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Tesla Semi rival Nikola throws shade, claims $8 billion in pre-orders, 100% reservation refunds
Tesla Semi rival Nikola Motors recently threw some shade at the Elon Musk-led company, stating that it will be refunding 100% of the reservations placed for its hydrogen-electric trucks and boasting that it had already received over $8 billion worth of pre-orders. Nikola also included what appears to be a pointed statement about Tesla’s finances, stating that it would not use its reservation holders’ money to operate its business.
Nikola’s bold declarations were posted on the company’s official Twitter account. According to the company’s tweets, Nikola customers could now reserve their trucks — the sleeper semi-truck Nikola One and the day cab Nikola Two — at zero cost. The startup also promised that refunds for those who have already placed reservations for their vehicles would be processed within 60 days.
“Great news! All reservations will be refunded 100%, and you won’t lose your place in line. We don’t use your money to operate our business. We want everyone to know we have never used a dollar of deposit money in the history of our company. All deposits will be refunded < 60 days.
“You can now reserve a Nikola One or Two without any deposit at https://nikolamotor.com/motor. With over 8+ billion in pre-order reservations, who needs deposits anyways!”
- Credit: Nikola Motor
- The Nikola One.
- The Nikola One
Nikola’s statements are very bold, considering that the company is yet to start the production of its hydrogen-electric semi trucks. Earlier this year, Nikola announced its plans to build a $1 billion factory in Phoenix, AZ, which will house facilities that would manufacture its offerings, according to a Fortune report. According to Nikola CEO Trevor Milton, the trucking startup will complete the move to the Phoenix, AZ site by October 2018. Production for the Nikola One and the Nikola Two is estimated to begin in 2021.
Nikola’s hydrogen-electric trucks boast impressive specs. According to the trucking startup, its long-haulers would be able to offer up to 1,000 hp, up to 2,000 ft-lbs of torque, and up to 1,000 miles of range. Unlike the Tesla Semi, however, Nikola’s vehicles are not all-electric. Instead, they would run on hydrogen fuel cells, which, as we noted in a previous report, might give the startup some difficulties when it begins the rollout of its vehicles.
Hydrogen, after all, is usually derived from natural gas. Taking the process back a step or two, natural gas is often the result of fracking, a practice that is quite controversial in terms of its impact on the environment. Fracking, at its worst, can pollute the land and groundwater.
If there’s anything that Nikola can learn from Tesla, it is that producing a vehicle takes a lot of effort and resources. The challenges that Tesla is facing with the production of the Model 3 — a vehicle designed to be simple to build — is a testament to just how complex the manufacturing business really is. Thus, Nikola’s confident Twitter declarations, as well as its seemingly pointed remarks at Tesla, might end up as a case of premature hubris for the trucking startup.
Tesla’s own long-hauler, the Semi, after all, is already testing on public roads. Just last month, Tesla’s Semi prototypes have begun delivering cargo from Gigafactory 1 in Nevada to the Fremont factory in California. Sightings of the long-haulers have also been reported in several places across the country, including St. Louis, MO, Dallas, TX, and more recently, in Des Moines, IA. The production of the Tesla Semi is expected to begin in 2019, giving it a headstart over Nikola’s trucks.
Elon Musk
Tesla Full Self-Driving pricing strategy eliminates one recurring complaint
Tesla’s new Full Self-Driving pricing strategy will eliminate one recurring complaint that many owners have had in the past: FSD transfers.
In the past, if a Tesla owner purchased the Full Self-Driving suite outright, the company did not allow them to transfer the purchase to a new vehicle, essentially requiring them to buy it all over again, which could obviously get pretty pricey.
This was until Q3 2023, when Tesla allowed a one-time amnesty to transfer Full Self-Driving to a new vehicle, and then again last year.
Tesla is now allowing it to happen again ahead of the February 14th deadline.
The program has given people the opportunity to upgrade to new vehicles with newer Hardware and AI versions, especially those with Hardware 3 who wish to transfer to AI4, without feeling the drastic cost impact of having to buy the $8,000 suite outright on several occasions.
Now, that issue will never be presented again.
Last night, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced on X that the Full Self-Driving suite would only be available in a subscription platform, which is the other purchase option it currently offers for FSD use, priced at just $99 per month.
Tesla is shifting FSD to a subscription-only model, confirms Elon Musk
Having it available in a subscription-only platform boasts several advantages, including the potential for a tiered system that would potentially offer less expensive options, a pay-per-mile platform, and even coupling the program with other benefits, like Supercharging and vehicle protection programs.
While none of that is confirmed and is purely speculative, the one thing that does appear to be a major advantage is that this will completely eliminate any questions about transferring the Full Self-Driving suite to a new vehicle. This has been a particular point of contention for owners, and it is now completely eliminated, as everyone, apart from those who have purchased the suite on their current vehicle.
Now, everyone will pay month-to-month, and it could make things much easier for those who want to try the suite, justifying it from a financial perspective.
The important thing to note is that Tesla would benefit from a higher take rate, as more drivers using it would result in more data, which would help the company reach its recently-revealed 10 billion-mile threshold to reach an Unsupervised level. It does not cost Tesla anything to run FSD, only to develop it. If it could slice the price significantly, more people would buy it, and more data would be made available.
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Tesla Model 3 and Model Y dominates U.S. EV market in 2025
The figures were detailed in Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report.
Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y continued to overwhelmingly dominate the United States’ electric vehicle market in 2025. New sales data showed that Tesla’s two mass market cars maintained a commanding segment share, with the Model 3 posting year-to-date growth and the Model Y remaining resilient despite factory shutdowns tied to its refresh.
The figures were detailed in Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report.
Model 3 and Model Y are still dominant
According to the report, Tesla delivered an estimated 192,440 Model 3 sedans in the United States in 2025, representing a 1.3% year-to-date increase compared to 2024. The Model 3 alone accounted for 15.9% of all U.S. EV sales, making it one of the highest-volume electric vehicles in the country.
The Model Y was even more dominant. U.S. deliveries of the all-electric crossover reached 357,528 units in 2025, a 4.0% year-to-date decline from the prior year. It should be noted, however, that the drop came during a year that included production shutdowns at Tesla’s Fremont Factory and Gigafactory Texas as the company transitioned to the new Model Y. Even with those disruptions, the Model Y captured an overwhelming 39.5% share of the market, far surpassing any single competitor.
Combined, the Model 3 and Model Y represented more than half of all EVs sold in the United States during 2025, highlighting Tesla’s iron grip on the country’s mass-market EV segment.
Tesla’s challenges in 2025
Tesla’s sustained performance came amid a year of elevated public and political controversy surrounding Elon Musk, whose political activities in the first half of the year ended up fueling a narrative that the CEO’s actions are damaging the automaker’s consumer appeal. However, U.S. sales data suggest that demand for Tesla’s core vehicles has remained remarkably resilient.
Based on Kelley Blue Book’s Q4 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Sales Report, Tesla’s most expensive offerings such as the Tesla Cybertruck, Model S, and Model X, all saw steep declines in 2025. This suggests that mainstream EV buyers might have had a price issue with Tesla’s more expensive offerings, not an Elon Musk issue.
Ultimately, despite broader EV market softness, with total U.S. EV sales slipping about 2% year-to-date, Tesla still accounted for 58.9% of all EV deliveries in 2025, according to the report. This means that out of every ten EVs sold in the United States in 2025, more than half of them were Teslas.
News
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y earn Euro NCAP Best in Class safety awards
“The company’s best-selling Model Y proved the gold standard for small SUVs,” Euro NCAP noted.
Tesla won dual categories in the Euro NCAP Best in Class awards, with the Model 3 being named the safest Large Family Car and the Model Y being recognized as the safest Small SUV.
The feat was highlighted by Tesla Europe & Middle East in a post on its official account on social media platform X.
Model 3 and Model Y lead their respective segments
As per a press release from the Euro NCAP, the organization’s Best in Class designation is based on a weighted assessment of four key areas: Adult Occupant, Child Occupant, Vulnerable Road User, and Safety Assist. Only vehicles that achieved a 5-star Euro NCAP rating and were evaluated with standard safety equipment are eligible for the award.
Euro NCAP noted that the updated Tesla Model 3 performed particularly well in Child Occupant protection, while its Safety Assist score reflected Tesla’s ongoing improvements to driver-assistance systems. The Model Y similarly stood out in Child Occupant protection and Safety Assist, reinforcing Tesla’s dual-category win.
“The company’s best-selling Model Y proved the gold standard for small SUVs,” Euro NCAP noted.
Euro NCAP leadership shares insights
Euro NCAP Secretary General Dr. Michiel van Ratingen said the organization’s Best in Class awards are designed to help consumers identify the safest vehicles over the past year.
Van Ratingen noted that 2025 was Euro NCAP’s busiest year to date, with more vehicles tested than ever before, amid a growing variety of electric cars and increasingly sophisticated safety systems. While the Mercedes-Benz CLA ultimately earned the title of Best Performer of 2025, he emphasized that Tesla finished only fractionally behind in the overall rankings.
“It was a close-run competition,” van Ratingen said. “Tesla was only fractionally behind, and new entrants like firefly and Leapmotor show how global competition continues to grow, which can only be a good thing for consumers who value safety as much as style, practicality, driving performance, and running costs from their next car.”


