Lifestyle
Tesla Model 3 sets REFUEL Production GT lap record at Laguna Seca raceway
A Tesla Model 3 equipped with upgraded brake pads and Hoosier slicks set a new Production GT lap record on the famed Laguna Seca Raceway, during the annual REFUEL clean power motorsports event on July 1. The single motor, non-Performance variant of Tesla’s mass-market electric car was able to complete the 2.238 mi (3.602 km) course in 1:48.6, nearly 10 seconds quicker than the 1:57.50 time set by another Model 3 last March, and a split second quicker than previous REFUEL Production GT record set by a Tesla Model S last year.
The Tesla Model 3’s recent feat was shared with Teslarati by car enthusiast and driver Cameron Rogers. According to Cameron, he first drove the Model 3 around the track on the vehicle’s stock tires. In this initial run, he was able to complete the course in 1:54. After changing his tires to racing slicks, however, the vehicle performed considerably better.
As noted by Cameron in a post on the Tesla Motors Club, his modifications to the Model 3 involved a set of Hawk Performance Blue 9012 Racing Brake Pads, Motul Dot 4 Racing Brake Fluid, a set of 18×9.5 Enkei RAIJIN 5×114.3 + 35 Hyper Silver Wheels, and Hoosier A7 slick tires. To provide him with more control during his drive, Cameron opted to disable the vehicle’s wheel speed sensor as well, allowing him to disable stability control and traction control.
The results of the Model 3 run with the Hoosier slicks were notably better, with the compact electric car completing the course in 1:48.6 seconds. Such figures place the non-Performance Long Range RWD Model 3 above records of gasoline vehicles in its class such as the Honda S2000 (1.50.74), BMW Z3 3 (1:50.80), Subaru BRZ (1:51.30), and even a Porsche 911 Carrera (997), which has a record time of 1:51.80, according to results from FastestLaps.com. The Model 3’s 1:48.6 lap places the compact electric car just a hair away from the record set by the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX — a vehicle iconic for its rally pedigree and its legendary 4-cylinder 2.0-liter 4G63 engine. The Evo IX currently has a 1:47.93 record on the Laguna Seca Raceway.
Perhaps even more notable, however, was that the Model 3 was able to complete its laps without running into any overheating issues similar to those exhibited by early Model S’ when driven hard on the track for extended periods of time. According to Cameron, he was able to complete a total of 15 laps around the track during the entire day without any issues.
The Model 3’s recent feat at the Laguna Seca Raceway stands as yet another proof that the compact electric car is capable on the racetrack. Just recently, a Model 3 with upgraded suspension and brakes, finished in first place at the Canadian Sport Compact Series Time Attack series, defeating a Porsche Boxter in the process.
It should be noted, however, that the Model 3 on the road today are not the Performance versions of the electric car. The dual motor Model 3 Performance, a variant of the electric car with a 0-60 mph time of 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph, is expected to be 15% faster on the track than a BMW M3.
Watch the Model 3’s hot lap around the Laguna Seca Raceway in the video below.
Lifestyle
Tesla Semi hauls fresh Cybercab batch as Robotaxi era takes hold
A Tesla Semi was filmed hauling Cybercab units out of Giga Texas for the first time.
A Tesla Semi loaded with Cybercab units was recently filmed leaving Gigafactory Texas, marking what appears to be the first documented delivery run of Tesla’s autonomous two-seater. The footage shows multiple Cybercabs secured on a flatbed trailer being hauled by a production Tesla Semi, a truck rated for a gross combination weight of 82,000 lbs. The location is consistent with Giga Texas in Austin, where Cybercab production has been ramping since February 2026.
The sighting follows a wave of Cybercab activity at the Austin facility. In late April, drone operator Joe Tegtmeyer spotted approximately 60 Cybercabs parked in two organized groups in the factory’s outbound lot, the largest concentration observed to date. Units being staged in an outbound lot is a standard pre-delivery step, and the Semi footage is the logical next frame in that sequence.
En route with @tesla_semi pic.twitter.com/ZfuOjaeLH1
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) May 7, 2026
This is not the first time Tesla has used its own Semi to move Tesla products. When the Semi was unveiled in 2017, Musk noted it would be used for Tesla’s own operations, and over the years Semi prototypes were spotted carrying cargo ranging from concrete weights to Tesla vehicles being delivered to consumers. In 2023, a Semi was photographed transporting a Cybertruck on a trailer ahead of that vehicle’s delivery launch.
The Cybercab itself was first revealed publicly at Tesla’s “We, Robot” event on October 10, 2024, at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, where 20 pre-production units gave attendees rides around the studio lot. Musk stated at the event that Tesla intends to produce the Cybercab before 2027. The first production unit rolled off the Giga Texas line on February 17, 2026, with Musk posting on X: “Congratulations to the Tesla team on making the first production Cybercab.”
Tesla’s annual production goal is 2 million Cybercabs per year once multiple factories reach full design capacity, with the company targeting a price under $30,000 per unit. Tesla has confirmed plans to expand its robotaxi service to seven cities in the first half of 2026, including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas, building on the unsupervised service already running in Austin. Musk has said he expects robotaxis to cover between a quarter and half of the United States by end of year.
Tesla has taken home the “Overall Loyalty to Make” award from S&P Global Mobility for the fourth consecutive year, reinforcing Tesla owners’ willingness to come back. The 2025 awards are based on S&P Global Mobility’s analysis of 13.6 million new retail vehicle registrations in the U.S. from October 2024 through September 2025. The complete list of 2025 winners includes General Motors for Overall Loyalty to Manufacturer, Tesla for Overall Loyalty to Make, Chevrolet Equinox for Overall Loyalty to Model, Mini for Most Improved Make Loyalty, Subaru for Overall Loyalty to Dealer, and Tesla again for both Ethnic Market Loyalty to Make and Highest Conquest Percentage.
Tesla’s streak in this category started in 2022, and the brand has now won the Highest Conquest Percentage award for six straight years, meaning it keeps pulling buyers away from other brands at a rate no competitor has matched. Tesla’s retention among Asian households reached 63.6% and among Hispanic households 61.9%, rates that significantly outpace national averages for those groups. That breadth of appeal across demographics adds a layer of significance to a win that some might dismiss as routine.
The timing matters too. After several consecutive quarters of decline, Tesla’s share of U.S. EV sales jumped to 59% in Q4 2025. That rebound, arriving just as competitors were flooding the market with new models and incentives, suggests Tesla’s loyalty numbers are not simply the result of limited alternatives. Buyers are still choosing it when they have plenty of other options.
What keeps Tesla owners coming back has a lot to do with the and convenience of charging. The Supercharger network is the most straightforward example. With over 65,000 Superchargers globally, it remains the largest and most reliable fast-charging network in the world, and owners who have built their routines around it face a real practical cost when considering a switch. Competitors have made progress, but the consistency, speed, and availability of Tesla’s network is still the benchmark the rest of the industry is chasing. Then there is the software side. Tesla has built a model where the car you own today is functionally different from the car you bought two years ago, through over-the-air updates that add continuous game-changing improvements such as Full Self-Driving that has moved from a driver-assist feature to an increasingly capable autonomous system. For many Tesla owners, leaving the brand means starting over with a car that will not get meaningfully better over time, and that is a trade-off fewer and fewer are willing to make.
Cybertruck
Tesla Cybercab just rolled through Miami inside a glass box
Tesla paraded a Cybercab in a glass display at Miami’s F1 Grand Prix event this week.
Tesla set up an “Autonomy Pop-Up” at Lummus Park in Miami Beach from April 29 through May 3, 2026, embedded within the official F1 Miami Grand Prix Fan Fest. The centerpiece was a Cybertruck towing the Cybercab inside a glass display case marked “Future is Autonomous,” rolling through the beachfront crowd.
Miami is on Tesla’s confirmed list of cities for robotaxi expansion in the first half of 2026, making the promotion a strategic promotion that lays groundwork in a target market.
This was not Tesla’s first time using Miami as a showcase city. In December 2025, Tesla hosted “The Future of Autonomy Visualized” at its Miami Design District showroom, coinciding with Art Basel Miami Beach. That event featured the Cybercab prototype and Optimus robots interacting with attendees. The F1 pop-up this week marks Tesla’s return to Miami and follows a pattern Tesla has been running since early 2026. Just two weeks before Miami, Tesla stationed Optimus at the Tesla Boston Boylston Street showroom on April 19 and 20, directly on the final stretch of the Boston Marathon, letting tens of thousands of runners and spectators meet the robot for free, generating massive earned media at zero advertising cost.
Tesla is sending its humanoid Optimus robot to the Boston Marathon
Tesla has confirmed plans to expand its robotaxi service to seven cities in the first half of 2026, including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas, building on the unsupervised service already running in Austin. Musk has said he expects robotaxis to cover between a quarter and half of the United States by end of year. On the production side, Musk told shareholders that the Cybercab manufacturing process could eventually produce up to 5 million vehicles per year, targeting a cycle time of one unit every ten seconds. Scaling robotaxis to 10 million operational units over the next ten years is a key condition of his compensation package, alongside selling 20 million passenger vehicles.
As for the Cybercab’s price, Musk has said buyers will be able to purchase one for under $30,000, with an average operating cost around $0.20 per mile. Whether those numbers hold through full production remains to be seen.
Cybercab at F1 Fan Fest in Miami
by
u/Joshalander in
teslamotors
Tesla Semi’s official battery capacity leaked by California regulators
Tesla crushes NHTSA’s brand-new ADAS safety tests – first vehicle to ever pass
