In a flash of dramatic irony, Andrew Wheeler, the Administrator of the US Environmental Protection Agency, praised the Trump administration’s Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles rule, a rollback of fuel economy standards that would allow automakers to sell more polluting vehicles in the United States.
“Too many reporters fail to mention one very important point: the Obama era CAFÉ standards were not attainable by the auto industry. The truth is, the SAFE rule sets realistic standards, will reduce pollution, and save lives!” Wheeler posted.
Such statements, of course, attracted strong responses. In a call with reporters on Tuesday, California attorney general Xavier Becerra remarked that the EPA Administrator’s Twitter announcement was downright wrong. “(EPA administrator Andrew Wheeler) issued a tweet saying that this new rule would save lives, and reduce pollution, and that it would provide significant benefits to the American economy. In each case, he’s wrong,” Becerra said.
On Tuesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency announced the SAFE standards that will take the place of the Obama-era Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) rules, which required about 5% annual improvements in fuel efficiency every year from carmakers.
Under the CAFE rules, the EPA noted that automakers would have been required to sell cars and light trucks with an average fuel efficiency of about 54 miles per gallon in 2026 model cars. With the current administration’s SAFE rules, vehicles could simply average about 40 miles per gallon by 2026 to meet the new standards.
In a way, Wheeler’s tweet boiled down to one point. The old CAFE standards were simply unrealistic, and America needs the new SAFE rules to make sure automakers and car buyers win out. Interestingly enough, the EPA official’s post came amidst an ongoing climate crisis and a literal pandemic that involves a virus attacking people’s capability to breathe.
Bad timing and taste aside, the EPA Administrator appears to have conveniently forgotten one particular American carmaker that has had absolutely no problem meeting the “unrealistic” standards of the Obama-era CAFE rules. This carmaker currently stands as the most valuable US-based automaker by market cap, and in recent quarters, it has even turned a profit, highlighting the argument that there is a substantial demand and a solid business model for zero-emissions vehicles.
This carmaker, of course, is Tesla. The company had been producing electric cars since 2008, and it has been mass-producing vehicles since 2012. With the Model 3, Tesla started breaking into the mainstream market, with some car buyers trading in otherwise more affordable vehicles to acquire the electric sedan. A crossover, the Model Y, has begun deliveries ahead of schedule, and if initial impressions from professional reviewers are any indication, there’s a good chance that the all-electric crossover will be a disruptor as well.
With the United States’ SAFE rules, automakers like Ford and GM will likely have less incentive to push electric cars. This may be detrimental to both companies, considering that leaked production plans from both GM and Ford have shown that the veteran automakers are still committed to the internal combustion engine despite their pro-EV rhetoric. This could be a costly move for GM and Ford, since territories outside the United States, such as Europe and China, have committed to electrification.
But amidst all these, there is a silver lining. If veteran automakers like Ford and GM will not step up to the plate and provide good electric cars to meet the demand from buyers, a new breed of EV companies will. Tesla has proven that a well-designed, feature-rich, all-electric car like the Model 3 can dominate their established internal combustion counterparts. There’s a good chance that vehicles like the Cybertruck, or perhaps Rivian’s R1T, could do the same for high-end F-150s and RAM trucks.
In a way, the adjustment of the United States’ emissions standards could prove to be an opportunity for electric car makers. Beyond the United States, after all, authorities are going all-in on electric cars. And for some territories such as Europe and China, there is no more turning back.
News
Tesla China comeback: Retail sales hit second-highest month of 2025
Tesla’s September numbers are just below the 74,127 units that were sold domestically in March.
Tesla’s retail sales in China climbed to 71,525 vehicles in September, the company’s second-highest monthly total this year, as per data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
The result reflects a steady rebound, narrowing Tesla’s year-on-year sales decline to just 0.93%, while showing a 25% jump from August’s weaker numbers. Tesla China’s September numbers are just below the 74,127 units that were sold domestically in March.
Tesla China’s September
Despite the uptick, Tesla China’s retail sales have now logged seven months of year-on-year declines this 2025, managing growth only in March and June, though a good portion of these lost sales was due to the changeover to the new Model Y. The Shanghai Gigafactory, which produces both the Model 3 and Model Y, continues to serve as a dual-purpose hub for domestic and export markets.
In September, Tesla exported 19,287 vehicles from its Shanghai facility, up 19.6% year-on-year but down 25.9% from August, as noted in a CNEV Post report. This is in line with Tesla China’s strategy of prioritizing exports early in each quarter. Including exports, Tesla China’s total wholesale volume reached 90,812 units in September, up 2.82% year-on-year and 9.16% month-on-month.
Model Y still leads
The Tesla Model Y still led the electric vehicle maker’s sales in China with 59,907 units sold wholesale during the month, rising 17.1% from last year, while Model 3 reached 30,905 units, dipping 16.8% year-on-year but up 27% from August. Tesla’s overall market share in China’s NEV segment rose to 5.52%, and its BEV share climbed to 8.66%, modest gains hinting at the company’s resilience in a fiercely competitive market.
Across Q3, Tesla sold 169,294 vehicles in China, down 6.9% year-on-year, marking its second consecutive quarterly decline but a strong 31.4% recovery versus Q2. Year-to-date, Tesla’s retail total stands at 432,704 units, down 5.97% compared to last year.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk teases ‘Banish’ feature to pair perfectly with Summon
Tesla has long promised the possibility of completely hands-off parking: arrive, drop off at the entrance, the car parks itself, and the car retrieves you at the end of your visit.
Elon Musk has once again teased the “Banish” feature that could come to Tesla vehicles in the near future. It would be a perfect pairing to the popular Assisted Smart Summon (ASS), which the company launched earlier this year.
Banish has been something Tesla has teased for years. The company has promised the possibility of completely hands-off parking: arrive, drop off at the entrance, the car parks itself, and the car retrieves you at the end of your visit.
Ultimately, even though it is technically a driverless feature, Tesla has not refined its parking portion of the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) suite enough to release Banish to the public.
Tesla recently started performing specified parking tasks at the driver’s discretion. In the FSD (Supervised) v14.1 release, Tesla has added the ability to pick your parking scenario. Drivers can choose a Charger, Parking Lot, Curbside, Street, Driveway, or Parking Garage.
To achieve Banish, Tesla would have to gather enough data with these scenarios to then gain the capability to park after dropping vehicle occupants off.
🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving (Supervised) v14.1’s new Arrival Options pic.twitter.com/P8GDY7BIZ6
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 10, 2025
However, CEO Elon Musk recently hyped Banish to the point of stating Teslas will be capable of it “in the near future.”
His remark came in response to a video where FSD v14.1 drove around a Costco parking lot for twenty minutes looking for a spot:
In the near future, your Tesla will drop you off at the store entrance and then go find a parking spot.
When you’re ready to exit the store, just tap Summon on your phone and the car will come to you. https://t.co/7oUEk9Bb0H
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 10, 2025
Summon is a feature that has given Tesla its challenges, but the release of Assisted Smart Summon (ASS) has improved some of its capabilities.
I tested it after receiving v14.1, and it did a great job of taking the correct route and driving safely to my location:
🚨 There were no noted improvements to Tesla’s Actually Smart Summon (ASS) with the v14.1 Full Self-Driving (Supervised) update
However, with v13.2.9, ASS turned the wrong way on this exact route.
Not this time! Exceptionally done! pic.twitter.com/vYHL0zjlOk
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 10, 2025
There will likely be some time between now and when Tesla is able to release Banish. As previously noted, Tesla will need to collect enough data from real-world scenarios and obtain a proven track record of being able to handle lots and parking in a variety of environments while supervised.
News
Tesla faces new blockade in Sweden as IF Metall escalates dispute
The action takes effect October 15 and will remain in place until Tesla signs a collective agreement.
Just over a month after the Swedish Meditation Institute threw in the towel on Tesla and IF Metall’s conflict, the labor union has announced a new industrial action aimed at disrupting the electric vehicle maker’s operations in the country.
Potential Tesla disruptions
The latest news involves a total work stoppage by Linde Material Handling, one of Sweden’s largest forklift companies, which services industrial clients nationwide. The action takes effect October 15 and will remain in place until Tesla signs a collective agreement, as noted in a Dagens Arbete (DA) report.
The stoppage will halt all forklift-related work Linde performs for Tesla’s local subsidiary, TM Sweden, including maintenance, repair, and service of trucks used across its facilities. Simon Petersson, IF Metall’s contract secretary, shared described the union’s latest effort in a comment to the publication.
“We know that Tesla has trucks in several locations and that they are in need of service, maintenance and repair. We are stopping that now. For Linde, this is not a big deal. They service trucks for a lot of companies and Tesla is a small player in their portfolio,” Petersson noted.
Not a sure strategy
Whether IF Metall’s latest effort will succeed against Tesla remains to be seen, especially since the electric vehicle maker has been pretty firm in its stance that its employees do not need a collective agreement. Still, the IF Metall contract secretary stated that Linde’s strike against Tesla should make it more difficult for the electric vehicle maker to operate its business in Sweden.
“It remains to be seen. But as I have said before, it is about many small streams. This stops everything Linde does for Tesla. So not only with them, but regardless of where the work takes place. So if Tesla has problems with a truck, they will not have it repaired or serviced,” Petersson stated.
Following the decision of the Swedish Meditation Institute to end the negotiations between IF Metall and Tesla early last month, the union noted that it would still try to pressure the EV maker to sign a collective agreement. Since then, the Electricians union, as well as the postmen’s unions Seko and ST have continued to initiate blockades against Tesla Sweden.
Tesla China comeback: Retail sales hit second-highest month of 2025
Elon Musk teases ‘Banish’ feature to pair perfectly with Summon
Tesla faces new blockade in Sweden as IF Metall escalates dispute
-
News2 weeks agoTesla Giga Berlin’s water consumption has achieved the unthinkable
-
News2 weeks agoTesla unveils charging innovation that will make the Semi instantly successful
-
News2 weeks agoWaymo responds to shocking video that would have gotten Tesla FSD crucified
-
News2 weeks agoLucid CEO shades Tesla Model S: “Nothing has changed in 12 years now”
-
News2 weeks agoElon Musk slams Sky News over Epstein invite: “Deserves complete contempt”
-
News2 weeks agoTesla Model Y sells faster than diesel cars and other EVs in Sweden’s used market
-
News6 days agoTesla FSD (Supervised) V14.1 with Robotaxi-style dropoffs is here
-
News1 week agoTesla all but confirms that affordable Model Y is coming Tuesday