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Tesla confirms multiple registered Cybertrucks in Europe

Credit: Tesla Europe and Middle East/X

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Another Tesla Cybertruck has been registered in Europe, as was confirmed over the weekend by one of the company’s engineers for the unique electric vehicle (EV).

On Sunday, Tesla’s Lead Cybertruck Engineer Wes Morrill reposted an image on X of a Cybertruck driving in the Netherlands with a European license plate. The photo, which was originally posted by X user Dénis van Vliet on Saturday, shows the Cybertruck driving on a freeway in Eindhoven, though he also notes that the EV has an Albanian license plate.

“First Cybertruck registered in EU, driving in Netherlands? Someone was bound to figure it out eventually,” Morrill wrote.

Credit: Dénis van Vliet | X

READ MORE ON THE TESLA CYBERTRUCK: Tesla Cybertruck spotted at BYD facility in China

When implicitly asked by another user how European buyers could somehow get Cybertrucks registered, Morill responded by saying, “Make friends.”

Morrill also shared an update later in the afternoon, saying that he had missed the previously registered Cybertrucks, effectively confirming that those had also been fully registered.

Upon further inspection, van Vliet confirmed that the Cybertruck is owned by rapper Kosso, who recently talked about purchasing the car is Oisterwijk, though he was considering getting plates from either the Czech Republic or Albania. On Sunday, the vehicle was seen again in Lanaken, Belgium in a story from Nieuwsblad that confirmed that it is Kosso’s Cybertruck.

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Tesla Cybertrucks that were previously reported to be registered in the EU

The news follows a few other reports this year that some Cybertrucks had been registered in the European Union (EU). Most recently, a France-based Tesla Advisor reported that the first Cybertruck had been registered in the Czech Republic, though he did not disclose to Teslarati how exactly the vehicle had managed to gain registration.

During Tesla’s Annual Shareholder Meeting in June, Elon Musk said that the company may be able to certify the Cybertruck for markets outside of North America in 2025, though it would be “for sure just North America” this year. He has also hinted at the potential for a version of the Cybertruck developed specifically for European and Chinese markets, while many have expressed doubts around the EV’s ability to meet certain pedestrian safety regulations in the past.

In an interview with Top Gear last December, for example, Tesla Vice President of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy cast some doubt on the Cybertruck’s ability to be eligible for registration in Europe, largely due to its protruding edges.

“One, the truck market in the U.S. is huge and two, European regulations call for a 3.2mm external radius on external projections,” Moravy said. “Unfortunately, it’s impossible to make a 3.2mm radius on a 1.4mm sheet of stainless steel.”

Despite this, Tesla has also made its ambitions to bring the Cybertruck to other countries clear through worldwide display tours of the vehicle, showing it off in several Asian and European countries throughout much of the year. The company first announced plans to bring the Cybertruck to the United Kingdom and parts of Europe in April, after previously displaying the vehicle in China, Japan, and other parts of Asia.

Tesla also brought the Cybertruck to its Gigafactory Berlin in March as a display, though these and others in its world tour didn’t seem to be registered units. Cybertrucks being registered in Europe have been rumored since around this time this year, though they likely have been imported by the buyers after being purchased in North America.

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What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

Tesla Cybertrucks get faster charging ahead of V4 cabinet rollout

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Zach is a renewable energy reporter who has been covering electric vehicles since 2020. He grew up in Fremont, California, and he currently lives in Colorado. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, KRON4 San Francisco, FOX31 Denver, InsideEVs, CleanTechnica, and many other publications. When he isn't covering Tesla or other EV companies, you can find him writing and performing music, drinking a good cup of coffee, or hanging out with his cats, Banks and Freddie. Reach out at zach@teslarati.com, find him on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

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Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile are trying to shut Starlink out before FCC vote

AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile want 290 MHz cut from an FCC satellite plan before Thursday.

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Starlink D2D direct to device vs Verizon, AT&T (Concept render by Grok)

AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are asking the Federal Communications Commission to pull nearly 300 MHz of spectrum out of a proposal that would let satellite companies like SpaceX offer cell service directly to ordinary phones. The request lands one day before the agency votes on it.

The FCC will vote Thursday, October 29, on a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make an additional 482 MHz available for direct to device service, expanding the number of eligible bands from five to 13, according to the FCC fact sheet. It would also scrap the rule requiring a satellite operator to lease spectrum from carriers, replacing it with a certification that the operator has coexistence agreements in place or holds the terrestrial license itself.

That second path matters for SpaceX. As Teslarati reported earlier this month, SpaceX agreed to buy Grain Management’s nationwide 800 MHz portfolio to turn Starlink Mobile into a full US carrier, adding to the spectrum it already bought from EchoStar.

The carriers want two bands removed, 2.5 GHz and 3.45 GHz, which make up 290 MHz of the 482 MHz on the table. Through industry group CTIA, they argued that about 300 million users depend on those bands and that satellite operations in them are not technically feasible. T-Mobile, which calls 2.5 GHz the foundation of its Ultra Capacity 5G network, said in its own filing that satellite interference could wipe out up to 96% of a cell site’s uplink coverage area and cut uplink speeds by 88% to 99%.

Executives from all three carriers met with FCC staff on October 20, and T-Mobile CEO Srini Gopalan met separately with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. T-Mobile’s role stands out because it is still SpaceX’s US launch partner for Starlink Mobile. The three carriers have also teamed up on their own satellite joint venture to pool spectrum, a move widely seen as a response to Starlink.

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SpaceX is asking for the opposite. In an October 23 filing after meetings with FCC staff and commissioners’ offices, the company asked regulators to add the 902 to 928 MHz band to the proposal. “Doing so now saves time later,” SpaceX wrote. The company also asked the FCC to modernize interference rules and align satellite deployment requirements with those for terrestrial cell networks, saying the goal is to let satellite and ground networks work together so Americans stay connected wherever they are.

The carriers have not been shy about how they view SpaceX as a competitor. On Verizon’s third quarter earnings call Monday, its chief executive said Starlink Mobile “just can’t compete with a terrestrial network” and estimated SpaceX would need four to six years and $300 billion to $500 billion to build a full US carrier network.

Thursday’s vote will not settle which bands survive. Adopting the notice opens a public comment period, with final rules to come later in the proceeding. The FCC already considered and rejected 2.5 GHz for satellite coverage once, in 2024. SpaceX also is not the only satellite player watching: the FCC approved Amazon’s $11.6 billion acquisition of Globalstar on October 27, giving its planned direct to device fleet its own mobile satellite spectrum.

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Tesla Semi catches fire in California: what we know

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Credit: KTVU

A Tesla Semi caught fire in Hayward, California, which caused both directions of traffic to shut down for hours before being completely reopened early on Wednesday, the California Highway Patrol said.

The fire occurred just after 5:30 local time in Hayward on Tuesday, as the Semi caught fire in the southbound lanes of I-880 before CHP officials made the decision to shut down both lanes of traffic due to potential risks from hazardous chemical smoke.

There were no injuries reported.

The cause of the fire is currently unknown, as neither Tesla nor the CHP have not determined a cause.

However, some images taken before the Semi was completely destroyed by the fire seem to indicate this might have been an older unit, as it appears to be one of the designs that Tesla shipped as part of its pilot program, before revising it and starting mass production just a month ago.

At the time of publication, CHP had not returned our request for a comment for additional details, including the Semi involved and any potential collaboration on an investigation between the CHP and Tesla. We will update this story when we hear back from them.

The southbound lanes were reopened at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday, with the northbound lanes opening last night a few hours after the fire began. The CHP did state that the lithium batteries were “incredibly difficult to extinguish,” according to NBC Bay Area.

The truck’s driver said that the Semi caught fire, but he did not have an explanation.

An estimated 5,000 to 7,000 semi-truck and large commercial vehicle fires occur on U.S. roadways every year.

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Tesla’s ‘Emergency Drive Away’ function gets its first use in the real world

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla’s launch of the “Emergency Drive Away” function a few months back offered owners a safe option to evacuate an area if they were in reasonable danger. The function finally got its first use in the real world, but it appears it was by mistake.

A video shared by u/Joshalander in the r/TeslaLounge subreddit recorded the instance from his vehicle and said the incident took place in Austin this past weekend during the city’s F1 Race.

“Was charging around 6 AM this past Sunday in Austin before heading to the F1 race and heard a pop. Looked over and saw the new emergency drive-away feature in action. Genuinely felt bad for the dude when he got out and realized what happened, since he looked exhausted and only seemed to half-read the prompts.”

Emergency Drive Away unlatches the Supercharger connector from the vehicle, but still causes damage to both the car and the Supercharger. Tesla has said that it will cost up to $25,000 in repairs to have everything fixed back to normal.

Additionally, the company said that if it were not used in an emergency situation, the driver of the vehicle who activated the Emergency Drive Away feature would be responsible for all repair costs.

Tesla constitutes the following situations as reasonable justifications for activating the feature:

  • You face an immediate threat to your life or personal safety.
  • You must leave the area immediately.
  • Exiting the vehicle is unsafe.
  • Unplugging the charge connector would unreasonably delay your departure or expose you to a risk to your personal safety.

After using the feature, Tesla requires the driver to schedule Service so the car can be inspected.

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