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Tesla Cybertruck and Model 3 recognized by Edmunds as auto industry highlights of 2019
The past year saw a number of impressive feats from the automotive industry, from mid-engine American budget supercars to trucks that defy all convention. As 2019 ended, Motoring publication Edmunds listed some of the past year’s biggest highlights in the auto industry. And as it turned out, a number of these highlights came from Silicon Valley-based electric car maker Tesla.
Edmunds recognized several of Tesla’s milestones in 2019, starting with its out-of-the-box all-electric pickup truck, the Cybertruck. The company’s current headliner, the Model 3, was also recognized for being the best in its class. Lastly, the motoring publication also gave some kudos to Tesla for being arguably the only mainstream carmaker that is able to push out performance improvements to its vehicles through an over-the-air update.
Edmunds began its recognition of Tesla with the Cybertruck’s unique design and appearance, which is easily the vehicle’s most polarizing feature. The truck’s design was inspired by the vehicles in the 1982 film Blade Runner, which were created by legendary sci-fi concept artist Syd Mead. Despite its unorthodox design and CEO Elon Musk stating the truck would not be for everyone, the all-electric pickup was still able to obtain over 250,000 reservations shortly after its unveiling in November.
The Cybertruck will be available in three different variants. A Single Motor RWD version starting at $39,900, a Dual Motor AWD variant at $49,900, and a top-tier Tri-Motor AWD version at $69,900. The Dual Motor AWD and Tri-Motor AWD trims will begin production in late 2021, with the Single Motor RWD not entering the build phase until the following year in 2022.
Edmunds also recognized the Model 3 for being “quite simply the best EV you can buy.” The car’s striking popularity around the world combined with its affordable price and its vast array of available variants make it one of the most well-rounded cars out there, electric or otherwise. In the past, Edmunds has been vocal about its support and inclination to recognize the Model 3 as a great car, recently naming it its “2020 EV of the Year.”
Tesla continues to improve the Model 3 through the numerous OTA updates. Most recently, Tesla added Full Self Driving visualization features to its vehicles through an OTA update. Tesla also recently rolled out a paid $2,000 Acceleration Boost upgrade that improved the 0-60 mph time of the Model 3 Dual Motor AWD by a half second. This type of update allows owners to access additional horsepower without having to buy a new car, or spend a massive amount of money on aftermarket parts. The update is simply downloaded to the car like an application on a smartphone.
Overall, Edmunds appears to be happy with Tesla and recognizes the company as a key player in the evolution of transportation. As the world begins to move toward sustainable options, Tesla pushes the automotive sector into battery and electric-powered options a little more every day by appealing to the masses with constantly-improving vehicles.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner in Los Angeles dominated the company’s global usage rankings after just one year, proving the concept is more than just a one-off novelty location that will fade away.
The performance could incite the company to build more locations, something that CEO Elon Musk has hinted at for some time.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner delivered 21.2 GWh of energy in its first year of operation, the company’s head of Charging, Max de Zegher, revealed on X. Of the top 10 most utilized Supercharger locations in Tesla’s global infrastructure, the Diner in Los Angeles was the most used by drivers, and it wasn’t particularly close:
Tesla Diner opened exactly 1 year ago. Inspiring that futuristic places like this exist.
It’s our highest usage Supercharger in the world: 21.2 GWh delivered in a year, 1.6k sessions/day.
Top 10 Superchargers by energy delivered: https://t.co/9YvJ8lw696 pic.twitter.com/koB3AUJHws
— Max (@MdeZegher) July 21, 2026
On its launch day one year ago, nobody was too sure what the Tesla Diner would be about. It seemed like an interesting concept, and considering it had been in the works for years, it was a highly anticipated launch that many were looking forward to.
Based on its success, we could see additional Diners with Superchargers built throughout the United States, and potentially beyond. Musk has said on several occasions that the company would be willing to bring the Diner idea to more markets.
Tesla makes major change at Supercharger Diner amid epic demand
Of the markets that Musk has mentioned, both Palo Alto and Austin have come to be perceived as ideal selections. However, there are no concrete plans as of now to build new Supercharger Diners anywhere; the location on Santa Monica Boulevard will remain the exclusive spot to pick up Tesla-inspired eats, at least for the time being.
Tesla short sellers won big following the company’s massive fall on Wall Street after it reported subpar Earnings on Wednesday.
Tesla short sellers collected about $4.12 billion in single-day profits on Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Shares fell as much as 15 percent during Thursday’s session. It closed as one of the worst days for Tesla on Wall Street in the past three years.
Investors sold off the stock after Tesla said it would aggressively direct its spending toward AI and its Optimus robot project. The company had record revenues, which were driven by one of the strongest quarters in terms of vehicle deliveries in company history.
However, it missed EPS estimates by reporting just $0.33, a far cry from the $0.53 analysts expected.
S3 Partners reported that about 3 percent of Tesla’s outstanding stock is sold short. Managing Director at S3, Ihor Dusaniwsky, provided the short seller’s potential profit, as well as another figure: shorts have likely had paper gains of $8.92 billion this year, as Tesla shares are down 30 percent in 2026.
Tesla (TSLA) Q2 2026 earnings results: miss on EPS, beat on revenue
Tesla has burned short sellers many times in the past, but the company’s latest Earnings Call was a chance for those skeptics to taste some payback. Although the company gave some very transparent information regarding future projects, the rollout of Robotaxi, Optimus, and Semi, many investors took their profits on Thursday.
Notable short sellers like Michael Burry have been transparent about their skepticism around Tesla shares. Burry just revealed three weeks ago that he had opened up a new short on the stock, stating he shorted Tesla shares at $416.22. “Happy it jumped back to this level,” he said in a blog post.
At the time of publication, Tesla shares were down about 3 percent and the stock was trading at $309.92.
Tesla’s long-standing saga regarding its door handles and a manual release has entered its latest chapter, and as a result, a big change is coming.
On Friday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) denied Tesla’s petition that was seeking a defect investigation into roughly 180,000 Model 3 vehicles for an issue involving the emergency mechanical door release.
🚨 The NHTSA denied a petition from Tesla that would have thrown out concerns regarding its door handles.
NHTSA said Tesla’s petition did not present evidence of a safety-related defect warranting an investigation. The agency said a rulemaking process would be a better strategy. pic.twitter.com/j6PzUBM1mT
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 24, 2026
NHTSA said that Tesla’s petition did not present evidence of a safety-related defect in the door handles or their emergency releases. Instead, the agency determined that it would rather solve the issue of the lack of labeling or location of emergency mechanical door releases and the federal safety rules that govern them.
Essentially, the NHTSA wants to create and enforce rules that would require automakers to make emergency door latch releases more clearly labeled in a car. Despite a Tesla having manual door releases on all four passenger doors, many people do not know they exist or how they work.
Tesla addresses door handle complaints with simple engineering fix
In recent times, Tesla has faced some criticism involving its door handles, specifically because some occupants have reported that they are unable to exit their vehicles after losing power. The door handles on a Tesla are electronically operated, but in the event that the 12V battery dies, there is a manual release that can be used.
The NHTSA only identified a single complaint involving the mechanical door releases: a 2022 Model 3 owner said the release was concealed and unlabeled after the vehicle lost power after a front-end collision. It has also already started to create a separate rulemaking process to make emergency door-egress systems more obvious.
It should be noted that all Teslas have mechanical emergency door releases, but they are placed in various locations as the vehicles have aged and been redesigned from year to year. Refer to the safety manual for your vehicle if you have any confusion about where the emergency releases are and how they work.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner probably just secured more locations
Tesla short sellers win big after shares fall after earnings
