News
Tesla investigates deadly crash after Model S drives into a tree [Updated]

News coming out of Baarn, Netherlands of a Tesla Model S that killed a driver after the vehicle reportedly drove at high speed into a tree is currently being investigated by the electric automaker. It is unclear whether Tesla’s driving-assist feature, Autopilot, was engaged.
Tesla in conjunction with local police are investigating the scene of the accident. According to Tesla they are exercising standard procedure when an accident is involved. The company will analyze data collected through the vehicle once they’re able to recover it from the wreck. As soon as the results are final, “we’ll share it with the public”, says Tesla.
Due to the nature of the accident, the victim’s body couldn’t be recovered immediately since local fire and rescue personnel were said to have no experience with extinguishing fires in electric cars. “There’s high current in the car. When there’s something wrong but it’s still on four wheels, we can work safely. It’s a sad thing the victim is still in the wreck, however, we’re not taking any chances when it comes to our safety.”, said a fire brigade spokesman, translated to us from Teslarati reader Dennis Storm. “The damage to this car is so extreme that we’re unsure how to handle it without endangering our own lives.” Firefighters struggled to extinguish the burning wreckage. “We tried first with a powder extinguisher. But there was a short circuit. In the end we covered him with earth from the roadside.”, said local firefighters.
Photo credits: Autoblog.nl
The body of the Model S driver was not extracted from the wreckage until mid-afternoon. Report out of Netherlands indicate that a portion of the battery dislodged from the battery casing and was found burning down the road.
Updated Sep. 7 at 6:32pm PDT
New details coming from Tesla Motors indicates that the 53-year old driver killed behind the wheel of the Model S was not using Autopilot at any point during his drive. Vehicle logs show that the Model S was traveling at more than 155 kph (96 mph) when it crashed into a tree. A Tesla spokesperson said that the damage sustained on the vehicle is consistent with the speed at which it was traveling before hitting the tree.
“We are working with the authorities to establish the facts of the incident and offer our full cooperation,” Tesla said in a statement.
Elon Musk
Tesla ups Robotaxi fare price to another comical figure with service area expansion
Tesla upped its fare price for a Robotaxi ride from $4.20 to, you guessed it, $6.90.

Tesla has upped its fare price for the Robotaxi platform in Austin for the first time since its launch on June 22. The increase came on the same day that Tesla expanded its Service Area for the Robotaxi ride-hailing service, offering rides to a broader portion of the city.
The price is up from $4.20, a figure that many Tesla fans will find amusing, considering CEO Elon Musk has used that number, as well as ’69,’ as a light-hearted attempt at comedy over the past several years.
Musk confirmed yesterday that Tesla would up the price per ride from that $4.20 point to $6.90. Are we really surprised that is what the company decided on, as the expansion of the Service Area also took effect on Monday?
But the price is now a princely $6.90, as foretold in the prophecy 😂
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 14, 2025
The Service Area expansion was also somewhat of a joke too, especially considering the shape of the new region where the driverless service can travel.
I wrote yesterday about how it might be funny, but in reality, it is more of a message to competitors that Tesla can expand in Austin wherever it wants at any time.
Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion wasn’t a joke, it was a warning to competitors
It was only a matter of time before the Robotaxi platform would subject riders to a higher, flat fee for a ride. This is primarily due to two reasons: the size of the access program is increasing, and, more importantly, the service area is expanding in size.
Tesla has already surpassed Waymo in Austin in terms of its service area, which is roughly five square miles larger. Waymo launched driverless rides to the public back in March, while Tesla’s just became available to a small group in June. Tesla has already expanded it, allowing new members to hail a ride from a driverless Model Y nearly every day.
The Robotaxi app is also becoming more robust as Tesla is adding new features with updates. It has already been updated on two occasions, with the most recent improvements being rolled out yesterday.
Tesla updates Robotaxi app with several big changes, including wider service area
News
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 dominate U.S. EV sales despite headwinds
Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles accounted for more than 40% of all EVs sold in the United States in Q2 2025.

Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3 remained the top-selling electric vehicles in the U.S. during Q2 2025, even as the broader EV market dipped 6.3% year-over-year.
The Model Y logged 86,120 units sold, followed by the Model 3 at 48,803. This means that Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles accounted for 43% of all EVs sold in the United States during the second quarter, as per data from Cox Automotive.
Tesla leads amid tax credit uncertainty and a tough first half
Tesla’s performance in Q2 is notable given a series of hurdles earlier in the year. The company temporarily paused Model Y deliveries in Q1 as it transitioned to the production of the new Model Y, and its retail presence was hit by protests and vandalism tied to political backlash against CEO Elon Musk. The fallout carried into Q2, yet Tesla’s two mass-market vehicles still outsold the next eight EVs combined.
Q2 marked just the third-ever YoY decline in quarterly EV sales, totaling 310,839 units. Electric vehicle sales, however, were still up 4.9% from Q1 and reached a record 607,089 units in the first half of 2025. Analysts also expect a surge in Q3 as buyers rush to qualify for federal EV tax credits before they expire on October 1, Cox Automotive noted in a post.
Legacy rivals gain ground, but Tesla holds its commanding lead
General Motors more than doubled its EV volume in the first half of 2025, selling over 78,000 units and boosting its EV market share to 12.9%. Chevrolet became the second-best-selling EV brand, pushing GM past Ford and Hyundai. Tesla, however, still retained a commanding 44.7% electric vehicle market share despite a 12% drop in in Q2 revenue, following a decline of almost 9% in Q1.
Incentives reached record highs in Q2, averaging 14.8% of transaction prices, roughly $8,500 per vehicle. As government support winds down, the used EV market is also gaining momentum, with over 100,000 used EVs sold in Q2.
Q2 2025 Kelley Blue Book EV Sales Report by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
News
Tesla China weekly insurance registrations surge 145% amid strong June results
The results follow Tesla’s solid June performance in China.

Tesla China saw 12,300 new vehicle insurance registrations in the week of July 7-13, marking a 145% increase from the prior week’s 5,010 registrations. The surge seems to be bolstered by strong domestic demand for Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles, the Model Y crossover and the Model 3 sedan.
The results follow Tesla’s solid June performance in China, where it sold over 71,000 vehicles wholesale and introduced minor upgrades to its long-range variants.
Model Y leads weekly registrations
Of the 12,300 vehicles registered for insurance last week, more than 9,400 were Model Y crossovers and over 2,800 were Model 3 sedans, as noted in a CNEV Post report. Both vehicles are built at Tesla’s Giga Shanghai, which serves as the electric vehicle maker’s primary vehicle export hub.
Tesla introduced minor upgrades to the long-range Model 3 and Model Y on July 1. The Model 3 received a slight price increase, while Model Y pricing remained unchanged. This suggested that the Model Y is seeing continued consumer interest in the domestic Chinese market.
June sales reflect stable domestic demand
According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla delivered 71,599 vehicles in June. That’s a 0.83% year-over-year increase from June 2024 and a 16.12% jump from May. Of those, 61,484 units were sold locally, marking the second-highest domestic monthly total this year after March’s 74,127 units.
However, exports declined in June, with 10,115 vehicles shipped abroad, down 13.89% from the 11,746 vehicles exported a year ago and 56.16% from the 23,074 that were exported in May. The export dip suggests a stronger domestic focus last month, potentially driven by local promotions or strategic inventory shifts.
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