After being awarded 5-Star Safety Ratings from the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP), the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), and the US’ National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Tesla Model 3 is heading towards another set of crash tests, this time from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a nonprofit group funded by car insurers dedicated to reducing the number of accidents and injuries on the road.
The schedule for the Tesla Model 3’s impending crash tests were announced by the IIHS on Wednesday through its official Twitter account. The IIHS later shared an image of the vehicle that it will use for its crash tests: a blue Model 3 with black interior and 18″ wheels. The organization added that next week’s test will include a side crash test.
Interestingly, the vehicle that the IIHS will use for its upcoming crash tests does not seem to be the same Model 3 that was used when the group conducted preliminary safety tests on the vehicle last year. It should be noted that in May 2018, the IIHS has performed preliminary safety tests on a red Long Range Model 3 RWD, which was the only available variant of the electric sedan at the time.
The results were impressive then, with the group giving the Model 3 a “Superior” score for front crash prevention in its crash avoidance and mitigation category. This was primarily due to the Model 3’s suite of safety features, including its low-speed autobrake, and its high-speed autobrake systems. Nevertheless, the electric sedan did not receive a flawless rating from the IIHS in its preliminary tests, due to the Model 3’s low beams exhibiting a 15.2% glare during straightaways.
This rating was eventually adjusted and raised in December 2018, when the IIHS announced on Twiter that the Model 3’s headlights, which were improved and updated by Tesla, have been given a “Good” rating. The organization noted in its December announcement that the Model 3 headlights’ higher rating was reflective of electric sedans that were produced after June 2018.
Tesla has rolled out improvements to the Model 3 since the IIHS’ latest update on the vehicle last December. Considering that the IIHS’ teaser on Twitter featured what appeared to be a separate car from the Model 3 it tested last year, the group could very well be evaluating a newer build of the electric car. Hopefully, this is the case, as this would allow the IIHS to provide a safety rating on the Model 3 that is especially accurate of vehicles that are being produced today.
This could ultimately bode well for Tesla and its midsize electric sedan. As noted by Elon Musk, improvements to the company’s vehicles are rolled out as soon as they are ready. Thus, the Model 3 that the IIHS will be testing next week will likely feature improvements over the Model 3 that the group tested in May 2018 and December 2018 (provided that the vehicle was a newer build, of course). The results of the safety group’s tests next week will likely hold the answer.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner in Los Angeles dominated the company’s global usage rankings after just one year, proving the concept is more than just a one-off novelty location that will fade away.
The performance could incite the company to build more locations, something that CEO Elon Musk has hinted at for some time.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner delivered 21.2 GWh of energy in its first year of operation, the company’s head of Charging, Max de Zegher, revealed on X. Of the top 10 most utilized Supercharger locations in Tesla’s global infrastructure, the Diner in Los Angeles was the most used by drivers, and it wasn’t particularly close:
Tesla Diner opened exactly 1 year ago. Inspiring that futuristic places like this exist.
It’s our highest usage Supercharger in the world: 21.2 GWh delivered in a year, 1.6k sessions/day.
Top 10 Superchargers by energy delivered: https://t.co/9YvJ8lw696 pic.twitter.com/koB3AUJHws
— Max (@MdeZegher) July 21, 2026
On its launch day one year ago, nobody was too sure what the Tesla Diner would be about. It seemed like an interesting concept, and considering it had been in the works for years, it was a highly anticipated launch that many were looking forward to.
Based on its success, we could see additional Diners with Superchargers built throughout the United States, and potentially beyond. Musk has said on several occasions that the company would be willing to bring the Diner idea to more markets.
Tesla makes major change at Supercharger Diner amid epic demand
Of the markets that Musk has mentioned, both Palo Alto and Austin have come to be perceived as ideal selections. However, there are no concrete plans as of now to build new Supercharger Diners anywhere; the location on Santa Monica Boulevard will remain the exclusive spot to pick up Tesla-inspired eats, at least for the time being.
Tesla short sellers won big following the company’s massive fall on Wall Street after it reported subpar Earnings on Wednesday.
Tesla short sellers collected about $4.12 billion in single-day profits on Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Shares fell as much as 15 percent during Thursday’s session. It closed as one of the worst days for Tesla on Wall Street in the past three years.
Investors sold off the stock after Tesla said it would aggressively direct its spending toward AI and its Optimus robot project. The company had record revenues, which were driven by one of the strongest quarters in terms of vehicle deliveries in company history.
However, it missed EPS estimates by reporting just $0.33, a far cry from the $0.53 analysts expected.
S3 Partners reported that about 3 percent of Tesla’s outstanding stock is sold short. Managing Director at S3, Ihor Dusaniwsky, provided the short seller’s potential profit, as well as another figure: shorts have likely had paper gains of $8.92 billion this year, as Tesla shares are down 30 percent in 2026.
Tesla (TSLA) Q2 2026 earnings results: miss on EPS, beat on revenue
Tesla has burned short sellers many times in the past, but the company’s latest Earnings Call was a chance for those skeptics to taste some payback. Although the company gave some very transparent information regarding future projects, the rollout of Robotaxi, Optimus, and Semi, many investors took their profits on Thursday.
Notable short sellers like Michael Burry have been transparent about their skepticism around Tesla shares. Burry just revealed three weeks ago that he had opened up a new short on the stock, stating he shorted Tesla shares at $416.22. “Happy it jumped back to this level,” he said in a blog post.
At the time of publication, Tesla shares were down about 3 percent and the stock was trading at $309.92.
Tesla’s long-standing saga regarding its door handles and a manual release has entered its latest chapter, and as a result, a big change is coming.
On Friday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) denied Tesla’s petition that was seeking a defect investigation into roughly 180,000 Model 3 vehicles for an issue involving the emergency mechanical door release.
🚨 The NHTSA denied a petition from Tesla that would have thrown out concerns regarding its door handles.
NHTSA said Tesla’s petition did not present evidence of a safety-related defect warranting an investigation. The agency said a rulemaking process would be a better strategy. pic.twitter.com/j6PzUBM1mT
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 24, 2026
NHTSA said that Tesla’s petition did not present evidence of a safety-related defect in the door handles or their emergency releases. Instead, the agency determined that it would rather solve the issue of the lack of labeling or location of emergency mechanical door releases and the federal safety rules that govern them.
Essentially, the NHTSA wants to create and enforce rules that would require automakers to make emergency door latch releases more clearly labeled in a car. Despite a Tesla having manual door releases on all four passenger doors, many people do not know they exist or how they work.
Tesla addresses door handle complaints with simple engineering fix
In recent times, Tesla has faced some criticism involving its door handles, specifically because some occupants have reported that they are unable to exit their vehicles after losing power. The door handles on a Tesla are electronically operated, but in the event that the 12V battery dies, there is a manual release that can be used.
The NHTSA only identified a single complaint involving the mechanical door releases: a 2022 Model 3 owner said the release was concealed and unlabeled after the vehicle lost power after a front-end collision. It has also already started to create a separate rulemaking process to make emergency door-egress systems more obvious.
It should be noted that all Teslas have mechanical emergency door releases, but they are placed in various locations as the vehicles have aged and been redesigned from year to year. Refer to the safety manual for your vehicle if you have any confusion about where the emergency releases are and how they work.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner probably just secured more locations
Tesla short sellers win big after shares fall after earnings
