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A handful of Tesla stories have come up in recent weeks that I almost covered, that seemed worth covering, but in the end that just didn’t stimulate enough for a full story. After running across several more stories, I decided I’d just briefly cover them all in a couple of combined articles. This article is focusing on the “good news” Tesla stories.
1. Tesla outsold Audi in 2024
Despite losing sales year over year, for the first time ever, Tesla outsold Audi in 2024. Tesla went from selling slightly fewer vehicles than Audi in 2023 to selling slightly more than Audi in 2024 (1.79 million versus 1.67 million). Of course, since Tesla’s sales dropped, that does mean that Audi’s sales just dropped more. I imagine I would have gotten around to noticing this soon while combing through automaker sales updates, but a nod to Bloomberg for noticing it first.
2. Tesla’s Semi factory is moving along
While it has taken years to get the Tesla Semi from its unveiling to something like serious production, it seems we’re close. The best sign at the moment is expansion at Tesla’s first gigafactory, in Nevada, in order to make space for and tool up for Semi production. You can see the progress in the following drone video:
3. Tesla Semi testing with twin tandem trailers
For seemingly the first time in all these years since the Semi was introduced, it’s been spotted testing with twin tandem trailers. That implies things are indeed progressing and moving along nicely with the Semi and its capabilities or specs could be improving. Perhaps.
Tesla Semi First – Two Tesla semi’s pulling tandem trailers. I see lots of Tesla semi’s around Giga Nevada but this is a first.
Tesla is now testing tandem trailer configuration. Triples are legal in Nevada. Probably won’t be long until we see them testing them. pic.twitter.com/Nnmh2VaVKQ— Zanegler (@HinrichsZane) January 5, 2025
4. Tesla could get more than a billion dollars from other automakers in Europe for carbon credits in 2025
Requirements for automakers to cut emissions are picking up in 2025. As a result, some automakers are expected to need to buy carbon credits, or more carbon credits, from automakers producing a lot of electric vehicles. Naturally, the biggest winner from that is probably going to be Tesla, and some are projecting that Tesla could earn over $1 billion from that this year. Stellantis, Toyota, Ford, Mazda, and Subaru are reportedly planning to pool with Tesla in order to avoid big fines. UBS analysts conclude, “Tesla’s compensation could even exceed €1 billion if it monetizes its entire long CO2 position.” Though, admittedly, details on Tesla’s available carbon credits are hazy, so we don’t really know what 2025 will bring in that regard.
5. Tesla opens parts catalog to public
In a move that should help others, somewhat, to repair Tesla vehicles independently, Tesla has opened up its Electronic Parts Catalog (EPC) to the public. If this rings a bell and feels like very old news, note that Tesla opened up the EPC to Tesla owners a long time ago — but only when it comes to viewing, not purchasing parts. Opening up purchasing finally, somewhat, brings Tesla into the “Right to Repair” arena. However, there are still limits to what can be purchased.
6. Tesla in talks with Austin to test autonomous robotaxis
According to emails obtained by Bloomberg, Tesla is in talks with the city of Austin in Texas to start robotaxi testing there. This matches with what Elon Musk has said previously about the company’s intention to start testing robotaxis in California and Texas in 2025. Of course, that doesn’t mean Tesla “Full Self Driving” (FSD) is close to ready for robotaxi operations — Waymo engaged in testing for years before launching commercial service with passengers. However, it’s a step in that direction at least.
7. Tesla weather radar rolled out
Tesla had the bright idea of showing weather radar on Tesla navigation screens for drivers who want to use that. It initially only rolled out to cars with the AMD Ryzen processor in early December, and then was added for cars with Intel processors a bit later in the month.
Wow, cool feature added to Tesla that I didn’t know was there. Active precipitation map radar. So good to see what is expected on a trip! Calling for freezing rain today and this feature made my day. pic.twitter.com/GpbwfUApeT
— Dave Simek (@davesimek) December 18, 2024
In case you missed this, Tesla’s Weather Radar feature is now available on Intel Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.
Detailshttps://t.co/3w2Z8OVXaC
Video below of the weather radar running on Intel: pic.twitter.com/kecXkoxueV
— Not a Tesla App (@NotATeslaApp) December 20, 2024
Got any other good Tesla news we missed?
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