UPDATE: Tesla CEO Elon Musk did confirm that the Fremont Factory was shut down for two days due to parts shortages. Fremont restarted operation yesterday, Musk said.
Fremont shut down for two days (parts shortages) & restarted yesterday
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 25, 2021
Tesla has halted its Model 3 production line at its California production plant, known more commonly as the Fremont factory, from February 22nd to March 7th, a report indicates.
Someone familiar with the matter indicated that Model 3 lines would be shut down for approximately two weeks, with the halt beginning this past Monday and lasting until Sunday, March 7th. The person who gave this information wished to remain anonymous.
The report from Bloomberg indicated:
“Staff on a Model 3 production line in Fremont were told their line would be down from Feb. 22 until March 7, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The workers were told they would be paid for Feb. 22 and Feb. 23 and not paid for Feb. 28, March 1, 2 and 3. They were advised to take vacation time, if they had it.”
The reasoning for the production halt is still unknown at this point. However, growing speculation over a shortage in semiconductors worldwide seems to be the primary reason, but it hasn’t been confirmed. During the Q4 2020 Earnings, Tesla did admit that there was a shortage and that it was “working extremely hard to manage” the situation moving forward. Tesla’s CFO, Zachary Kirkhorn, said that the shortage could cause non-permanent consequences for the automaker.
Kirkhorn said:
“Specifically for Q1, our volumes will have the benefit of early Model Y ramp in Shanghai, However, S and X production will be low due to the transition to the newly architected products. Additionally, we’re working extremely hard to manage through the global semiconductor shortage as well as port capacity, which may have a temporary impact. We will continue to invest heavily in supercharging and service capacity while driving reductions on cost, including open as a percentage of revenue. Global demand continues to outpace production, and we’re moving as quickly as we can with a focus on the long term.”
The Model 3 line at Fremont is responsible for producing Tesla’s most popular car. The all-electric sedan combines affordability with performance and adequate range ratings to offer consumers some of the best bang-for-your-buck EV features available on the market today. Additionally, Tesla has been refining Fremont for years, working on adding new production lines, updating equipment, improving upon some facilities inside the plant, and expand the overall footprint of the factory to allow for more widescale production.
Tesla files to expand Fremont factory, make Model Y ‘tent’ permanent
The Fremont Factory still is Tesla’s most robust performer in terms of production output. The company’s figures suggest around 600,000 vehicles annually can be built at the facility in Northern California: 500,000 of them being Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. The remaining 100,000 are Model S and Model X cars, which CEO Elon Musk has said in the past are still built for “sentimental reasons.”
Cybertruck
Tesla clears the air on Cybertruck ‘deactivation’ video that is obviously fake
Tesla has cleared the air on the viral video, stating it is fake.
Tesla has cleared the air regarding a video that has been circulating, where the owner claims his Cybertruck was “deactivated” by the company while he was driving.
The video was shared on X and showed a driver pulled over on the side of the road, claiming his Cybertruck had been deactivated by Tesla in the middle of traffic. It is very obviously fake to those who know the company, but these kinds of things have a tendency to pick up steam.
This video is going viral of a Cybertruck “de-activated” in the middle of the road. What’s wild is a lot of people are believing it. People’s hate for Tesla and Elon Musk seems to shadow their critical thinking skills.
It’s likely a YouTube video or something just playing on… pic.twitter.com/HJr00Umjbu
— Jeremy Judkins (@jeremyjudkins_) August 11, 2025
The video shows a screen that says:
“Tesla Cybertruck De-Activated. Critical Issue Detected | Contact Customer Service, Comply with Cease & Desist to Re-Activate. Update Failed, Return to Dealer.”
The same person who posted the video also shared an image of what appears to be a Cease and Desist letter from Tesla, but it is also likely fake:
He also claims Tesla sent him a cease and desist letter because he made a song titled Cybertruck or something like that.
That’s why the error message in the video mentions a cease and desist. 🤣 pic.twitter.com/1zdtGApEfj
— Jeremy Judkins (@jeremyjudkins_) August 11, 2025
The company finally responded to the video on Monday afternoon, stating that the video is, in fact, fake, reiterating that it will not disable vehicles remotely for any reason.
This is fake – that’s not our screen.
Tesla does NOT disable vehicles remotely. https://t.co/QFOLG74AJI
— Tesla (@Tesla) August 11, 2025
It is a shame that these types of things happen, especially as people are prone to believe anything they see on the internet. As there is so much misinformation circulating surrounding Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk, it is no surprise that someone would leverage the situation for their own benefit.
If that Cease and Desist letter is not real, perhaps the next one might be. These types of things can truly cause damage to a company’s reputation, and someone getting an idea that Tesla would remotely deactivate a car could prevent them from buying one.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk is stepping up for Tesla Service in a big way
Elon Musk has stepped up to resolve a handful of customer issues regarding vehicle service.
Elon Musk is stepping up to help customers in a big way, especially when they are having issues with Tesla’s Service.
Perhaps one of the biggest advantages Tesla owners have is access to Musk through X, his social media platform. Over the years, we’ve seen Tesla add features, refine its cars’ performance, and more, all through asking Musk directly through a post.
Now, Musk is stepping up in another way by resolving a few Service complaints that customers had.
The first occurred last week when a recall on a Tesla battery was not honored by Service. The company sought $30,000 for a replacement and labor, which was not right. Musk responded that he would personally investigate the matter. The vehicle was fixed at no cost as it was a recall, and was ready for pickup the next day.
A Tesla story in four parts. 👏
Pretty nuts that the user in that second post is the CEO of a trillion-dollar company. pic.twitter.com/5VhXLka5s8
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 8, 2025
It also revealed a new strategy Tesla is using to combat service communication issues:
Tesla creates clever solution to simplify and improve its Service
The next occurred with a Cybertruck owner who was in Japan. Their car was parked at an airport in the U.S. and had lost a vast majority of its state of charge, leaving them just fifty miles of range at the time.
Musk reached out to the owner and said Service will take care of the car and will investigate the cause of the battery drain:
This is strange. Tesla service will take care of your car and we will find out why this happened and fix it.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 8, 2025
There are not too many companies out there where the CEO will get involved with individual issues like these. It’s pretty exclusive to Tesla, as Musk has commonly stepped up to resolve complaints with vehicles or to confront features that some owners might find useful.
Service has been a weak point of the company for some time, but it has worked to refine and resolve customer complaints by building more Service Centers across the world that can handle these issues.
Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirms Robotaxi is opening to the public: here’s when
Anyone will be able to request a Tesla Robotaxi in September, Elon Musk said this morning.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that the company’s Robotaxi platform is opening to the public, and he even gave a timeline for when anyone will be able to access one for a ride.
Tesla’s Robotaxi platform launched to a small group on June 22 in Austin, Texas. The company has continued to expand the number of riders and its geofence over the past month and a half.
Additionally, it launched rides in the Bay Area of California, but it differs slightly, as the Texas Robotaxi platform does not utilize a Safety Monitor in the driver’s seat. In California, the monitor sits in the driver’s seat.
As the geofence, service areas, and testing populations expand, Tesla fans are awaiting their elusive emails that enable their ability to use the Robotaxi platform. It now seems that the email will come soon, as Musk said Tesla will open up public access to Robotaxi next month:
It will be open access next month
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 11, 2025
Tesla has been prioritizing safety over anything else with the launch of the Robotaxi platform, which is why it has been slow to push invitations to new riders. It is confident in the abilities of the platform and its Full Self-Driving suite, which has been proven with data.
However, even a single accident could set Tesla back years in terms of its development of self-driving cars. It is not a risk it is willing to take.
Musk said during the recent Q2 Earnings Call:
“We need to make sure it works when the vehicles are fully under our control. It’s kind of one step at a time here. We don’t want to jump the gun. As I said, we’re being paranoid about safety. But I guess next year is I’d say confidently next year. I’m not sure when next year, but confidently next year, people would be able to add or subtract their car to the Tesla, Inc. fleet.”
As the platform will expand in Austin and the Bay Area for anyone, Tesla still continues to reiterate that Robotaxi will be available for everyone sometime next year, as Musk said in the quote above.
Things will continue to improve over time, and Tesla will likely expand its geofence in both regions in the coming weeks. It has already done that in Austin twice, with about a doubling in size occurring both times.
Tesla clears the air on Cybertruck ‘deactivation’ video that is obviously fake
Elon Musk is stepping up for Tesla Service in a big way
Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirms Robotaxi is opening to the public: here’s when
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