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Tesla Model 3 protects owner from unsafe air even without Bioweapon Defense Mode
Amidst the ongoing threat of the California wildfires, a Tesla Model 3 owner has posted a brief demonstration of the electric sedan’s capability to maintain the air quality inside its cabin, despite the vehicle not being equipped with the Model S and X’s hospital-grade HEPA filter or a dedicated “Bioweapon Defense Mode.”
Elon Musk took to Twitter last week to offer the Model S and Model X as vehicles that can be used to transport people away from the ongoing CA wildfires. The Model S and X are capable of scrubbing the air inside the car, thanks to their large HEPA filters that are fitted with separate acid and alkaline gas neutralization layers. Later social media updates and anecdotes from Model S and X owners driving through the CA area indicate that Bioweapon Defense Mode helped maintain the air quality inside their vehicles.
In a follow-up tweet, Elon Musk noted that the Model 3’s air filtration system is not on the same “hospital-grade” level as that of the Model S and X, since the smaller vehicle does not have enough space to accommodate the HEPA filtration system in Tesla’s two flagship vehicles. This could be seen in the parts catalog for the vehicles, where the Model X HEPA filter was listed as “FILTER, HEPA, MDL X,” while the Model 3’s system was simply listed as “HVAC, CABIN FILTER, M3.”
If a recent video from a Model 3 owner is any indication, though, the electric sedan, even without a hospital-grade HEPA filter or Bioweapon Defense Mode, is still capable of keeping the air inside its cabin clean. The Tesla owner opted to conduct the Model 3’s air filter test in the San Jose area, which has been affected by the smoke from the Camp Fire (Paradise, CA). Prior to the test, the Model 3 owner recorded a PM2.5 level of up to 135 μg/m3 with the vehicle’s windows down.
Upon closing the windows, the Model 3 owner activated the “recycle air” feature and set the fan speed to 5. Within two minutes, the air inside the electric sedan’s cabin improved to less than 50 μg/m3. Keeping the same settings, the air quality inside the vehicle continued to get better, hitting 5 μg/m3 within nine minutes. For a vehicle with a filter that Elon Musk simply described as “good,” the results of the Model 3 owner’s test were quite impressive on their own right.
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- Air quality readings inside a Tesla Model 3 with “recycle air” on and fan speed set to 5. [Credit: sensohax/YouTube]
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- Air quality readings inside a Tesla Model 3 with the windows down. [Credit: sensohax/YouTube]
A comparison of air quality readings inside the Model 3’s cabin. [Credit: sensohax/YouTube]
It should be noted, though, that when the “recycle air” setting was disabled, the air quality inside the cabin dropped. Within five minutes, the air inside the Model 3 was back to the 75 μg/m3 level. These results are in line with Tesla’s announcement through its official Twitter account last week, when the company advised Model 3 owners to “set manual recirculating air and turn up the blower speed” to get the best air quality inside the electric sedan.
Overall, the findings of the Model 3 owner’s test are to be expected, considering Tesla’s intense focus on vehicle and passenger safety. The Model 3, after all, is among the safest vehicles on the road today, thanks to its all-electric design and its standard safety features like forward collision warning systems, dynamic brake support, crash imminent braking, and lane departure warning features. The Model 3’s suite of cameras and sensors, as well as capabilities like Autopilot, make the electric sedan even safer.
Just last month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration awarded the Model 3 a flawless 5-Star Safety Rating, just like the Model S and X. Based on the NHTSA’s crash test data, Tesla has noted that the Model 3 now holds the distinction of being the vehicle with the lowest probability of injury among all cars that the agency has tested to date. The Model S and Model X immediately follow the Model 3, standing at second and third place.
Watch the Tesla Model 3 protect its occupants from unsafe air in the video below.
Ford is considering a drastic move with its F-150 Lightning, which was the best-selling EV pickup on the market last quarter, beating out Tesla’s Cybertruck.
Ford has had a tumultuous entrance into its more expanded electric vehicle strategy over the past several years. At one point, the company was widely considered to be the most invested legacy automaker in the transition to electrification, but as the company has seen some real backtracking in terms of its sales and demand, it is cooling down its commitment.
At the end of Q3, it seemed to already be considering making some moves to cool off its EV ambitions, especially as the $7,500 EV tax credit was removed and it appeared that consumers would be less attracted to its vehicles without this sizeable discount.
Now, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, Ford is considering scrapping the F-150 Lightning altogether, as one employee said “the demand is just not there.”
Despite it being the best-selling EV pickup in the U.S. last quarter, the sales simply do not match up with the pricing, and financially, it is not the time to try to dive further into a project that is not making a profit. Ford has been dwindling in its commitment to EVs over the past several quarters, and its profits are reflecting a slowing interest in its electric vehicles.
Simply put, Ford’s combustion engine lineup of pickups in the F-Series is, by far, the best-selling division of trucks globally. Ford brought an awesome product forth with the Lightning, a mirror of the gas-powered F-Series that had a variety of trim levels for whatever the truck would be used for by the consumer.
However, the demand and sales have caused Ford to take a loss on its electric truck: figures from early last year indicated it was losing between $100,000 and $132,000 per vehicle.
It is not an official announcement, as Ford has not publicly said anything regarding its plans for the Lightning at this time.
Tesla has tentatively scheduled its unveiling event for the Roadster’s next-generation iteration, and you will not believe the date the company picked for it.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said during the 2025 Annual Shareholders Meeting that the company is aiming for an April 1 demo event.
Yes, April Fools’ Day.
🚨 Tesla’s unveiling event for the Roadster Gen 2 is scheduled for April 1, 2026.
Yes, April Fools’ Day. pic.twitter.com/sw09GUYFPV
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 6, 2025
Tesla originally aimed for its “most epic demo” to take place at the end of this year. However, the writing on the wall as 2025 winds down seemed to indicate the company was not quite ready to show off everything it plans to implement into the Roadster.
Its capabilities have been teased quite heavily throughout most of the year, but the biggest hints came last week when Musk appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience Podcast.
He said:
“Whether it’s good or bad, it will be unforgettable. My friend Peter Thiel once reflected that the future was supposed to have flying cars, but we don’t have flying cars. I think if Peter wants a flying car, he should be able to buy one…I think it has a shot at being the most memorable product unveil ever. [It will be unveiled] hopefully before the end of the year. You know, we need to make sure that it works. This is some crazy technology in this car. Let’s just put it this way: if you took all the James Bond cars and combined them, it’s crazier than that.”
The Roadster has been somewhat of a letdown, at least in its newest version, thus far. Tesla has routinely delayed the project, putting those who put lofty down payments on the car in a weird limbo, lost at what to do.
One notable pre-orderer cancelled his reservation last week and got in a spat with Musk about it.
Now that there is a definitive date for the Roadster unveiling, Musk and Co. should have a more definitive cutoff date for features and capabilities. Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen said earlier this year that when they showed Musk what they had done with the Roadster, the CEO encouraged them to do even more with it.
This delayed things further.
Musk also said he believes production would begin between 12 and 18 months after the unveiling, putting it out sometime in 2027.
Elon Musk
Tesla (TSLA) shareholders officially approve Elon Musk’s 2025 performance award
To earn his landmark pay package, Musk would be required to lift Tesla’s market capitalization from about $1.1 trillion today to $8.5 trillion over the next decade.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has officially approved his 2025 Performance Award, a landmark pay package that could make him the world’s first trillionaire and make Tesla the most valuable company in the world by a mile.
The 2025 CEO Performance Award was officially approved by Tesla shareholders at the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting.
Elon Musk‘s landmark pay package
As per Tesla, more than 75% of the shareholders approved Elon Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award. It was then unsurprising that the approval of Elon Musk’s pay plan received overwhelming applause from the event’s attendees.
The CEO took to the stage with much enthusiasm, welcoming every shareholder to the event and dancing briefly on stage. Optimus also danced on stage smoothly, demonstrating its improved movements to much appause.
Elon Musk’s 10-year targets
To earn his 2025 CEO Performance Award, Musk would be required to grow Tesla’s market capitalization from about $1.1 trillion today to $8.5 trillion over the next decade. At that level, Tesla would surpass every major public company in existence. The compensation plan also requires Tesla’s operating profit to grow from $17 billion last year to $400 billion annually.
Apart from leading Tesla to become the world’s biggest company in history, Musk is also required to hit several product targets for the electric vehicle maker. These include the delivery of 20 million Tesla vehicles cumulatively, 10 million active FSD subscriptions, 1 million Tesla bots delivered, and 1 million Robotaxis in operation.
Ford considers drastic move with F-150 Lightning: ‘The demand is just not there’
Tesla schedules Roadster unveiling event, and you won’t believe when it is
Tesla (TSLA) shareholders officially approve Elon Musk’s 2025 performance award
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