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Tesla Cybertruck spotted charging at 50,000th Supercharger

Credit: Michael Kuntz and Thomas Tallman | Facebook and Instagram

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The forthcoming Tesla Cybertruck has been spotted in several U.S. locations over the past few weeks, ahead of the electric pickup’s official launch. Recently, the Cybertruck was seen at Tesla’s special 50,000th Supercharger stall, which was revealed last week and given a unique paint job.

The photo of the Cybertruck charging at the Roseville, California Supercharger was originally posted on Facebook and was shared on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum. Notably, the Cybertruck includes a Texas dealer’s license plate and the “release candidate” decals seen on many of the pre-production trucks spotted in recent weeks.

In the photo, the Cybertruck appears in front of Tesla’s Ultra Red-painted Supercharger stall, which the automaker shared a photo of last week without saying where it was located. Before long, the charging stall’s location was revealed to be at a Roseville Supercharger station.

Pictured: Michael Kuntz. Credit: Thomas Tallman | Facebook and Instagram

The photo makes the Cybertruck look pretty massive as it’s backed into the Supercharging spot to charge. Some commenters on a Reddit post with the image aired concerns about Supercharger cables being stretched by Cybertrucks, as the pictured unit looks to be parked a few inches away from the charging stall.

The Cybertruck was also captured driving away by the picture’s original photographer and Kuntz’s husband, Thomas Tallman (@mermanthommy on Instagram). You can see Tallman’s video of the Cybertruck driving away on his Instagram here.

The sighting is just the latest ahead of the Cybertruck’s first deliveries and before the highly anticipated electric pickup enters mass production next year. One tally shows that over two million Cybertruck reservations have been made since the vehicle’s unveiling in 2019, based on reservation numbers and some self-reported reservations.

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To name just a few of the Cybertruck’s recent sightings, onlookers have seen the forthcoming vehicle offroading at Hollister Hills in Hollister, California, towing a trailer in Palo Alto, cruising down the Las Vegas strip, and charging outside of Tesla’s Gigafactory in Austin, Texas.

In one sighting at the Hollister Hills State Vehicle Recreation Area (SVRA), Tesla staff reportedly told a Jeep owner that initial Cybertruck deliveries would begin in October. The report came about a week after Tesla briefly halted production at Giga Texas to upgrade its Cybertruck and Model Y production lines.

Currently, only two things stand in the way of the Cybertruck going from pre-production to actual production and initial deliveries: crash testing results from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and an official Certificate of Conformity.

Update: Corrected the original source of the image and replaced the photo with an uncropped version from the owner, Michael Kuntz, and the photographer and Kuntz’s husband, Thomas Tallman.

Watch a Tesla Cybertruck aero wheel cover go flying in the midst of heavy traffic

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

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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Tesla Model Y gets fresh configuration with three highly requested features

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has launched a new Model Y configuration in the “Premium” trim, and it comes with three highly requested features that have launched in markets outside of the U.S. and in other trims.

Tesla announced on Monday night that it has officially launched the Model Y Premium in a seven-seat configuration, which also comes standard with a 16″ touchscreen and black headliner, both of which are featured in the Model Y Performance trim.

The seven-seat configuration is highly requested by consumers and helps fill out the more spacious SUV offering that the lineup has missed outside of the Model X, which prices out many consumers. This new upgrade only costs $2,500 extra for all three features, bringing the cash price to $48,990.

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The move to add the seven-seat configuration with the black headliner and additional screen size is a welcome addition, as many Tesla fans have asked the company to come out with an SUV with more seating capacity. Although it is not a full-size SUV, the additional seating will certainly attract some buyers with bigger families.

It appears the third row is slightly more spacious than the past iteration of the seven-seat Model Y, which was available in the previous design pre-Juniper:

 

Credit: Tesla

However, it definitely still appears to be pretty cramped in terms of legroom. It will definitely be a seating arrangement for smaller passengers, mostly reserved for children.

The other two upgrades are the black headliner, which was launched in other markets and in the Model Y Performance. Many owners have wanted this change, and Tesla listened, but is only offering it with the seven-seat configuration. It also has a larger 16″ touchscreen, also present in the Model Y Performance exclusively:

Credit: Tesla

It is a nice touch to add these highly requested features to the all-electric crossover, which was the best-selling vehicle in the world for the third consecutive year.

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Tesla expands its branded ‘For Business’ Superchargers

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Credit: Francis Energy

Tesla has expanded its branded ‘For Business’ Supercharger program that it launched last year, as yet another company is using the platform to attract EV owners to its business and utilize a unique advertising opportunity.

Francis Energy of Oklahoma is launching four Superchargers in Norman, where the University of Oklahoma is located. The Superchargers, which are fitted with branding for Francis Energy, will officially open tomorrow.

It will not be the final Supercharger location that Francis Energy plans to open, the company confirmed to EVWire.

Back in early September, Tesla launched the new “Supercharger for Business” program in an effort to give businesses the ability to offer EV charging at custom rates. It would give their businesses visibility and would also cater to employees or customers.

“Purchase and install Superchargers at your business,” Tesla wrote on a page on its website for the new program. “Superchargers are compatible with all electric vehicles, bringing EV drivers to your business by offering convenient, reliable charging.”

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The first site opened in Land O’ Lakes, Florida, which is Northeast of Tampa, as a company called Suncoast launched the Superchargers for local EV owners.

Tesla launches its new branded Supercharger for Business with first active station

The program also does a great job at expanding infrastructure for EV owners, which is something that needs to be done to encourage more people to purchase Teslas and other electric cars.

Francis Energy operates at least 14 EV charging locations in Oklahoma, spanning from Durant to Oklahoma City and nearly everywhere in between. Filings from the company, listed by Supercharge.info, show the company’s plans to convert some of them to Tesla Superchargers, potentially utilizing the new Supercharger for Business program to advertise.

Moving forward, more companies will likely utilize Tesla’s Supercharger for Business program as it presents major advantages in a variety of ways, especially with advertising and creating a place for EV drivers to gain range in their cars.

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Tesla Cybercab ‘breakdown’ image likely is not what it seems

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Credit: TslaChan | X

Tesla Cybercab is perhaps the most highly-anticipated project that the company plans to roll out this year, and as it is undergoing its testing phase in pre-production currently, there are some things to work through with it.

Over the weekend, an image of the Cybercab being loaded onto a tow truck started circulating on the internet, and people began to speculate as to what the issue could be.

The Cybercab can clearly be seen with a Police Officer and perhaps the tow truck driver by its side, being loaded onto, or even potentially unloaded from, the truck.

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However, it seems unlikely it was being offloaded, as its operation would get it to this point for testing to begin with.

It appears, at first glance, that it needs assistance getting back to wherever it came from; likely Gigafactory Texas or potentially a Bay Area facility.

The Cybercab was also spotted in Buffalo, New York, last week, potentially undergoing cold-weather testing, but it doesn’t appear that’s where this incident took place.

It is important to remember that the Cybercab is currently undergoing some rigorous testing scenarios, which include range tests and routine public road operation. These things help Tesla assess any potential issue the vehicle could run into after it starts routine production and heads to customers, or for the Robotaxi platform operation.

This is not a one-off issue, either. Tesla had some instances with the Semi where it was seen broken down on the side of a highway three years ago. The all-electric Semi has gone on to be successful in its early pilot program, as companies like Frito-Lay and PepsiCo. have had very positive remarks.

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Tesla reveals its first Semi customer after launch

The Cybercab’s future is bright, and it is important to note that no vehicle model has ever gone its full life without a breakdown. It happens, it’s a car.

Nevertheless, it is important to note that there has been no official word on what happened with this particular Cybercab unit, but it is crucial to remember that this is the pre-production testing phase, and these things are more constructive than anything.

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