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Porsche begins to market the Taycan in dealerships through customer deposit program
The Porsche Taycan is expected to be released sometime next year, but the German legacy automaker is already starting its marketing efforts for the all-electric car. The stakes are high for the carmaker — if it can design the Taycan in such a way that it rivals the best electric vehicles on the market like the Tesla Model S, the company can establish itself as a leader in the emerging EV market. If the car comes up short of expectations, the Taycan will end up being delegated as a footnote in the list of electric cars that never reached their potential.
Porsche started accepting pre-orders for the vehicle earlier this year, though the company initially extended the offer to several selected countries such as Norway, partly due to the country’s open support for electric mobility. The pre-orders for the vehicle were extended to the United States recently as well, by means of a Deposit Option Program for customers residing in the country. Interested buyers can fill up an online form to be part of the program, after which they will be sent information and updates about the electric car from a selected Porsche dealer. An example of a pre-order form for US-based Porsche Taycan customers can be accessed here.
Porsche is yet to reveal the final production version of the Taycan. The legacy carmaker still uses the Mission E sedan concept in its promotional materials for the upcoming electric car. A number of camouflaged test mules have been made, but the test vehicles are disguised with elements that will surely not make it to the production model, such as twin exhaust pipes at the rear. Despite not revealing the car’s final production model, Porsche Managing Director Alexander Pollich announced last month that the company is seeing a strong, positive reception to the vehicle so far.
Among the legacy automakers that are currently developing an all-electric car, Porsche appears to be one of the most serious about its desire to transition into the electric mobility age. As details of the Taycan trickled out over the years, it became quite evident that the all-electric, four-door sedan would be a serious competitor to the mainstays of the EV industry like the Model S. Porsche even notes that the Taycan will have the same soul and pedigree found in its iconic gas-powered vehicles such as the Porsche 911. Former race car driver Mark Webber echoed this sentiment during a test drive of the car, stating that the Taycan handles and feels very much “like a Porsche.”
Back in 2014, Elon Musk stated that the hoped Tesla “could address the false perception that people have that an electric car had to be ugly and slow and boring like a golf cart.” Just a year after that, Porsche debuted the Mission E sedan concept car at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, and it has become a poster child for Porsche’s transition to electric mobility ever since. Porsche even expanded the Mission E line earlier this year, revealing a more rugged, off-road version of the vehicle dubbed as the Mission E Cross Turismo. The company also stated that by 2025, it aims for “every second Porsche sold to have an electric drive unit,” meaning half of its offerings would be fully electric while the other half will be plug-in hybrids.
The Porsche Taycan is expected to feature the legacy carmaker’s trademark performance, with the vehicle listed with a 0-60 mph time of 3.5 seconds, a range of 310 miles per charge, and a top speed of 155 mph. The electric car is expected to be produced at a facility located at Zuffenhausen, a suburb in Stuttgart, Germany — the same factory where Porsche manufactures some of its finest vehicles like the 911, 718 Boxster, and the 718 Cayman. Porsche is expecting to manufacture 20,000 Taycans per year when it begins production.
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Tesla Model 3 and Model Y dominates U.S. EV market in 2025
The figures were detailed in Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report.
Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y continued to overwhelmingly dominate the United States’ electric vehicle market in 2025. New sales data showed that Tesla’s two mass market cars maintained a commanding segment share, with the Model 3 posting year-to-date growth and the Model Y remaining resilient despite factory shutdowns tied to its refresh.
The figures were detailed in Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report.
Model 3 and Model Y are still dominant
According to the report, Tesla delivered an estimated 192,440 Model 3 sedans in the United States in 2025, representing a 1.3% year-to-date increase compared to 2024. The Model 3 alone accounted for 15.9% of all U.S. EV sales, making it one of the highest-volume electric vehicles in the country.
The Model Y was even more dominant. U.S. deliveries of the all-electric crossover reached 357,528 units in 2025, a 4.0% year-to-date decline from the prior year. It should be noted, however, that the drop came during a year that included production shutdowns at Tesla’s Fremont Factory and Gigafactory Texas as the company transitioned to the new Model Y. Even with those disruptions, the Model Y captured an overwhelming 39.5% share of the market, far surpassing any single competitor.
Combined, the Model 3 and Model Y represented more than half of all EVs sold in the United States during 2025, highlighting Tesla’s iron grip on the country’s mass-market EV segment.
Tesla’s challenges in 2025
Tesla’s sustained performance came amid a year of elevated public and political controversy surrounding Elon Musk, whose political activities in the first half of the year ended up fueling a narrative that the CEO’s actions are damaging the automaker’s consumer appeal. However, U.S. sales data suggest that demand for Tesla’s core vehicles has remained remarkably resilient.
Based on Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report, Tesla’s most expensive offerings such as the Tesla Cybertruck, Model S, and Model X, all saw steep declines in 2025. This suggests that mainstream EV buyers might have had a price issue with Tesla’s more expensive offerings, not an Elon Musk issue.
Ultimately, despite broader EV market softness, with total U.S. EV sales slipping about 2% year-to-date, Tesla still accounted for 58.9% of all EV deliveries in 2025, according to the report. This means that out of every ten EVs sold in the United States in 2025, more than half of them were Teslas.
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Tesla Model 3 and Model Y earn Euro NCAP Best in Class safety awards
“The company’s best-selling Model Y proved the gold standard for small SUVs,” Euro NCAP noted.
Tesla won dual categories in the Euro NCAP Best in Class awards, with the Model 3 being named the safest Large Family Car and the Model Y being recognized as the safest Small SUV.
The feat was highlighted by Tesla Europe & Middle East in a post on its official account on social media platform X.
Model 3 and Model Y lead their respective segments
As per a press release from the Euro NCAP, the organization’s Best in Class designation is based on a weighted assessment of four key areas: Adult Occupant, Child Occupant, Vulnerable Road User, and Safety Assist. Only vehicles that achieved a 5-star Euro NCAP rating and were evaluated with standard safety equipment are eligible for the award.
Euro NCAP noted that the updated Tesla Model 3 performed particularly well in Child Occupant protection, while its Safety Assist score reflected Tesla’s ongoing improvements to driver-assistance systems. The Model Y similarly stood out in Child Occupant protection and Safety Assist, reinforcing Tesla’s dual-category win.
“The company’s best-selling Model Y proved the gold standard for small SUVs,” Euro NCAP noted.
Euro NCAP leadership shares insights
Euro NCAP Secretary General Dr. Michiel van Ratingen said the organization’s Best in Class awards are designed to help consumers identify the safest vehicles over the past year.
Van Ratingen noted that 2025 was Euro NCAP’s busiest year to date, with more vehicles tested than ever before, amid a growing variety of electric cars and increasingly sophisticated safety systems. While the Mercedes-Benz CLA ultimately earned the title of Best Performer of 2025, he emphasized that Tesla finished only fractionally behind in the overall rankings.
“It was a close-run competition,” van Ratingen said. “Tesla was only fractionally behind, and new entrants like firefly and Leapmotor show how global competition continues to grow, which can only be a good thing for consumers who value safety as much as style, practicality, driving performance, and running costs from their next car.”
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Tesla is shifting FSD to a subscription-only model, confirms Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed the upcoming update in a post on social media platform X.
Tesla will be ending one-time purchases of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system after Valentine’s Day, transitioning the feature to a monthly subscription-only model.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed the upcoming update in a post on social media platform X.
No more FSD one-time purchases
As per Elon Musk in his post on X, “Tesla will stop selling FSD after Feb 14. FSD will only be available as a monthly subscription thereafter.” This marks a shift in how Tesla monetizes its FSD system, which can now be purchased for a one-time fee or accessed through a monthly subscription.
FSD’s subscription model has been $99 per month in the United States, while its one-time purchase option is currently priced at $8,000. FSD’s one-time purchase price has swung wildly in recent years, reaching $15,000 in September 2022. At the time, FSD was proficient, but its performance was not on par with v14. This made its $15,000 upfront price a hard sell for consumers.
Tesla’s move to a subscription-only model could then streamline how the company sells FSD. It also lowers the entry price for the system, as even price-conscious drivers would likely be able to justify FSD’s $99 monthly subscription cost during periods when long-distance travel is prevalent, like the holidays.
Musk’s compensation plan and FSD subscription targets
Tesla’s shift to a subscription-only FSD model comes amidst Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award, which was approved by Tesla shareholders at the 2025 Annual Shareholders Meeting with roughly 75% support. Under the long-term compensation plan, Musk must achieve a series of ambitious operational milestones, including 10 million active FSD subscriptions, over the next decade for his stock awards to vest.
The 2025 CEO Performance Award’s structure ties Musk’s potential compensation to Tesla’s aggressive targets that span market capitalization, vehicle deliveries, robotics, and software adoption. Apart from his 10-million active FSD subscription target, Musk’s compensation is also tied to Tesla producing 20 million vehicles cumulatively, delivering 1 million Tesla bots, and having 1 million Robotaxis in operation. He must also lead Tesla to a market cap of $8.5 trillion.
If successful, Elon Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award could make him the world’s first trillionaire. It could also help Tesla become the world’s most valuable company by market cap by a notable margin.
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y dominates U.S. EV market in 2025
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y earn Euro NCAP Best in Class safety awards
