Connect with us

News

Tesla Cybertrucks get faster charging ahead of V4 cabinet rollout

Credit: Tesla Charging | X

Published

on

Ahead of the rollout of V4-compatible power cabinets, Tesla has highlighted that faster charging speeds for the Cybertruck are now available at certain charging stations with V4 Supercharging posts.

On Friday, Tesla’s Charging account on X highlighted that the Cybertruck can now charge at speeds of up to 325kW at select Supercharger sites with V4 charging stalls. The news comes as Tesla prepares to start rolling out its V4 charging cabinets in early 2025, which will enable speeds of up to 500kW.

Tesla North American Charging Director Max de Zegher also reposted the news on X, clarifying that, eventually, all V4 posts with a V3 cabinet would enable 325kW charging speeds, and likely even in the coming weeks. He also points out that these Cybertrucks are charging at 400v at 325kW, though they’ll eventually be able to access the full capabilities of their 800v charging architecture with the arrival of the V4 cabinet.

Where can Tesla Cybertrucks charge at speeds of up to 325kW?

Below is the full list of initial sites where Tesla Cybertrucks can charge at 325kW, as shared by Tesla. The company also says it’s aiming to roll out access to even more locations.

Advertisement
  • Lebec, CA
  • Chemult, OR
  • Columbus, GA – Macon Road
  • Dayton, OH – North Springboro Pike
  • Dunnigan, CA – County Road
  • Lamoni, IA
  • Wilsonville, OR
  • Truckee, CA – Deerfield Drive
  • Harrison, NY
  • Farr West, UT
  • Tacoma, WA – S 40th Street
  • Highland, CA – 4154 E Highland Ave
  • Melissa, TX
  • Cedar Park, TX – East Whitestone Boulevard
  • Gillette, WY – South Douglas Highway
  • Rockaway, NJ – Green Pond Road
  • Mesa, AZ – South Signal Butte Road
  • Blaine, WA – Boblett Street
  • Santa Ynez, CA

Tesla’s latest charging improvements and milestones

Tesla quietly started rolling out its upgraded V4 Superchargers in North America and other markets throughout much of last year, though the community was quick to point out that the power cabinets also required updates to allow for faster charging speeds. In August, however, Tesla did confirm that it was performing trials of faster charging speeds on the V4 stalls at select Supercharger locations, hinting that these updates were not far off and that even sites with V3 cabinets would likely soon access faster charging.

In the past, Tesla and de Zegher have also highlighted the advantages of building prefabricated charging units at the Gigafactory in Buffalo, New York, which come in pre-built structures with four stall units that are delivered to the site. For one, Tesla has said that the prefab units now take the company just four days from delivery to installation, meaning that it can deploy charging stations faster than ever.

Ultimately, the charging executive also says that the cost-savings that come from building Supercharger stalls this way will be passed onto the customer, following suit recent price reductions that have been spotted in both the North American and European markets in recent weeks.

You can see a rendering of the total supplies needed for four V4 Supercharger stalls (left) compared to the pre-assembled Supercharger units (right) below.

Credit: Max de Zegher | X

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 Supercharger network leads U.S. toward 2030 charging goal

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.

Advertisement
Comments

News

Tesla begins Grok AI chatbot rollout to Australia and New Zealand fleet

The update follows earlier deployments in the United States and Europe.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla has rolled out its Grok AI assistant to Australia and New Zealand, embedding the conversational chatbot directly into compatible vehicles via an over-the-air update. 

The system, developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, is now live on select models, giving drivers access to a voice-based assistant that goes well beyond traditional command-driven controls.

The update follows earlier deployments in the United States and Europe.

Tesla Australia confirmed Grok is available on Model S, Model 3, Model X and Model Y vehicles equipped with an AMD processor and running software version 2025.26 or later.

Advertisement

“Grok is coming to Teslas in Australia and New Zealand. It can answer almost any question using real-time information & also add/edit navigation destinations to become your personal guide. Phased rollout has now begun to eligible vehicles,” Tesla Australia and New Zealand wrote in a post on its official X account.

Drivers can activate Grok using the steering wheel controls once the update is installed. Access requires either a Premium Connectivity subscription or a stable Wi-Fi connection.

Unlike conventional in-car voice assistants that rely on fixed prompts, Grok is designed to respond conversationally. It can adjust navigation mid-trip, locate nearby points of interest, explain dashboard warnings, provide driving guidance and reference the owner’s manual. 

Tesla noted that interactions with Grok are processed by xAI and remain anonymous to Tesla, adding that conversations are not linked to a specific driver or vehicle.

Advertisement

Grok has attracted attention overseas for offering multiple interaction modes. In the U.S., users can select personalities such as Assistant, Language Tutor, Therapist, Storyteller and Meditation. Additional optional modes for adult users include settings labeled Unhinged, Motivation, Argumentative, Romantic and even Sexy.

Viral clips shared online have shown Grok adopting sarcastic or playful tones that differ from more neutral digital assistants, with the AI assistant typically catching drivers off-guard with its sharp personality and wit. 

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

Ford is charging for a basic EV feature on the Mustang Mach-E

When ordering a new Ford Mustang Mach-E, you’ll now be hit with an additional fee for one basic EV feature: the frunk.

Published

on

Credit: Ford Motor Company

Ford is charging an additional fee for a basic EV feature on its Mustang Mach-E, its most popular electric vehicle offering.

Ford has shuttered its initial Model e program, but is venturing into a more controlled and refined effort, and it is abandoning the F-150 Lightning in favor of a new pickup that is currently under design, but appears to have some favorable features.

However, ordering a new Mustang Mach-E now comes with an additional fee for one basic EV feature: the frunk.

The frunk is the front trunk, and due to the lack of a large engine in the front of an electric vehicle, OEMs are able to offer additional storage space under the hood. There’s one problem, though, and that is that companies appear to be recognizing that they can remove it for free while offering the function for a fee.

Ford is charging $495 for the frunk.

Interestingly, the frunk size varies by vehicle, but the Mustang Mach-E features a 4.7 to 4.8 cubic-foot-sized frunk, which measures approximately 9 inches deep, 26 inches wide, and 14 inches high.

When the vehicle was first released, Ford marketed the frunk as the ultimate tailgating feature, showing it off as a perfect place to store and serve cold shrimp cocktail.

Ford Mach-E frunk is perfect for chowders and chicken wings, and we’re not even joking

It appears the decision to charge for what is a simple advantage of an EV is not going over well, as even Ford loyal customers say the frunk is a “basic expectation” of an EV. Without it, it seems as if fans feel the company is nickel-and-diming its customers.

It will be pretty interesting to see the Mach-E without a frunk, and while it should not be enough to turn people away from potentially buying the vehicle, it seems the decision to add an additional charge to include one will definitely annoy some customers.

Continue Reading

News

Tesla to improve one of its best features, coding shows

According to the update, Tesla will work on improving the headlights when coming into contact with highly reflective objects, including road signs, traffic signs, and street lights. Additionally, pixel-level dimming will happen in two stages, whereas it currently performs with just one, meaning on or off.

Published

on

Credit: @jojje167 on X

Tesla is looking to upgrade its Matrix Headlights, a unique and high-tech feature that is available on several of its vehicles. The headlights aim to maximize visibility for Tesla drivers while being considerate of oncoming traffic.

The Matrix Headlights Tesla offers utilize dimming of individual light pixels to ensure that visibility stays high for those behind the wheel, while also being considerate of other cars by decreasing the brightness in areas where other cars are traveling.

Here’s what they look like in action:

As you can see, the Matrix headlight system intentionally dims the area where oncoming cars would be impacted by high beams. This keeps visibility at a maximum for everyone on the road, including those who could be hit with bright lights in their eyes.

There are still a handful of complaints from owners, however, but Tesla appears to be looking to resolve these with the coming updates in a Software Version that is currently labeled 2026.2.xxx. The coding was spotted by X user BERKANT:

According to the update, Tesla will work on improving the headlights when coming into contact with highly reflective objects, including road signs, traffic signs, and street lights. Additionally, pixel-level dimming will happen in two stages, whereas it currently performs with just one, meaning on or off.

Finally, the new system will prevent the high beams from glaring back at the driver. The system is made to dim when it recognizes oncoming cars, but not necessarily objects that could produce glaring issues back at the driver.

Tesla’s revolutionary Matrix headlights are coming to the U.S.

This upgrade is software-focused, so there will not need to be any physical changes or upgrades made to Tesla vehicles that utilize the Matrix headlights currently.

Continue Reading