News
Should Tesla Take Ford and GM’s “Tesla-beater” Seriously?
Ford and GM have claimed they could build a Tesla-beater as of late, but whether this holds any merit or something to be scoffed at remains to be seen.
Ford Tesla-beater Threat
Although we can theoretically see this happening much further down the road, as battery technology matures and EVs as a whole become the norm, the reality is still not that clear. Ford has certainly shown in the past that it can be a competitive threat when they pour enough money into an endeavor. Such is the case in the early 1960’s when Ford beat its Ferrari rivalry with the legendary GT40. However, a mass-production, consumer viable EV with long range capabilities is exponentially more difficult to execute on – something Elon Musk has long said.

Ford Focus Electric (Photo credit: Ford Motor Company)
Ford’s ‘Power of Choice’ strategy was designed to give consumers a choice of powertrain ranging from gasoline engines, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and full battery electric vehicles. Unfortunately, the only battery electric vehicle Ford offers is the Focus Electric. As to deciphering Ford’s Tesla-beater claim, the devil is in the details. Ford claims it is capable of making a bigger electric sedan than the Focus Electric. Ford Motor Company CEO, Mark Fields speaks about the Tesla Model S: “We drove it. We took it apart. We put it back together and we drove it again.” Ford could feasibly use the Fusion global platform and turn it into an EV. The problem lies not in the platform, but in the choice of battery and assembly.
Can GM Deliver a Tesla Model III-beater?
GM has also come out to boldly claim that it can offer Tesla a competitor for the upcoming Model III, according to HybridCars. Reportedly, a 2016 $30,000 range-extended GM car will benefit from improved batteries through lessons learned from its Voltec platform. But bare in mind that GM just revealed its much improved next-generation Volt will sport a larger gasoline powered onboard generator. Did you catch it? GM’s Tesla-beater is an extended range electric plug-in hybrid (PHEV). GM feels Tesla’s well educated EV buyers might be swayed with a PHEV, but we feel this would be better competition for the BMW i3 Rex, extended range EV than a battery electric Tesla. C’mon guys, let’s compare apples to apples.
GM and Ford Versus the Tesla Motors Philosophy
It is this type of news that keeps us writers writing, but the real comparison is not in powertrain platforms, but in design philosophies. Tesla designed its Model S completely in-house, with very little outsourcing, including the battery pack assembly. Detroit carmakers design their platforms and outsource most parts. Carmakers still treat battery assembly and the final pack as an outsourced commodity, unlike Tesla Motors. That is the crucial difference.
At this stage, the famous Gandhi quote comes to mind: “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” Whether Ford and GM can offer a Tesla-beater besides saying they are capable remains to be seen beyond quotes.
News
Tesla teases new market entrance with confusing and cryptic message
Tesla teased its entrance into a new market with a confusing and what appeared to be cryptic message on the social media platform X.
The company has been teasing its entrance into several markets, including Africa, which would be a first, and South America, where it only operates in Chile.
In September, Tesla started creating active job postings for the Colombian market, hinting it would expand its presence in South America and launch in a new country for the first time in two years.
The jobs were related to various roles, including Associate Sales Manager, Advisors in Sales and Delivery, and Service Technicians. These are all roles that would indicate Tesla is planning to launch a wide-scale effort to sell, manage, and repair vehicles in the market.
Last night, Tesla posted its latest hint, a cryptic video that seems to show the outline of Colombia, teasing its closer than ever to market entry:
— Tesla North America (@tesla_na) November 12, 2025
This would be the next expansion into a continent where it does not have much of a presence for Tesla. Currently, there are only two Supercharger locations on the entire continent, and they’re both in Chile.
Tesla will obviously need to expand upon this crucial part of the ownership experience to enable a more confident consumer base in South America as a whole. However, it is not impossible, as many other EV charging infrastructures are available, and home charging is always a suitable option for those who have access to it.
Surprisingly, Tesla seems to be more concerned about these middle-market countries as opposed to the larger markets in South America, but that could be by design.
If Tesla were to launch in Brazil initially, it may not be able to handle the uptick in demand, and infrastructure expansion could be more difficult. Brazil may be on its list in the upcoming years, but not as of right now.
News
Tesla expands crucial Supercharging feature for easier access
It is a useful tool, especially during hours of congestion. However, it has not been super effective for those who drive non-Tesla EVs, as other OEMs use UI platforms like Google’s Android Auto or Apple’s iOS.
Tesla has expanded a crucial Supercharging feature that helps owners identify stall availability at nearby locations.
Tesla said on Tuesday night that its “Live Availability” feature, which shows EV owners how many stalls are available at a Supercharger station, to Google Maps, a third-party app:
Live availability of Superchargers now in Google Maps pic.twitter.com/DJvS83wVxm
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) November 11, 2025
Already offering it in its own vehicles, the Live Availability feature that Teslas have is a helpful feature that helps you choose an appropriate station with plugs that are immediately available.
A number on an icon where the Supercharger is located lets EV drivers know how many stalls are available.
It is a useful tool, especially during hours of congestion. However, it has not been super effective for those who drive non-Tesla EVs, as other OEMs use UI platforms like Google’s Android Auto or Apple’s iOS.
Essentially, when those drivers needed to charge at a Supercharger that enables non-Tesla EVs to plug in, there was a bit more of a gamble. There was no guarantee that a plug would be available, and with no way to see how many are open, it was a risk.
Tesla adding this feature allows people to have a more convenient and easier-to-use experience if they are in a non-Tesla EV. With the already expansive Supercharger Network being available to so many EV owners, there is more congestion than ever.
This new feature makes the entire experience better for all owners, especially as there is more transparency regarding the availability of plugs at Supercharger stalls.
It will be interesting to see if Tesla is able to expand on this new move, as Apple Maps compatibility is an obvious goal of the company’s in the future, we could imagine. In fact, this is one of the first times an Android Auto feature is available to those owners before it became an option for iOS users.
Apple owners tend to get priority with new features within the Tesla App itself.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s Boring Co goes extra hard in Nashville with first rock-crushing TBM
The Boring Company’s machine for the project is now in final testing.
The Boring Company is gearing up to tackle one of its toughest projects yet, a new tunnel system beneath Nashville’s notoriously tough limestone terrain. Unlike the soft-soil conditions of Las Vegas and Austin, the Music City Loop will require a “hard-rock” boring machine capable of drilling through dense, erosion-resistant bedrock.
The Boring Company’s machine for the project is now in final testing.
A boring hard-rock tunneling machine
The Boring Company revealed on X that its new hard-rock TBM can generate up to 4 million pounds of grip force and 1.5 million pounds of maximum thrust load. It also features a 15-filter dust removal system designed to keep operations clean and efficient during excavation even in places where hard rock is present.
Previous Boring Co. projects, including its Loop tunnels in Las Vegas, Austin, and Bastrop, were dug primarily through soft soils. Nashville’s geology, however, poses a different challenge. Boring Company CEO and President Steve Davis mentioned this challenge during the project’s announcement in late July.
“It’s a tough place to tunnel, Nashville. If we were optimizing for the easiest places to tunnel, it would not be here. You have extremely hard rock, like way harder than it should be. It’s an engineering problem that’s fairly easy and straightforward to solve,” Davis said.
Nashville’s limestone terrain
Experts have stated that the city’s subsurface conditions make it one of the more complex tunneling environments in the U.S. The Outer Nashville Basin is composed of cherty Mississippian-age limestone, a strong yet soluble rock that can dissolve over time, creating underground voids and caves, as noted in a report from The Tennessean.
Jakob Walter, the founder and principal engineer of Haushepherd, shared his thoughts on these challenges. “Limestone is generally a stable sedimentary bedrock material with strength parameters that are favorable for tunneling. Limestone is however fairly soluble when compared to other rack materials, and can dissolve over long periods of time when exposed to water.
“Unexpected encounters with these features while tunneling can result in significant construction delays and potential instability of the excavation. In urban locations, structures at the ground surface should also be constantly monitored with robotic total stations or similar surveying equipment to identify any early signs of movement or distress,” he said.
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