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Tesla Model 3 drivers found to be most satisfied car owners in US and Europe

Credit: lourencovc/Instagram

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A recent study published by online driver education resource Zutobi has revealed that Tesla Model 3 drivers are the most satisfied car owners in the United States and Europe. Zutobi was able to come to this conclusion by analyzing owner feedback from review sites Parkers, HonestJohn, AutoTrader, and Edmunds.

Tesla gets quite a bit of flak among reviewers, with Edmunds in particular commonly criticizing the company’s vehicles for their features and quirks on social media. Yet despite this, owners still seem to love their Teslas, with the company being the brand with the highest owner ratings.

Overall, the study ranked Tesla as the automaker with the higher owner ratings with an impressive average score of 4.53. Following Tesla was Land Rover, which had a score of 4.3, and Mazda, which also had a 4.3 score. Interestingly enough, Mercedes-Benz, a German automaker known for its luxury vehicles, was among the companies with the lowest average owner ratings with a score of 3.75.

Tesla’s owner satisfaction among its consumers was particularly evident in the Model 3 sedan, which was ranked by Zutobi as the vehicle with the highest owner rating in the United States and Europe. The Model 3 received a stellar average rating of 4.53 points, showing that most consumers who purchase the Model 3 love the all-electric sedan, despite its tech-focused automated features and nonconventional aspects.

The Model 3’s individual ratings among owner review sites were particularly impressive. Owners at Parkers gave the vehicle an average rating of 4.6, drivers on AutoTrader gave the Model 3 a 4.5 score, and owners on Edmunds gave an average score of 4.0. Tesla owners in HonestJohn were even more positive about the vehicle, with the Model 3 getting a 5.0 score among the site’s users.

What is interesting is that the Model 3 is not even expected to be Tesla’s best-selling car at all. That honor goes to the Model Y, which Tesla CEO Elon Musk believes is capable of eventually becoming the world’s best-selling car by both revenue and volume. So far, Musk’s prediction seems feasible, as the Model Y became California’s top-selling SUV and truck in 2021.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Elon Musk

Tesla ‘activist shareholders’ sue company and Elon Musk for Robotaxi rollout

Tesla’s activist shareholders are coming after the company, claiming it misled investors about the Robotaxi rollout.

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Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer | X

Tesla’s “activist shareholders” seem to be one of the biggest threats to the company and its CEO, Elon Musk, who has spoken extensively about them in recent times. They’re up to their latest bit of work against the company, suing both Tesla and Musk, accusing them of securities fraud by alleging they concealed “significant risk” over the Robotaxi launch in Austin, Texas.

On Monday night, a group of shareholders sued Tesla and Musk in a proposed class action lawsuit in Texas federal court. They claim Tesla misled investors about the safety of the vehicles used in the Robotaxi rollout in Austin, which started on June 22.

The suit indicates that videos show the vehicles “speeding, exhibiting sudden braking, driving over a curb, entering the wrong lane, and dropping passengers off in the middle of multilane roads.” Reuters first reported on the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs are seeking damages for shareholders between April 19, 2023, and June 22, 2025.

Tesla’s Robotaxi platform has been operating for less than two months, and the company has already expanded its geofence in Austin twice.

In the roughly six weeks that Robotaxi has been operational, Tesla has only had one incident reported to the Austin Government, and it was a “Safety Concern” in June 2025. Since July 2023, which is when autonomous vehicle operation began in Austin, 130 incidents have been reported. AV Ride, Cruise, Waymo, and Zoox also operate in Austin.

Waymo has the most incidents with 73. Its first was in June 2024 when a unit blocked traffic.

Activist Shareholders

Musk has warned that activist shareholders are potentially dangerous to both Tesla and his position as CEO. He recently spoke about them during the Q2 Earnings Call regarding his stake in the company:

“That is a major concern for me, as I’ve mentioned in the past. I hope that is addressed at the upcoming shareholders meeting. But, yeah, it is a big deal. I want to find that I’ve got so little control that I can easily be ousted by activist shareholders after having built this army of humanoid robots. I think my control over Tesla, Inc. should be enough to ensure that it goes in a good direction, but not so much control that I can’t be thrown out if I go crazy.”

Tesla’s Board yesterday made an attempt to help secure Musk’s stake by offering him a massive 96 million share pay package of restricted stock. It will only help his stake in the company bump up slightly to 14.6 percent from 12.9 percent.

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Radical Tesla aero patent may make new Roadster’s ~1-sec 0-60 mph launch feasible

The patent is for a multi-mode active aero system that uses fans and deployable skirts to generate controllable downforce.

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Credit: @SmokeAwayyy/X

A radical new patent from Tesla has provided a potential hint at a technology that the electric vehicle maker can utilize to meet the new Roadster’s ambitious 0-60 mph targets. If the technology outlined in the patent does come into fruition, it could help the Roadster stay planted on the ground even as it executes extremely rapid and demanding driving maneuvers.

The Roadster’s 0-60 mph time

When the new Roadster was announced way back in late 2017, Elon Musk stated that the upcoming vehicle would have a 0-60 mph time of 1.9 seconds. This was impressive, but the new Roadster has become so late that this metric is no longer industry-leading. Even Tesla’s own Model S Plaid, a large and heavy family sedan, can now hit a 0-60 mph time in 1.99 seconds, all for a price that starts just under $100,000.

Back in February 2024, Elon Musk stated that Tesla “radically increased the design goals for the new Tesla Roadster.” He stated that there will never be another car like the Roadster, if it could even be called a car. Musk also added that Tesla is now looking to achieve a 0-60 mph time in less than one second with the new Roadster, though this would be the “least interesting part” of the vehicle.

Inasmuch as a 0-60 mph time of 1 second or less sounds insane, these figures are achieved by vehicles like top fuel dragsters, which could accelerate well under 1 second. Of course, these vehicles are specialized machines and not road legal by any means, so the Roadster would still be in a class of its own if Tesla does manage to achieve a sub-1-second 0-60 mph time.

Tesla’s new aero patent 

A new patent from Tesla has now outlined a technology that could be a perfect fit for the upcoming all-electric supercar. Tesla’s patent is for a multi-mode active aero system that uses fans and deployable skirts to generate controllable downforce. This should pave the way for optimal vehicle grip and performance across varying conditions, from the track to the drag strip.

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Tesla describes the patent’s technology as follows: 

“The system operates by creating bounded (e.g., sealed or partially-sealed) regions beneath the vehicle through the selective deployment of skirts that interact with the ground surface. Fans positioned in airflow pathways that extend to these bounded regions generate low pressure within these areas by extracting air, creating downforce that enhances vehicle grip and stability (e.g., by creating a vacuum, or partial vacuum in the bounded regions).”

If Tesla could indeed create a fully bounded region under the new Roadster using the technology outlined in the patent, the company could all ensure that the all-electric supercar always has perfect traction when it launches. It could also help the vehicle handle better in corners, which would be useful if the Roadster were to attempt setting records in tracks such as the Nurburgring.

Check out Tesla’s patent below.

Tesla Roadster Patent by Simon Alvarez on Scribd

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Elon Musk

Tesla’s new Robotaxi geofence shape is an FU by Elon Musk to the competition

Maybe it’s all pareidolia. But maybe it’s not. After all, Tesla embraced the first geofence expansion for what it appeared to be.

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tesla austin robotaxi geofence and elon musk laugh from meme review

Tesla expanded its Robotaxi geofence in Austin once again early Sunday morning. The new shape seems to be somewhat of a proverbial, and potentially literal, middle finger to the competition.

If you thought the first expansion was a message to the competition and doubters of the company’s ride-hailing service, you probably will believe the second expansion is an even stronger gesture.

Tesla’s first expansion did not go unnoticed, as its shape was particularly recognizable. The company has always operated with a sense of humor, and it embraced what it did. Some, including me, took it as a message to competitors: We can expand in any direction, in any size, at any time. We’ll prove it.”

They picked a shape and went with it:

Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion wasn’t a joke, it was a warning to competitors

It is evident that Tesla is keeping its humor up to continue to show a few things. The first is that it really can expand in any direction it wants and that’s how it is choosing to show it.

The second, well, maybe it’s an edgier way to show doubters that it is really executing on Robotaxi:

Maybe it’s all pareidolia. But maybe it’s not. After all, Tesla embraced the first geofence expansion for what it appeared to be. This might be a similar occurrence, and it might be sending another message to the competition, critics, and doubters.

The expansion was a near-doubling of the geofence Tesla offered previously. After the initial geofence covered just about 20 square miles, Tesla was able to more than double it to 42 square miles with the first growth. This new geofence shape was just under double, and is about 80 square miles.

Tesla’s rapid expansion has impressed many, especially considering the service area has roughly doubled for the second time in well under two months. The Robotaxi service was first offered on June 22.

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