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GM execs ecstatic following Q1 earnings, but hurdles remain

Credit: General Motors

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General Motors (GM) has published its first-quarter earnings report, crushing earnings expectations, but the company isn’t out of the woods yet.

GM was caught with its metaphorical pants down when Ford introduced the F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E, giving GM’s long-time rival a headstart into two fast-growing segments. Nonetheless, since then, GM has righted itself and is now on the cusp of delivering electric offerings of its own. With today’s earnings, the General may be poised to enter the EV segment guns-a-blazing, but the challenge of EV production remains daunting.

According to CNBC, GM substantially beat investor expectations for earnings in the year’s first quarter. America’s largest automaker pulled in $39.99 billion in gross revenues, compared to the $38.96 billion expected by investors. This is further reflected in earnings per share, in which GM secured $2.21 per share compared to the estimated $1.73 per share.

Despite this incredible earnings beat, GM profits did fall as the business continues to invest in production, pushing profit down 18% year over year, despite earnings rising 11.1% over the same timeframe. Nonetheless, the company felt confident enough in the earnings to offer yet another solid dividend for investors of $0.09 per share.

Following this positive news for investors, GM executives had numerous exciting statements, not the least of which came from the company’s CEO, Mary Barra. “Once again, we delivered strong earnings thanks to healthy customer demand for our vehicles, our intense focus on operational excellence, and great teamwork between GM, our dealers, our suppliers, and our unions,” began Barra. Continuing, the CEO focused on GM’s impressive rebound in the Chinese market and its plans for EV production coming online later this year.

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“As I have shared, we plan to produce 400,000 EVs over the course of 2022, 2023, and the first half of 2024, including 50,000 EVs in North America in the first half of this year, and double that in the second half… In the weeks and months ahead, we will be sharing exciting news about our growing portfolio of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, and BrightDrop EVs. This includes demonstrating that ‘work’ and ‘range’ are not mutually exclusive terms for the Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV.”

Looking forward, GM certainly has a lot to be excited for, perhaps most notably including ditching its previous EV sales leader, Bolt and Bolt EUV, instead focusing on new higher-end products. However, as evidenced by almost every automaker on the market, starting electric vehicle production is no small task.

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!

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 plans for new 300+ stall Supercharger with a special surprise for Semi

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(Credit: Tesla Owners East Bay/Twitter)

Tesla is planning for a new 300+ stall Supercharger station that will be an expansion of an existing facility, and the company is planning to add a surprise for the Semi.

The Firebaugh, California Supercharger is currently 72 Superchargers, but Tesla filed for an expansion that will add 232 additional plugs for passenger vehicles, and it also plans to add 16 Semichargers.

This will be the biggest Supercharger station Tesla will have to date, just months after it finished the Supercharger Oasis in Lost Hills, California, which has 168 stalls. This will have 304 total Supercharger stalls, and then the additional 16 Megachargers.

The Firebaugh Supercharger is located on I-5, which is a major reason for why Tesla has chosen the location for additional Megacharger plug-ins, as Tesla Semi Program Manager Dan Priestley said on X earlier today.

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The project was revealed by MarcoRP, a Supercharger tracker.

The expansion is a massive signal for charging demand, especially as Tesla’s Superchargers are opened to numerous automakers and are no longer exclusive to the company’s EVs. Additionally, the installation of Megachargers is a good sign to come for the Tesla Semi program, which aims to truly ramp up this year.

Tesla plans to launch production of the Semi later this year.

It could also mean Tesla is going to expand its footprint of large-scale Supercharger projects in the coming years, which would be a big boost as EV adoption continues to soar in the United States.

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Tesla makes two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has made two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles in its lineup, and the changes come just as the new model year begins production.

Last year, Tesla launched the Model Y Standard, which separated the previous models into the “Premium” category. The Standard vehicles lack several features, including more premium interior materials, acoustic-lined glass, and storage.

@teslarati There are some BIG differences between the Tesla Model Y Standard and Tesla Model Y Premium #tesla #teslamodely ♬ Sia – Xeptemper

The Model Y “Premium” trims are now getting several new upgrades, which come after the company launched a seven-seat configuration of the vehicle last night in the North American market for an upcharge of $2,500.

The new Model Y seven-seat configuration did not come with just an additional row of seating; it also came with a slew of other goodies that now come standard and were previously only available on the Model Y Performance, which was launched late last year.

All Black Headliner

The new Tesla Model Y Premium trims will now come standard with a black headliner, something that many owners have been requesting for some time.

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The previous grey headliner and trim within the vehicle is now gone; it will be all black on all of the Premium trims from here on out, a welcome change:

Credit: Tesla

Larger and Higher Resolution Center Touchscreen

The center touchscreen in the new Model Y Premium configuration is now larger and has a higher resolution than the previous version.

In last year’s Model Y configurations (apart from the Performance), the center touchscreen was 15.4″. Now, Tesla has decided to go with the 16″ version across all Premium trims, which is a nice step up. It was nice to see this in the Performance, but it is really great to see Tesla include this in the Model Y’s more Premium trim levels.

Tesla Model Y Seven Seater

Tesla launched the latest iteration of the seven-seater for the Model Y on Monday night. Traditionally, the Model Y seats five passengers in total, but there were calls for a more spacious version several years ago.

Tesla released it, but it was extremely tight in the back, basically reserving those back seats for only small people or children.

Credit: Tesla

The new configuration looks to be slightly more spacious in the third row, but not as much space as most would require or want. Instead,

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Lufthansa Group to equip Starlink on its 850-aircraft fleet

Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release.

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Credit: Lufthansa

Lufthansa Group has announced a partnership with Starlink that will bring high-speed internet connectivity to every aircraft across all its carriers. 

This means that aircraft across the group’s brands, from Lufthansa, SWISS, and Austrian Airlines to Brussels Airlines, would be able to enjoy high-speed internet access using the industry-leading satellite internet solution.

Starlink in-flight internet

Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release

Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellites are expected to provide significantly higher bandwidth and lower latency than traditional in-flight Wi-Fi, which should enable streaming, online work, and other data-intensive applications for passengers during flights.

Starlink-powered internet is expected to be available on the first commercial flights as early as the second half of 2026. The rollout will continue through the decade, with the entire Lufthansa Group fleet scheduled to be fully equipped with Starlink by 2029. Once complete, no other European airline group will operate more Starlink-connected aircraft.

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Free high-speed access

As part of the initiative, Lufthansa Group will offer the new high-speed internet free of charge to all status customers and Travel ID users, regardless of cabin class. Chief Commercial Officer Dieter Vranckx shared his expectations for the program.

“In our anniversary year, in which we are celebrating Lufthansa’s 100th birthday, we have decided to introduce a new high-speed internet solution from Starlink for all our airlines. The Lufthansa Group is taking the next step and setting an essential milestone for the premium travel experience of our customers. 

“Connectivity on board plays an important role today, and with Starlink, we are not only investing in the best product on the market, but also in the satisfaction of our passengers,” Vranckx said. 

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