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Texas-made Tesla Model Y with 4680 battery charges 0-97% in under 1 hour

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A Texas-made Tesla Model Y with 4680 battery cells has been able to complete a charging session from 0% to 97% in 52 minutes. 

Tesla advocate Ryan Levenson of The Kilowatts, who maintains several electric vehicles that he rents out on Turo, recently took delivery of a Texas-made Dual Motor Model Y. The vehicle is equipped with the company’s highly-anticipated 4680 battery cells, similar to a Texas-based Model Y purchased by teardown firm Munro & Associates. 

As noted by the Tesla owner on Twitter, he actually drove the Texas-made Model Y until its battery showed 0 miles of range. Posts on social media indicated that the vehicle drove 3 miles beyond its “0 mile” point with seemingly no impact on acceleration. 

Plugging into a Supercharger V3 station, Levenson was expecting to wait a bit in the vehicle until it filled its battery. The Model Y was plugged in at 12:25 a.m. with 0 miles of range remaining, and by 1:17 a.m., the Texas-made crossover was unplugged with 270 miles of range. It should be noted that the Dual Motor Model Y from Texas is listed with a range of 279 miles per charge on a full battery. 

Charging from 0% to 97% in 52 minutes is very impressive, especially considering that the vehicle started its charging session at a time when it was technically “empty.” In later posts, Levenson noted that the Texas-made Model Y’s charging curve is quite interesting, as its charging rate immediately jumped to 250 kW when it was plugged in. This is quite different from previous Teslas, which tend to see a more deliberate increase to 250 kW. 

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Considering the fact that the Texas-made Model Y did not seem to encounter any limiters despite reaching 0 miles, and considering its ability to recharge practically its entire battery pack in less than an hour, it appears that Tesla’s 4680-equipped electric cars have some capabilities and advantages that are not openly discussed by the company. 

When Tesla unveiled its 4680 battery technology at its Battery Day event in 2020, the company made it a point to highlight that its next-generation cells could pave the way for vast production efficiencies, weight savings, and more power. Since then, however, Tesla has been pretty tight-lipped about the actual advantages offered by 4680 cells, especially compared to the 2170 cells used in the Model Y produced in the Fremont Factory and Gigafactory Berlin. 

For Levenson, the recent feat of his Texas-made Model Y suggests that 4680-equipped vehicles have a lot more to offer than what Tesla would suggest for now. In a statement to Teslarati, the EV advocate noted that there is definitely still quite a bit to discover with Tesla’s vehicles. 

“Collecting this data opens more questions for me rather than answering them. Like why was my regenerative braking not limited even when the pack was full and why wasn’t my acceleration limited when I was near empty? For me, it’s indicating that there’s something big we don’t yet know or understand about the 4680 pack. Sure, it’s wishful thinking, but it absolutely could mean there’s more capacity to these new Austin-built Dual Motor Model Ys than Tesla is advertising or letting us access at this time,” he said. 

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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Tesla Robotaxi fleet reaches new milestone that should expel common complaint

There have been many complaints in the eight months that the Robotaxi program has been active about ride availability, with many stating that they have been confronted with excessive wait times for a ride, as the fleet was very small at the beginning of its operation.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Robotaxi is active in both the Bay Area of California and Austin, Texas, and the fleet has reached a new milestone that should expel a common complaint: lack of availability.

It has now been confirmed by Robotaxi Tracker that the fleet of Tesla’s ride-sharing vehicles has reached 200, with 158 of those being available in the Bay Area and 42 more in Austin. Despite the program first launching in Texas, the company has more vehicles available in California.

The California area of operation is much larger than it is in Texas, and the vehicle fleet is larger because Tesla operates it differently; Safety Monitors sit in the driver’s seat in California while FSD navigates. In Texas, Safety Monitors sit in the passenger’s seat, but will switch seats when routing takes them on the highway.

Tesla has also started testing rides without any Safety Monitors internally.

Tesla Robotaxi goes driverless as Musk confirms Safety Monitor removal testing

This new milestone confronts a common complaint of Robotaxi riders in Austin and the Bay, which is vehicle availability.

There have been many complaints in the eight months that the Robotaxi program has been active about ride availability, with many stating that they have been confronted with excessive wait times for a ride, as the fleet was very small at the beginning of its operation.

With that being said, there have been some who have said wait times have improved significantly, especially in the Bay, where the fleet is much larger.

Tesla’s approach to the Robotaxi fleet has been to prioritize safety while also gathering its footing as a ride-hailing platform.

Of course, there have been and still will be growing pains, but overall, things have gone smoothly, as there have been no major incidents that would derail the company’s ability to continue developing an effective mode of transportation for people in various cities in the U.S.

Tesla plans to expand Robotaxi to more cities this year, including Miami, Las Vegas, and Houston, among several others.

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Tesla announces closure date on widely controversial Full Self-Driving program

Tesla has said that it will officially bring closure to its free Full Self-Driving transfer program on March 31, 2026, giving owners until the end of the quarter to move their driving suite to another vehicle with no additional cost.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has officially announced a closure date for a widely controversial Full Self-Driving program, which has been among the most discussed pieces of the driving suite for years.

The move comes just after the company confirmed it would no longer offer the option to purchase the suite outright, instead opting for a subscription-based platform that will be available in mid-February.

Tesla has said that it will officially bring closure to its free Full Self-Driving transfer program on March 31, 2026, giving owners until the end of the quarter to move their driving suite to another vehicle with no additional cost.

After that date, Tesla owners who purchased the FSD suite outright will have to adopt the exclusive subscription-only program, which will be the only option available after February 14.

CEO Elon Musk announced earlier this month that Tesla would be ending the option to purchase Full Self-Driving outright, but the reasoning for this decision is unknown.

However, there has been a lot of speculation that Tesla could offer a new tiered program, which would potentially lower the price of the suite and increase the take rate.

Tesla is shifting FSD to a subscription-only model, confirms Elon Musk

Others have mentioned something like a pay-per-mile platform that would charge drivers based on usage, which seems to be advantageous for those who still love to drive their cars but enjoy using FSD for longer trips, as it can take the stress out of driving.

Moving forward, Tesla seems to be taking any strategy it can to increase the number of owners who utilize FSD, especially as it is explicitly mentioned in Musk’s new compensation package, which was approved last year.

Musk is responsible for getting at least 10 million active Full Self-Driving subscriptions in one tranche, while another would require the company to deliver 20 million vehicles cumulatively.

The current FSD take rate is somewhere around 12 percent, as the company revealed during the Q3 2025 Earnings Call. Tesla needs to bump this up considerably, and the move to rid itself of the outright purchase option seems to be a move to get things going in the right direction.

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Tesla Model Y leads South Korea’s EV growth in 2025

Data from the Korea Automobile and Mobility Industry Association showed that the Tesla Model Y emerged as one of the segment’s single biggest growth drivers.

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Credit: Tesla Malaysia/X

South Korea’s electric vehicle market saw a notable rise in 2025, with registrations rising more than 50% and EV penetration surpassing 10% for the first time. 

Data from the Korea Automobile and Mobility Industry Association showed that the Tesla Model Y, which is imported from Gigafactory Shanghai, emerged as one of the segment’s single biggest growth drivers, as noted in a report from IT Home News.

As per the Korea Automobile and Mobility Industry Association’s (KAMA) 2025 Korea Domestic Electric Vehicle Market Settlement report, South Korea registered 220,177 new electric vehicles in 2025, a 50.1% year-over-year increase. EV penetration also reached 13.1% in the country, entering double digits for the first time. 

The Tesla Model Y played a central role in the market’s growth. The Model Y alone sold 50,397 units during the year, capturing 26.6% of South Korea’s pure electric passenger vehicle market. Sales of the Giga Shanghai-built Model Y increased 169.2% compared with 2024, driven largely by strong demand for the all-electric crossover’s revamped version.

Manufacturer performance reflected a tightly contested market. Kia led with 60,609 EV sales, followed closely by Tesla at 59,893 units and Hyundai at 55,461 units. Together, the three brands accounted for nearly 80% of the country’s total EV sales, forming what KAMA described as a three-way competitive market.

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Imported EVs gained ground in South Korea in 2025, reaching a market share of 42.8%, while the share of domestically produced EVs declined from 75% in 2022 to 57.2% last year. Sales of China-made EVs more than doubled year over year to 74,728 units, supported in no small part by Tesla and its Model Y.

Elon Musk, for his part, has praised South Korean customers and their embrace of the electric vehicler maker. In a reply on X to a user who noted that South Koreans are fond of FSD, Musk stated that, “Koreans are often a step ahead in appreciating new technology.”

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