News
Lincoln unveils Star Concept EV with plans for three fully electric vehicles by 2025
Lincoln unveiled its Star Concept EV earlier this week to showcase its “captivating, dynamic new face – revealing the brand’s vision for connected, electrified vehicles.” The Star Concept EV, which officially debuted on Wednesday, brings fresh design ideas and concepts to Lincoln’s brand language, which prepares to partially transition to electric powertrains with three full EVs by 2025.
“This is a shining example of what happens when we combine Lincoln luxury with flexible electrical architecture to create unimaginable experiences for customers,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said. “We can truly revolutionize how people engage with the brand and scale it across an exciting lineup of products that catapult Lincoln into the digital, connected age.”
Despite its futuristic design, the Star Concept encapsulates a new design language with Lincoln’s tenets of beauty, human, gliding, and sanctuary on full display. These design tenets will help Lincoln navigate a tough transition to EVs, as it plans to have three models powered by electric powertrains by 2025. An additional model is expected the following year.
Rivian's partnership with Ford will bring Lincoln its first luxury electric vehicle
“As Lincoln enters the next chapter in our transition to a zero-emissions future, the Lincoln Star Concept will lead the way for our portfolio of fully electric vehicles,” Lincoln President Joy Falotico said. “It is an excellent example of how we are redefining luxury for the next generation as we work to transform the vehicle into a third space – a true place of sanctuary – for our clients.”
How the Star Concept will lead Lincoln’s EV Efforts
The Lincoln Star Concept EV delivers modern aesthetics with intelligent features, but the company truly planned to make the vehicle “the ultimate sanctuary for clients.”
“Electrification is removing many traditional vehicle design constraints, allowing us to reimagine what a vehicle can be,” Chief Design Officer for Ford Motor Company Anthony Lo said. “The Lincoln Star is a study of experiences and themes that push the boundaries of Lincoln design – and it’s just the start.”
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
A hat-tip to Lincon’s evolving design language, the new Star Concept EV combines sleek and dynamic silhouette features with an immersive experience that is truly one-of-a-kind. Lincoln said that the vehicle, “whether stationary or in motion, the concept uses design, light, displays, scents, and sounds to create an immersive experience for clients. Intelligent technology that enhances comfort, productivity, and entertainment is deployed throughout to bring the romance of travel back in a uniquely Lincoln way.”
Electric vehicles in today’s market are more like smartphones than like automobiles, in a way. Lincoln highlights its focus on an intelligence system to capture the essence of a “digital assistant.” These assistive techniques and ideas for a more in-depth ownership experience will enable features like “connected vehicle-to-vehicle and infrastructure capabilities, as well as next-generation leading driver-assist features such as Help Me See and Park for Me,” Lincoln said.
A Sanctuary Vehicle
An increased focus on luxurious feel and comfort was obviously dialed in by Lincoln before releasing images of the Star Concept EV. The interior is partitioned into first and second-row areas, with premium, spacious, wraparound seating that offers comfortable reclined lounge posture and individual leg rests, providing a truly unmatched interior experience only seen in the most premium luxury vehicles. Horizontal display screens seamlessly integrated into the vehicle’s interior provide a unique and modern experience.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
Lincoln is also introducing “rejuvenation moods:”
“Three rejuvenation moods join a new Lincoln Embrace sequence harmonizing audio, scenting and lighting throughout the cabin. A symphonic orchestration with crisp, high-resolution animations on the displays creates an immersive digital sanctuary. Whether stuck in traffic or just enjoying a few quiet moments after work, the rejuvenation moods provide a true sanctuary in a third space:
- Coastal Morning uses gentle, oceanic sounds, a fragrance of sea mist and the soft, warm glow of the sun with dynamic lighting throughout to replicate a stroll on the beach at sunrise
- Mindful Vitality is meant to reenergize the senses, with invigorating, upbeat audio, dynamic abstract artwork, soft, glowing lighting and a flowery fragrance throughout
- Evening Chill mirrors dusk using a calming night soundtrack coordinated with night sky video and an evergreen fragrance”
“The Lincoln Star Concept has been a true labor of love for our team and provides us with a platform to share and test our experiences and design philosophy with clients as we evolve our Quiet Flight DNA,” Kemal Curic, Lincoln’s Global Design Director, said. “Signifying transcendence through both space and time, the concept creates a sense of peace and serenity within an electric experience and previews what is to come from Lincoln.”
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.
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News
SpaceX just launched a secret payload from California
SpaceX launched a classified Space Force mission from Vandenberg, revealing almost nothing about its payload.
SpaceX launched a classified Falcon 9 mission for the U.S. Space Force from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Saturday night, and the government released almost nothing about what was on board. The mission, designated USSF-366, lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4E with a window that opened at 9:52 p.m. ET and ran into the early hours of Sunday, according to SpaceX’s own mission page, which described the payload only as classified. SpaceX confirmed the launch on its X account and pointed viewers to a livestream that began roughly ten minutes before liftoff.
Watch Falcon 9 launch the USSF-366 mission from pad 4E in California https://t.co/FFEzeYOds1
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 16, 2026
The lack of detail did not stop analysts from filling in the blanks. Independent tracking of the rocket’s stage drop zones matched the pattern SpaceX has used on previous Starlink Group 15 missions, according to reporting from Outer Space Today, which pointed to Starshield as the likely payload rather than a one off government satellite. Starshield is SpaceX’s national security product, a version of the Starlink satellite bus built to Pentagon specifications for earth observation, communications and hosted payloads. Unlike consumer Starlink, government agencies do not have to disclose what Starshield satellites are actually doing once they reach orbit.
USSF-366 is the latest entry in a steady flow of classified and semi classified work between SpaceX and the Space Force. The company picked up a $178.5 million task order in April to launch missile tracking satellites for the Space Development Agency, as Teslarati reported at the time, and followed that in July with a $1.6 billion award covering 18 more Falcon 9 missions from Vandenberg through the end of 2027, also detailed by Teslarati. Add those contracts up and SpaceX’s Pentagon business for 2026 alone tops $8 billion.
SpaceX scores another massive Pentagon deal to support military satellites
The Falcon 9 that flew Saturday landed back near the launch site, producing the sonic booms that have become routine for residents near Vandenberg. What is less routine is how little the public will likely ever learn about what the rocket carried. SpaceX and the Space Force have not confirmed the Starshield connection, and government satellite programs built on commercial buses rarely get identified beyond a mission number and a general orbit. For a company that live streams almost everything else it does, from Starship test flights to Optimus robot demos, USSF-366 is a reminder that some of SpaceX’s busiest work now happens entirely out of public view.
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On Friday, Tesla launched the Outlet Adapter that enabled Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) energy transfer, meaning owners could essentially utilize their cars as a power source for things like laptops, electric grills, or string lights.
However, even owners of some of the newest builds of the Model Y are finding out that their cars are not compatible with the new $80 accessory, stirring up a new complaint among members of the community.
Tesla launches V2L Outlet Adapter for Premium Model Y in the U.S.
Upon the release of the Outlet Adapter on Friday, I signed into my Tesla account to order the accessory. However, I was met with the dreaded “This product is not compatible with your 2026 Model Y” message at the bottom of the screen.
Some said their accounts also displayed the same message, but they ordered anyway. However, they might be surprised to find that this is no mistake; some of the newest Model Ys do not have the appropriate Power Conversion System (PCS). Mine, which was ordered on this day last year and delivered on August 31, has the old 48A, single-phase PCS.
Vehicles with the new, two-piece PCS are able to utilize V2L features on their cars:
🚨 Looks like you can hit the Parts Catalog and enter your VIN and check to see if your Model Y will be able to use the adapter for V2L.https://t.co/QA9zRk7n2k
h/t to @SawyerMerritt for finding this out.
-I am sad but this isn’t a huge loss. https://t.co/AYpI12QVV9 pic.twitter.com/LRFSrtRywo
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 16, 2026
Obviously, it’s disappointing. Many owners have taken delivery this year and still can not utilize the Outlet Adapter because their cars feature the old PCS:
Took delivery in February of 2026. I have the older one, so not going to work for me pic.twitter.com/RcOVq8gvvT
— Russell (@QuietTesla) August 16, 2026
It looks like if you have one of these older PCS units, you can upgrade, but the parts alone are $1,750, and that’s before Tesla adds labor for installing. It is honestly more logical to get some kind of portable power supply or power station at that point.
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It is great that Tesla has enabled V2L for Model Y vehicles, but it is also unfortunate that vehicles that are less than one year old are not able to take advantage of this awesome new feature.
With that being said, it truly is a first-world problem; can you really complain when Full Self-Driving is available, maintenance is incredibly inexpensive, and the car has been so good through a year of ownership?
Tesla has launched a new Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) Outlet Adapter for Premium Model Y vehicles in the United States, meaning you can now power devices like laptops or light strings with your vehicle’s battery.
It appears the capability will be available for any Model Y Premium trim, including those that were purchased prior to the Adapter being launched. It will also only impact Juniper Model Y vehicles, so the first-gen owners will unfortunately not have access to this capability.
If your Model Y was purchased before Tesla renamed the trim levels to “Premium” and “Standard,” it does not seem to be compatible. My Model Y is technically a Premium build, as it is the Long Range All-Wheel-Drive. However, Tesla says it is not compatible with my vehicle.
🚨 Tesla has launched the Outlet Adapter for Model Y Premium in the U.S., enabling V2L capability for all Premium trims (that’s what it appears to be as it is available for purchase with all Premium trims)
It’s available for $80. 2.4kW max power and rated for 120v, 20A pic.twitter.com/lDxlVIk5s8
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 14, 2026
For $80, you can now utilize your car as a portable charger for small appliances or devices. This is perfect for things like tailgates, concerts, or camping, as you can now plug in devices that you might use. Those string lights for camping? That laptop for the other games that are on at the tailgate?
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They’ll both utilize energy from your Tesla’s battery to be powered. This is the first time Tesla has expanded the capability to vehicles outside of the Model Y Performance and Cybertruck. However, this feature has been highly requested by owners for an extended period of time.
Tesla launched the Outlet Adapter in China last year:
Tesla China rolls out Model Y L V2L adapter, and it’s free for early owners
You will need the Mobile Connector to operate the Outlet Adapter: the Outlet Adapter will plug into the main housing of the Mobile Connector, where the appropriate adapter to charge your vehicle will plug in.
It is rated for 120 volts and 20 amps, and has a max power rating of 2.4kW.
You can buy it here from Tesla for $80.
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SpaceX just launched a secret payload from California
Tesla V2L adapter for Model Y stirs up a new complaint among owners
