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Tesla Powerwall thieves discover that stealing six home batteries is a bad idea

(Credit: ProSolarSystems/Facebook)

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5 years ago

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Last Friday, a warehouse owned by ProSolar Caribbean in the Virgin Islands was subjected to a rather strange theft. While its employees were spending time with family for the Thanksgiving weekend, a couple of men broke into the company’s St. Thomas warehouse and stole six Tesla Powerwall home batteries and a Ford SUV. 

Following the theft, ProSolar Carribean proceeded to offer a $10,000 reward to anyone who could provide information that could help retrieve the Powerwalls, which are estimated to cost about $45,000 together. Fortunately for ProSolar, the Powerwall thieves did not seem to be the most competent. 

Footage of the men was recorded by the surveillance system in ProSolar’s warehouse. A detective also found fingerprints on the site. Unbeknownst to the thieves, ProSolar promptly reported the theft to Tesla as well, providing the electric car maker with the serial numbers of the batteries that were stolen. With this in mind, ProSolar partner Brad Spernak noted in a social media post that the thieves were pretty much just harboring a “giant paperweight” in their hands. 

Explaining further, Spernak noted that Powerwalls are sophisticated batteries that could not be operated in a simple manner. The batteries require additional equipment to run, and they are also monitored by Tesla, which provides over-the-air updates as they are released. Powerwalls are not even that valuable to those who salvage parts, since they do not have a lot of copper and valuable metals. Those that attempt to take apart a Powerwall may be out of luck too, since they are high voltage batteries. 

The thieves also stole a 2008 Ford Escape, the oldest vehicle in ProSolar’s fleet and the one that is most prone to breaking down. 

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In a statement to the Virgin Islands Daily News, ProSolar Director of Operations Brian Walden remarked that he received a call from a detective from the VIPD on Tuesday morning informing him that the stolen Powerwalls and SUV have been retrieved. “They told me they recovered the car and the Powerwalls,” he said. 

V.I. Police Commissioner Trevor Velinor, for his part, remarked that while the stolen items have been retrieved, police have not yet made arrests on the case. Velinor noted that an investigation on the matter is still ongoing, though based on what authorities have found so far, it appears that the thieves were familiar with the times when the ProSolar warehouse and a neighboring business would be unoccupied. 

Unfortunately, the Powerwalls that were retrieved have been damaged, and thus, the batteries must now be returned to Tesla for recycling. Part of this is due to the thieves removing the Powerwalls from their boxes and sliding each one on the concrete floor. This resulted in the paint on one side of the batteries being scraped off. 

As for Walden, he noted that he is just glad that the batteries had been retrieved. “The reward was offered partially to recover the material and also to incentivize someone and say, ‘Look, that behavior’s not appropriate.’ So right now, we’re glad to pay the reward, we’re glad that someone stood up and said that’s not right and we’re glad to get the material back, even if it’s not necessarily usable,” he said. 

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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 begins validating Robotaxi in a new area, hinting at expansion

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1 hour ago

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October 14, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is validating Robotaxi in a new area, and as the company has continued to gain some additional permissions to begin testing in new states, it seems its Full Self-Driving-based ride-hailing project is moving toward a larger footprint.

Two Robotaxi units with LiDAR validation equipment were spotted in Gilbert, Arizona, recently, showing that Tesla is aiming to launch its ride-hailing service in the state soon:

Another unit was spotted in Tempe, Arizona:

These types of validation vehicles have been spotted in several areas ahead of their launch as a public ride-hailing service for passengers. Tesla first launched Robotaxi in Austin, Texas, back in late June, and since then, it has expanded to the Bay Area of California.

However, Tesla has continued to attempt to expand Robotaxi to other areas as well, including Nevada and Arizona. It has also been working toward approvals in other states based on job postings, as Tesla is hiring for Autopilot Vehicle Operators in New York and Florida, as well.

The expansion of the Robotaxi ride-hailing service has been an effort that Tesla has been spending a lot of time on over the past few months. CEO Elon Musk said the expansion aims to bring Robotaxi to at least half of the U.S. population by the end of the year, but there is still plenty of work to be done.

Tesla Robotaxi heads to a new major Texas city for the first time

Tesla did make its Robotaxi app public in recent months, allowing more members of the public to experience the suite for themselves, as long as they could get to Austin or the Bay Area.

In the coming months, it seems more apparent that Tesla will take a broader focus on expanding Robotaxi, especially with the fact that these validation vehicles are being spotted throughout different parts of the United States.

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Elon Musk

Tesla mulls revamping $25k car, strange report claims

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3 hours ago

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October 14, 2025

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Credit: Tine Rusc

Tesla is reportedly mulling the potential revamp of its $25,000 vehicle project, a strange report claims.

It seems unlikely, especially since Tesla launched two new, more affordable models last week with the Model 3 and Model Y Standard trims.

However, a report from European media outlet 36kr claims Tesla has started to advance two vehicle projects, internally codenamed E41 and D50, in China.

People familiar with the matter reportedly told the outlet that “some design and verification reports of the new projects are inherited from the current Model Y and Model 3.”

Tesla axed one of the Model Y’s best features in ‘Standard’ trims: here’s why

These new simplified models would be priced between $5,000 and $5,500 cheaper than what the new ‘Standard’ trims cost. The report also claims that these vehicles would be launched only if the new ‘Standard’ models “fall short of sales expectations.”

This report suggests that potentially more affordable models are being offered, but this seems unlikely, considering Tesla launched the two Standard models just last week, and the only truly affordable model it is working on will be the Cybercab.

However, there is potential for a car to launch that undercuts the newest configurations of the Model 3 and Model Y. As of now, it just seems as if it is something that is far-fetched.

When Tesla’s patent for the unboxed process was published just last month, it seemed more than obvious that the vehicle it would be used for was the Cybercab.

The language used in the patent itself was geared toward more streamlined and quality production and manufacturing, which Tesla must implement to meet the likely demand for the vehicle.

It will be easier to scale vehicles with the unboxed process, and the Cybercab has been routinely mentioned with the sub-$30,000 price tag, even by CEO Elon Musk.

He said during the Q3 2024 Earnings Call:

“I think having a regular 25K model is pointless. It would be silly. Like it would be completely at odds with what we believe…It’s fully considered cost per mile is what matters. And if you try to make a car that is essentially a hybrid, manual, or automatic car, it’s not going to be as good as a dedicated autonomous car. So, yes, Cybercab is just not going to have steering wheels and pedals.”

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Elon Musk

SpaceX aces Starship’s 11th launch with success in every mission objective

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4 hours ago

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October 14, 2025

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Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX aces its eleventh Starship test launch on Monday evening, marking the company’s second consecutive takeoff that crossed off each of the planned mission objectives.

It was also the final launch of the V2 Starship rocket. The twelfth test flight will feature the larger V3 Starship rocket, followed by V4, which will eventually make the first trip to Mars.

The launch was overwhelmingly successful. In its 12th test flight, SpaceX was able to achieve every major mission objective, including the second successful deployment of Starlink satellite simulators and the relight of a Raptor engine while in space. The latter achievement demonstrated “a critical capability for future deorbit burns,” the company said.

The ship officially launched at 6:23 p.m. local time in Starbase, Texas, with all 33 engines igniting and sending the Ship to space.

Stage separation occurred just over eight minutes later, and Super Heavy started its descent back to the Gulf of America, where it successfully splashed down. The first part of the launch was complete.

Starlink simulators were deployed about twenty-one minutes after launch, as the Pez dispenser sent the faux-satellites out to space without any issue:

Perhaps the most anticipated part of the launch was with Starship’s banking maneuver and subsequent splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

Prior to Starship 11’s launch and successful re-entry and splashdown, SpaceX had lost a few vehicles during this portion of the previous flights.

However, the company had made tremendous improvements and has now aced two consecutive launches. On Monday, its approach and splashdown were both overwhelmingly successful:

The re-entry phase of this particular Starship launch aimed to gather data on the performance of the heatshield, SpaceX said. The heatshield was intentionally stressed to its limits to determine how much it could withstand without failing.

SpaceX will now turn its focus to the next vehicles, including V3, which is larger, more capable, and will help the company gather even more information about its launches into space:

CEO Elon Musk has said the third-generation Starship rocket will be built and tested by the end of the year.

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