It is the end of the quarter once more, and in true Tesla tradition, the electric car maker is conducting an end-of-quarter push to deliver as many vehicles to customers as possible. This time around, though, Tesla’s delivery blitz also happens to cover the 2018 holiday season. Thus, for some reservation holders, their new Teslas proved to be a very welcome and incredibly memorable Christmas gift.
Over the past week all the way to Christmas, Tesla owners, both new and old, came to social media to share their delivery experiences. In Twitter alone, several families posted images from the delivery of their Model 3, Model X, and Model S. Tesla’s official Twitter account even shared a number of these pictures, captioning the photographs with a simple description that read “Holiday deliveries!”
Overall, it appears that Tesla did not miss a beat in its delivery efforts despite the holiday season. Considering the stakes of the fourth quarter, though, such determination is understandable, particularly since the end of Q4 also marks the end of the $7,500 federal tax credit given to Tesla owners. The fourth quarter is also an opportunity for Tesla to prove Elon Musk’s words right. Musk, after all, has noted since Q3’s blockbuster earnings that Tesla would be cash-flow positive moving forward.
Holiday deliveries! 🎄🚘🎁 pic.twitter.com/92LB5Aithh
— Tesla (@Tesla) December 25, 2018
Special 🎅 Christmas 🎄 Delivery 📦 ⚡️😊 #TM3 #Tesla #Model3 @Tesla pic.twitter.com/n7rihVDjxZ
— Christophe HUBERT (@chris75sf) December 23, 2018
A key factor in Tesla’s success for the fourth quarter, of course, remains to be the Model 3. Being Tesla’s highest-volume vehicle to date, sales and deliveries of the Model 3 would likely determine Tesla’s performance in Q4. Fortunately for the electric car maker, its Model 3 strategy for the fourth quarter might very well work. The carmaker, for one, has reached a point where it could comfortably produce the electric sedan at scale, with Musk noting that a production rate of 5,000 Model 3 per week is no big deal for Tesla today. Apart from this, the addition of a new Model 3 variant could be a difference-maker in the number of vehicles the company can deliver this quarter.
While Tesla has relied on the Long Range RWD, Long Range AWD, and Performance Model 3 variants in the past, the company rolled out a new version of the electric sedan this fourth quarter. Dubbed as the Mid Range Model 3, the vehicle, which starts at $46,000 before incentives, brought the electric car within reach of more potential customers. Tesla has not revealed the number of Mid Range Model 3 that have been delivered so far, but factors such as VIN registrations point to the idea that the vehicle is likely being produced and sold in large quantities.
To prevent what Elon Musk described as “delivery logistics hell” during the third quarter, Tesla has reportedly gone the extra mile to ensure that cars ordered today would be delivered before the year closes. Musk, for one, noted in an announcement on Twitter that Tesla has acquired trucking capacity to facilitate deliveries. More recently, Musk also noted that Tesla would cover the tax credit difference if the company is not able to complete a committed delivery before the end of the month.
Apart from these programs, Tesla has also extended its long-running referral program until March 11. As could be seen in Tesla’s order pages today, electric car buyers could acquire an additional three months of free supercharging “if they order without ever having taken a test drive.”
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Tesla Giga Berlin dispute against IG Metall union leads to investigation
As per a report from rbb24, police seized a laptop belonging to an IG Metall member at Tesla Giga Berlin on Tuesday afternoon.
German authorities have opened an investigation into an IG Metall union representative following allegations that a confidential works council meeting at Tesla’s Gigafactory Berlin was secretly recorded. The probe follows a criminal complaint filed by Tesla management last week.
As per a report from rbb24, police seized a laptop belonging to an IG Metall member at Tesla Giga Berlin on Tuesday afternoon. Prosecutors in Frankfurt (Oder) confirmed that an investigation is underway into a possible unauthorized audio recording of an internal works council meeting.
Under German law, recording a non-public meeting without consent may constitute a criminal offense.
Tesla stated that Gigafactory Berlin employees alerted management after allegedly discovering that an external union representative, who was attending the event as a guest, had recorded the session. Plant manager André Thierig stated in a post on X that the representative was “caught in action,” prompting the company to contact police and file a criminal complaint.
The seized device is now part of the investigation, and authorities will determine whether any unlawful recording had indeed occurred.
IG Metall has denied the accusation. In comments to German media, representatives rejected Tesla’s claim and described the electric vehicle maker’s allegation as an election campaign tactic ahead of upcoming works council elections.
The election at Tesla’s Grünheide plant is scheduled for March 2–4, 2026, with about 11,000 employees being eligible to vote. Regular works council elections in Germany are held every four years between March and May.
The incident comes amid tensions between Tesla and organized labor in Germany. While works councils operate independently from unions, IG Metall has been active at the plant and has previously criticized Tesla’s labor practices. Authorities, for their part, have not yet announced whether charges will be filed, though the investigation remains ongoing.
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Tesla rolls out xAI’s Grok to vehicles across Europe
The initial rollout includes the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain.
Tesla is rolling out Grok to vehicles in Europe. The feature will initially launch in nine European territories.
In a post on X, the official Tesla Europe, Middle East & Africa account confirmed that Grok is coming to Teslas in Europe. The initial rollout includes the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain, and additional markets are expected to be added later.
Grok allows drivers to ask questions using real-time information and interact hands-free while driving. According to Tesla’s support documentation, Grok can also initiate navigation commands, enabling users to search for destinations, discover points of interest, and adjust routes without touching the touchscreen, as per the feature’s official webpage.
The system offers selectable personalities, ranging from “Storyteller” to “Unhinged,” and is activated either through the App Launcher or by pressing and holding the steering wheel’s microphone button.
Grok is currently available only on Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and Cybertruck vehicles equipped with an AMD infotainment processor. Vehicles must be running software version 2025.26 or later, with navigation command support requiring version 2025.44.25 or newer.
Drivers must also have Premium Connectivity or a stable Wi-Fi connection to use the feature. Tesla notes that Grok does not currently replace standard voice commands for vehicle controls such as climate or media adjustments.
The company has stated that Grok interactions are processed securely by xAI and are not linked to individual drivers or vehicles. Users do not need a Grok account or subscription to enable the feature at this time as well.
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Tesla ends Full Self-Driving purchase option in the U.S.
In January, Musk announced that Tesla would remove the ability to purchase the suite outright for $8,000. This would give the vehicle Full Self-Driving for its entire lifespan, but Tesla intended to move away from it, for several reasons, one being that a tranche in the CEO’s pay package requires 10 million active subscriptions of FSD.
Tesla has officially ended the option to purchase the Full Self-Driving suite outright, a move that was announced for the United States market in January by CEO Elon Musk.
The driver assistance suite is now exclusively available in the U.S. as a subscription, which is currently priced at $99 per month.
Tesla moved away from the outright purchase option in an effort to move more people to the subscription program, but there are concerns over its current price and the potential for it to rise.
In January, Musk announced that Tesla would remove the ability to purchase the suite outright for $8,000. This would give the vehicle Full Self-Driving for its entire lifespan, but Tesla intended to move away from it, for several reasons, one being that a tranche in the CEO’s pay package requires 10 million active subscriptions of FSD.
Although Tesla moved back the deadline in other countries, it has now taken effect in the U.S. on Sunday morning. Tesla updated its website to reflect this:
🚨 Tesla has officially moved the outright purchase option for FSD on its website pic.twitter.com/RZt1oIevB3
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 15, 2026
There are still some concerns regarding its price, as $99 per month is not where many consumers are hoping to see the subscription price stay.
Musk has said that as capabilities improve, the price will go up, but it seems unlikely that 10 million drivers will want to pay an extra $100 every month for the capability, even if it is extremely useful.
Instead, many owners and fans of the company are calling for Tesla to offer a different type of pricing platform. This includes a tiered-system that would let owners pick and choose the features they would want for varying prices, or even a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual pricing option, which would incentivize longer-term purchasing.
Although Musk and other Tesla are aware of FSD’s capabilities and state is is worth much more than its current price, there could be some merit in the idea of offering a price for Supervised FSD and another price for Unsupervised FSD when it becomes available.
Tesla Giga Berlin dispute against IG Metall union leads to investigation
Tesla rolls out xAI’s Grok to vehicles across Europe
