Rumors have recently emerged from China suggesting that Tesla is looking to tap Switzerland’s Bühler as another Giga Press supplier. Similar to IDRA, Bühler is also a manufacturer of large-scale die-casting machines.
The rumor was initially shared by Tesla and EV industry watcher Chris Zheng on Twitter. Citing information from employees of a Chinese car startup, Zheng noted that China would have a number of vehicles in mass production next year that will be using integrated die castings like the Tesla Model Y. These companies reportedly benchmark and analyze Tesla and its vehicles.
“Tesla’s Giga press supplier will be replaced from Italy’s IDRA to Switzerland’s Bühler next year. The latter is also one of the world’s 6 largest die-casting giants. It rejected Tesla’s demand for a 6000t-level Giga press in 2019, but now their products offer better performance,” Zheng wrote on Twitter.
This is undoubtedly a rumor for now, though it is one that is extremely interesting. Teslarati has reached out to Tesla for a comment on the rumor and will update this story if or when we receive a response.
While the idea of IDRA being replaced by Bühler may sound too extreme, it is possible that Tesla would tap the resources of another die casting machine maker for its upcoming vehicle production ramp. Bühler is an interesting choice nonetheless, especially since the company was one of the firms that rejected Tesla’s proposal for a 6,000-ton Giga Press a few years ago.
Elon Musk himself mentioned this during the Cyber Rodeo event. According to Musk, Tesla had approach the world’s six top die-casting machine makers, and all but IDRA considered the construction of a Giga Press. Tesla has since proven that Giga Presses work, however, so it’s not surprising to see other companies also trying their hand at creating Giga Press-level machines.
“It’s a revolution in car manufacturing to basically make a car out of three major parts — a cast rear, a structural pack, and a cast front. So what you’re looking at are the biggest casting machines ever made. It’s kind of crazy thing to make a car this way. It’s never been done before.
“When we were trying to figure this out, there were six major casting manufacturers in the world. We called six. Five said’ no,’ one said ‘maybe.’ I was like ‘that sounds like a yes.’ So with a lot of effort and great ideas from the team, we’ve made the world’s biggest casting machine work very efficiently to create and radically simplify the manufacturing of the car,” Musk said.
A look at Bühler’s official website shows that the company is also developing giant die-casting machines that offer the highest productivity.
“Automotive manufacturers are currently rethinking production in many ways. Our Carat series enables them to put their ideas of even larger parts into reality, and we support our customers in developing the processes to do so. We see a huge increase in the demand for ever larger machines. With our Carat 840 and Carat 920 we can offer our customers solutions for large structural parts with complex geometries and new body-in-white parts,” Cornel Mendler, Managing Director of Bühler Die Casting, said.
Bühler’s Carat 840 and Carat 920 machines feature locking forces of up to 92,000 kilonewtons (kN). They are also designed to produce as little scrap as possible. “Bühler’s vision for the future of the die casting industry is: 0% scrap, 40% less cycle time, and 24/7 uptime. Advancing further towards this vision is even more important: The larger the castings, the bigger the lever to minimize production costs by reducing scrap, cycle time and increasing uptime of the die-casting system. The design of the Carat 840 and Carat 920 positively impact the quality of these complex, thin-walled parts which require an extremely powerful and accurate injection unit and a homogenous locking force application,” the company wrote in a press release.
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Elon Musk
California city weighs banning Elon Musk companies like Tesla and SpaceX
A resolution draft titled, “Resolution Ending Engagement With Elon Musk-Controlled Companies and To Encourage CalPERS To Divest Stock In These Companies,” alleges that Musk “has engaged in business practices that are alleged to include violations of labor laws, environmental regulations, workplace safety standards, and regulatory noncompliance.”
A California City Council is planning to weigh whether it would adopt a resolution that would place a ban on its engagement with Elon Musk companies, like Tesla and SpaceX.
The City of Davis, California, will have its City Council weigh a new proposal that would adopt a resolution “to divest from companies owned and/or controlled by Elon Musk.”
This would include a divestment proposal to encourage CalPERS, the California Public Employees Retirement System, to divest from stock in any Musk company.
A resolution draft titled, “Resolution Ending Engagement With Elon Musk-Controlled Companies and To Encourage CalPERS To Divest Stock In These Companies,” alleges that Musk “has engaged in business practices that are alleged to include violations of labor laws, environmental regulations, workplace safety standards, and regulatory noncompliance.”
It claims that Musk “has used his influence and corporate platforms to promote political ideologies and activities that threaten democratic norms and institutions, including campaign finance activities that raise ethical and legal concerns.”
If adopted, Davis would bar the city from entering into any new contracts or purchasing agreements with any company owned or controlled by Elon Musk. It also says it will not consider utilizing Tesla Robotaxis.
Hotel owner tears down Tesla chargers in frustration over Musk’s politics
A staff report on the proposal claims there is “no immediate budgetary impact.” However, a move like this would only impact its residents, especially with Tesla, as the Supercharger Network is open to all electric vehicle manufacturers. It is also extremely reliable and widespread.
Regarding the divestment request to CalPERS, it would not be surprising to see the firm make the move. Although it voted against Musk’s compensation package last year, the firm has no issue continuing to make money off of Tesla’s performance on Wall Street.
The decision to avoid Musk companies will be considered this evening at the City Council meeting.
The report comes from Davis Vanguard.
It is no secret that Musk’s political involvement, especially during the most recent Presidential Election, ruffled some feathers. Other cities considered similar options, like the City of Baltimore, which “decided to go in another direction” after awarding Tesla a $5 million contract for a fleet of EVs for city employees.
News
Tesla launches new Model 3 financing deal with awesome savings
Tesla is now offering a 0.99% APR financing option for all new Model 3 orders in the United States, and it applies to all loan terms of up to 72 months.
Tesla has launched a new Model 3 financing deal in the United States that brings awesome savings. The deal looks to move more of the company’s mass-market sedan as it is the second-most popular vehicle Tesla offers, behind its sibling, the Model Y.
Tesla is now offering a 0.99% APR financing option for all new Model 3 orders in the United States, and it applies to all loan terms of up to 72 months.
It includes three Model 3 configurations, including the Model 3 Performance. The rate applies to:
- Model 3 Premium Rear-Wheel-Drive
- Model 3 Premium All-Wheel-Drive
- Model 3 Performance
The previous APR offer was 2.99%.
NEWS: Tesla has introduced 0.99% APR financing for all new Model 3 orders in the U.S. (applies to loan terms of up to 72 months).
This includes:
• Model 3 RWD
• Model 3 Premium RWD
• Model 3 Premium AWD
• Model 3 PerformanceTesla was previously offering 2.99% APR. pic.twitter.com/A1ZS25C9gM
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 15, 2026
Tesla routinely utilizes low-interest offers to help move vehicles, especially as the rates can help get people to payments that are more comfortable with their monthly budgets. Along with other savings, like those on maintenance and gas, this is another way Tesla pushes savings to customers.
The company had offered a similar program in China on the Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, but it had ended on January 31.
The Model 3 was the second-best-selling electric vehicle in the United States in 2025, trailing only the Model Y. According to automotive data provided by Cox, Tesla sold 192,440 units last year of the all-electric sedan. The Model Y sold 357,528 units.
News
Tesla hasn’t adopted Apple CarPlay yet for this shocking reason
Many Apple and iPhone users have wanted the addition, especially to utilize third-party Navigation apps like Waze, which is a popular alternative. Getting apps outside of Tesla’s Navigation to work with its Full Self-Driving suite seems to be a potential issue the company will have to work through as well.
Perhaps one of the most requested features for Tesla vehicles by owners is the addition of Apple CarPlay. It sounds like the company wants to bring the popular UI to its cars, but there are a few bottlenecks preventing it from doing so.
The biggest reason why CarPlay has not made its way to Teslas yet might shock you.
According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Tesla is still working on bringing CarPlay to its vehicles. There are two primary reasons why Tesla has not done it quite yet: App compatibility issues and, most importantly, there are incredibly low adoption rates of iOS 26.
Tesla’s Apple CarPlay ambitions are not dead, they’re still in the works
iOS 26 is Apple’s most recent software version, which was released back in September 2025. It introduced a major redesign to the overall operating system, especially its aesthetic, with the rollout of “Liquid Glass.”
However, despite the many changes and updates, Apple users have not been too keen on the iOS 26 update, and the low adoption rates have been a major sticking point for Tesla as it looks to develop a potential alternative for its in-house UI.
It was first rumored that Tesla was planning to bring CarPlay out in its cars late last year. Many Apple and iPhone users have wanted the addition, especially to utilize third-party Navigation apps like Waze, which is a popular alternative. Getting apps outside of Tesla’s Navigation to work with its Full Self-Driving suite seems to be a potential issue the company will have to work through as well.
According to the report, Tesla asked Apple to make some changes to improve compatibility between its software and Apple Maps:
“Tesla asked Apple to make engineering changes to Maps to improve compatibility. The iPhone maker agreed and implemented the adjustments in a bug fix update to iOS 26 and the latest version of CarPlay.”
Gurman also said that there were some issues with turn-by-turn guidance from Tesla’s maps app, and it did not properly sync up with Apple Maps during FSD operation. This is something that needs to be resolved before it is rolled out.
There is no listed launch date, nor has there been any coding revealed that would indicate Apple CarPlay is close to being launched within Tesla vehicles.
California city weighs banning Elon Musk companies like Tesla and SpaceX
Tesla launches new Model 3 financing deal with awesome savings
