium with the Sydney Opera House in the background. This is an appropriate photo for the EV maker, as the Model Y consistently ranks among Australia’s top-selling electric cars, even as the market becomes flooded with cheaper, newer, and flashier competitors.
Australia’s FSD momentum
Last month, Tesla revealed that FSD Supervised users in Australia and New Zealand have collectively driven over 1 million kilometers within two weeks of the system’s public release. The company noted that drivers are averaging around 80,000 kilometers per day with FSD Supervised active, equivalent to 67 laps around Australia or 625 trips from Auckland to Invercargill.
“In less than 2 weeks, owners have travelled 1 million kilometers on FSD Supervised in AU & NZ,” Tesla’s local account wrote.
Australia became the first right-hand-drive market to gain access to FSD Supervised, which was officially launched in the country on September 18. Coupled with the presence of FSD (Supervised) subscriptions, the adoption of FSD in Australia has been understandably quick.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk hints at when Tesla can fix this FSD complaint with v14
Tesla has worked on resolving the issue and has worked on it with subsequent rollouts, but it has only improved slightly. The company has mentioned that it is working to fix it completely, but it seems the next big Software Update to actually resolve the issue altogether will likely be 14.2.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk hinted at when the company will resolve a major complaint with the Full Self-Driving suite. This particular issue has been persistent and a common complaint within the v14 suite.
Tesla has had its v14 FSD rollout deployed for over a month, and its earliest iterations featured a vast majority of improvements from the past versions. However, one common complaint has continued to be mentioned: stuttering and hesitancy.
Tesla Full Self-Driving’s biggest improvements from v13 to v14
Most commonly, FSD users have experienced this at intersections when the Tesla is at a complete stop. The vehicle will inch forward, contemplate proceeding, and then stutter pretty significantly before ultimately moving forward.
Tesla has worked on resolving the issue and has worked on it with subsequent rollouts, but it has only improved slightly. The company has mentioned that it is working to fix it completely, but it seems the next big Software Update to actually resolve the issue altogether will likely be 14.2.
Musk confirmed that on Wednesday:
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 12, 2025
When will v14.2 rollout? It’s likely a month or more away. Currently, Tesla is rolling out v14.1.7, which is the latest version and features some minor improvements to Hardware 4 vehicles.
These cars are currently on v14.1.4, but are not receiving v14.1.5 or v14.1.6, as both of those seemed to be internal releases to company employees.
Tesla FSD v14.1.7 incoming…. pic.twitter.com/6zuMDZRVD2
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 12, 2025
The stuttering issue has been a main complaint of many FSD users, and it is something that is being addressed. Musk’s confirmation that the suite is likely to receive a fix for this issue with the next major FSD release is a sign of good things to come, but we’re hopeful it comes sooner rather than later.
Overall, v14 has been an excellent improvement from v13 with the addition of the additional Speed Profiles of Mad Max and Sloth, as well as new Arrival Options that give the driver an opportunity to let the car park in a suitable location upon arriving at the destination.
@teslarati 🚨🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving and Yap is the best driving experience #tesla #fsd #yapping ♬ I Run – HAVEN.
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.
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.
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:
— Tesla North America (@tesla_na) November 12, 2025
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.
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.
Tesla Australia celebrates 150k vehicles on domestic roads
Elon Musk hints at when Tesla can fix this FSD complaint with v14
Tesla teases new market entrance with confusing and cryptic message
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