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Porsche Taycan climbs Austria’s tallest mountain in new promotional video

[Credit: DJI/YouTube]

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The Porsche Taycan is still a year or so away from production, but the German automaker is already ramping its promotional efforts for the all-electric car. The company’s latest promotion for the Taycan featured a cinematic flourish, as the vehicle was showcased climbing Austria’s tallest mountain in an ad for the DJI Mavic 2, the drone company’s flagship “DSLR in the sky.”

The collaboration between Porsche and DJI featured the Taycan and a 550 Spyder traversing the twisting roads of the Grossglockner High Alpine Road (Großglockner mountain pass) in Austria, one of the country’s most picturesque routes. The Grossglockner High Alpine Road takes vehicles up 8,215 ft from the bottom to the top. The mountain pass, which features stunning vistas, is a popular site for auto enthusiasts, though it usually becomes inaccessible during winter and early spring due to snow and ice.

The concept of the commercial itself is symbolic of Porsche’s views on the Taycan. Porsche intends to eventually transition most of its fleet to electric cars and hybrid vehicles, and the Taycan is the car that could kickstart the change. The ad starts with aerial shots of the Porsche 550 Spyder, which eventually gets overtaken by the all-electric car. One of the close shots of the Taycan even featured what appears to be the audible sound of the vehicle’s electric motors as it climbed up the mountain pass.

The Taycan is all-electric, and it is equipped with two permanently excited synchronous motors (PSM), which Porsche dubs as the “turbos of the electric motor milieu.” The Taycan’s motors, which were used in the sports-prototype Porsche 919 Hybrid racing car, produce a combined 600 hp (440 kW), allowing the vehicle to accelerate from a dead stop to 60 mph in just 3.5 seconds. Just like the Model 3 Performance, the Taycan is also listed with a top speed of 155 mph, as well as a 310-mile range.

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Porsche is one of the auto industry’s legacy carmakers that appears to be taking its electric car initiative seriously. Apart from its continued push of the Taycan, the company has also teased the release of the Mission E Cross Turismo, a variant of the vehicle that features off-road elements, in 2020. Porsche has also recently revealed that the Taycan would be supported by a fast-charging network not unlike Tesla’s Superchargers. Dubbed as Charge Parks, Porsche’s electric car stations would be placed on key locations across well-traveled routes, and it would provide drivers with a system that would allow the Taycan to replenish 248 miles of range in just 15 minutes.

The Porsche Taycan is expected to start production in 2019, though customers in the United States and selected territories can now pre-order the vehicle. The electric car is expected to be produced at Porsche’s Zuffenhausen facility in Stuttgart, Germany, the same facility where the Porsche 911, 718 Boxster, and the 718 Cayman are manufactured. Porsche plans to produce 20,000 Taycans annually when the electric car begins production.

Watch the Porsche Taycan climb Austria’s Grossglockner High Alpine Road in the video below. 

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla Cybertruck’s newest trim is nearing its first deliveries

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Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer | X

Tesla Cybertruck’s newest trim level is nearing its first deliveries just a few months after being offered for an incredible deal.

Back in February, Tesla officially launched a new trim of the Cybertruck, the All-Wheel-Drive, starting at just $59,990. It was a lot of truck for the money, especially considering what it offered the Rear-Wheel-Drive variant for last year, which was a total flop.

The $59,990 price that was offered initially was a deal due to its 325-mile range rating, powered tonneau, three bed outlets, Powershare capability, coil springs with adaptive damping for a refined suspension feel, Steer-by-Wire and four-wheel steering, a 6′ x 4′ composite bed, towing capacity of 7,500 pounds, and a powered frunk.

Tesla is now nearing deliveries of this trim, according to watcher Sawyer Merritt, as Tesla has officially started assigning VINs to people who ordered the vehicle initially:

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Earlier this month, we reported on units of the trim being spotted outside Gigafactory Texas by Joe Tegtmeyer.

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Tesla Giga Texas buzzing as new Cybertruck appears to enter production

This Cybertruck trim was interesting because it was released basically out of nowhere, priced incredibly well, and gathered many orders in a small amount of time. However, CEO Elon Musk noted just days afterward that the vehicle would only be priced at this bargain level for ten days.

Tesla fans were not happy.

However, the issues with the pricing strategy have blown over since the February unveiling event, and now that deliveries are near, Tesla fans are anticipating the truck making its way to their driveways soon.

The truck is currently priced at $69,990, and deliveries for new orders are slated for between August and September 2026.

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Tesla ships new feature that silences neighborhood Supercharger complaints

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is shipping a new feature that silences neighborhood Supercharger complaints, prompting drivers to be aware of those who might be impacted by excessive noise nearby.

Tesla is now rolling out a new location-specific “Quiet Charging Zone” that prompts drivers to lower their vehicle’s audio volume in an effort to make things comfortable for everyone, even those who are not Tesla owners.

This is an impactful feature that will resolve many complaints from those who are living nearby.

When a Tesla plugs into this Supercharger and its media volume exceeds a certain level, the vehicle’s central touchscreen displays a polite notification: “Could you turn the volume down? Please be mindful of our neighbors.”

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Accompanying the message is a prominent “Lower” button. One tap automatically reduces the audio to a more considerate level. Physical “Quiet Charging Zone” signs posted at the station reinforce the request, creating a cohesive experience that blends digital nudges with on-site reminders.

This feature highlights Tesla’s unique advantages. Unlike traditional automakers, Tesla owns both the vehicle software and the charging infrastructure.

Engineers can detect the precise location via GPS, trigger context-aware prompts, and deploy changes fleet-wide in hours or days without recalls or dealer visits. No public release notes highlighted the change, suggesting it was a quiet, site-specific rollout designed to test effectiveness before potential expansion.

These are usually referred to as “Undocumented Changes.”

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Beyond immediate noise reduction, the initiative underscores Tesla’s customer- and community-focused ethos. While EVs are inherently quieter than combustion-engine vehicles, auxiliary behaviors like loud infotainment can still create friction in dense cities. Tesla’s rapid response turns potential conflict into an opportunity to demonstrate thoughtful engineering.

As Tesla expands its Supercharger network, which is now open to other EVs in many places, features like location-based quiet modes could become standard tools for harmonious integration into neighborhoods.

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Ferrari unveils its Luce EV, and its reception has been a disaster

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Credit: Ferrari

Ferrari unveiled its Luce EV over the weekend, and so far, its reception has been an absolute disaster, gathering negative reactions from a wide variety of people, including former executives.

The stock even took a hit on its first day of trading following the unveiling, dropping over 7 percent at one point.

Ferrari moving to EVs from its traditional V12s and mid-engine sports cars is a massive move. It was designed by Sir Jony Ive and Marc Newsom’s LoveFrom studio, which is known for design work for tech giant Apple. “Luce” means “light” in Italian, so Ferrari drew inspiration for its name from its sleek design, characterized by a smooth, sculpted body with rounded edges.

But its reception has been far from what Ferrari expected. The overall design has drawn some harsh criticism since its reveal, and it is simply stunning that such a storied company, with a rich history of beautiful, powerful cars has revealed a design that many are not a fan of.

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Responses to the design were widely negative, with some saying, “Enzo is rolling in his grave,” and “This looks like a Nissan LEAF with a bad body kit.”

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Former Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo said:

“If I said what I really think, I’d harm Ferrari. We’re risking the destruction of a myth, I’m very sorry about that. I hope they at least remove the Prancing Horse from that car.”

Ferrari has scaled back EV commitments in the past, primarily in response to weaker-than-expected demand for its electric powertrains.

Priced at roughly $640,000 in the U.S., it is tough to see how this car will ever truly live up to the massive expectations many had for it. It almost feels like, to a certain extent, Ferrari is looking for a way to get out of building EVs.

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