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Toyota fuel-cell car in 2014 with 300 mile range and Tesla-competitive price
Toyota’s upcoming fuel-cell powered car will be priced roughly in line with the Tesla Model S, and deliver around 300 miles on a full tank of hydrogen, the company has revealed, ahead of the FCV-R-based vehicle’s debut at the Tokyo Motor Show later this year. The new car, which may be launched under Toyota’s own brand or as a Lexus, will cost in the neighborhood of $50,000 “depending on how big your neighborhood is” US advanced product development VP Chris Hostetter said, Bloomberg reports, with Toyota targeting something “price competitive” with Tesla’s sedan.
The Model S kicks off at $69,900, before any federal tax credits are applied. The start-up, founded by Elon Musk, originally offered a cheaper version, at around $52,400 after credits, but axed the model after discovering that only 4-percent of buyers opted for it in favor of more expensive versions with greater range.
These latest numbers from Toyota are more vague than the Japanese company has been in previous months about the fuel-cell vehicle. Back in May, Toyota said that it would be priced at $50,000 and that it expected to sell around 11,000 each year, as well as suggesting it would be sold as a Lexus.
Now, though, the company declines to forecast sales, and says that it has not finalized model or branding. However, Toyota now says to expect the final decision in time for the Tokyo Motor Show in November 2013, with the production vehicle potentially hitting forecourts as early as 2014 as a 2015-model-year car.
Toyota FCV-R overview:
The advantages to fuel-cells, advocates say, are that they only emit oxygen as a waste product, and can be fueled on hydrogen sourced from water put through an electrolysis process. However, critics point to the fact that, in actuality, most commercial hydrogen is produced from natural gas, undermining some of its eco-friendly credentials. There’s also a requirement for power to actually compress the gas – in the case of Toyota’s FCV-R concept, which the production car will be based on, to 690x normal atmospheric pressure – into the car’s tank.
Perhaps Toyota’s biggest challenge – and one which Elon Musk has highlighted – is infrastructure: so far, although there are a few hydrogen refueling stations in the US, they’re sparse. Unlike an EV, the FCV-R cannot simply be plugged into a regular power outlet for a straightforward (if slow) top-up. Meanwhile, Tesla pushes ahead with its Supercharger network, as well as flirting with even faster battery-replacement systems.
One possibility is that the commercial car will see a markedly staggered release, likely focusing on California – where “hundreds” of fuel-cell vehicles are already in operation, and the highest density of hydrogen refueling stations exist – before feasibility for the rest of the country is ascertained.
VIA Autoblog Green
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Tesla Giga Berlin dispute against IG Metall union leads to investigation
As per a report from rbb24, police seized a laptop belonging to an IG Metall member at Tesla Giga Berlin on Tuesday afternoon.
German authorities have opened an investigation into an IG Metall union representative following allegations that a confidential works council meeting at Tesla’s Gigafactory Berlin was secretly recorded. The probe follows a criminal complaint filed by Tesla management last week.
As per a report from rbb24, police seized a laptop belonging to an IG Metall member at Tesla Giga Berlin on Tuesday afternoon. Prosecutors in Frankfurt (Oder) confirmed that an investigation is underway into a possible unauthorized audio recording of an internal works council meeting.
Under German law, recording a non-public meeting without consent may constitute a criminal offense.
Tesla stated that Gigafactory Berlin employees alerted management after allegedly discovering that an external union representative, who was attending the event as a guest, had recorded the session. Plant manager André Thierig stated in a post on X that the representative was “caught in action,” prompting the company to contact police and file a criminal complaint.
The seized device is now part of the investigation, and authorities will determine whether any unlawful recording had indeed occurred.
IG Metall has denied the accusation. In comments to German media, representatives rejected Tesla’s claim and described the electric vehicle maker’s allegation as an election campaign tactic ahead of upcoming works council elections.
The election at Tesla’s Grünheide plant is scheduled for March 2–4, 2026, with about 11,000 employees being eligible to vote. Regular works council elections in Germany are held every four years between March and May.
The incident comes amid tensions between Tesla and organized labor in Germany. While works councils operate independently from unions, IG Metall has been active at the plant and has previously criticized Tesla’s labor practices. Authorities, for their part, have not yet announced whether charges will be filed, though the investigation remains ongoing.
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Tesla rolls out xAI’s Grok to vehicles across Europe
The initial rollout includes the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain.
Tesla is rolling out Grok to vehicles in Europe. The feature will initially launch in nine European territories.
In a post on X, the official Tesla Europe, Middle East & Africa account confirmed that Grok is coming to Teslas in Europe. The initial rollout includes the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain, and additional markets are expected to be added later.
Grok allows drivers to ask questions using real-time information and interact hands-free while driving. According to Tesla’s support documentation, Grok can also initiate navigation commands, enabling users to search for destinations, discover points of interest, and adjust routes without touching the touchscreen, as per the feature’s official webpage.
The system offers selectable personalities, ranging from “Storyteller” to “Unhinged,” and is activated either through the App Launcher or by pressing and holding the steering wheel’s microphone button.
Grok is currently available only on Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and Cybertruck vehicles equipped with an AMD infotainment processor. Vehicles must be running software version 2025.26 or later, with navigation command support requiring version 2025.44.25 or newer.
Drivers must also have Premium Connectivity or a stable Wi-Fi connection to use the feature. Tesla notes that Grok does not currently replace standard voice commands for vehicle controls such as climate or media adjustments.
The company has stated that Grok interactions are processed securely by xAI and are not linked to individual drivers or vehicles. Users do not need a Grok account or subscription to enable the feature at this time as well.
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Tesla ends Full Self-Driving purchase option in the U.S.
In January, Musk announced that Tesla would remove the ability to purchase the suite outright for $8,000. This would give the vehicle Full Self-Driving for its entire lifespan, but Tesla intended to move away from it, for several reasons, one being that a tranche in the CEO’s pay package requires 10 million active subscriptions of FSD.
Tesla has officially ended the option to purchase the Full Self-Driving suite outright, a move that was announced for the United States market in January by CEO Elon Musk.
The driver assistance suite is now exclusively available in the U.S. as a subscription, which is currently priced at $99 per month.
Tesla moved away from the outright purchase option in an effort to move more people to the subscription program, but there are concerns over its current price and the potential for it to rise.
In January, Musk announced that Tesla would remove the ability to purchase the suite outright for $8,000. This would give the vehicle Full Self-Driving for its entire lifespan, but Tesla intended to move away from it, for several reasons, one being that a tranche in the CEO’s pay package requires 10 million active subscriptions of FSD.
Although Tesla moved back the deadline in other countries, it has now taken effect in the U.S. on Sunday morning. Tesla updated its website to reflect this:
🚨 Tesla has officially moved the outright purchase option for FSD on its website pic.twitter.com/RZt1oIevB3
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 15, 2026
There are still some concerns regarding its price, as $99 per month is not where many consumers are hoping to see the subscription price stay.
Musk has said that as capabilities improve, the price will go up, but it seems unlikely that 10 million drivers will want to pay an extra $100 every month for the capability, even if it is extremely useful.
Instead, many owners and fans of the company are calling for Tesla to offer a different type of pricing platform. This includes a tiered-system that would let owners pick and choose the features they would want for varying prices, or even a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual pricing option, which would incentivize longer-term purchasing.
Although Musk and other Tesla are aware of FSD’s capabilities and state is is worth much more than its current price, there could be some merit in the idea of offering a price for Supervised FSD and another price for Unsupervised FSD when it becomes available.
Tesla Giga Berlin dispute against IG Metall union leads to investigation
Tesla rolls out xAI’s Grok to vehicles across Europe
