Items tagged with model x
In the days of old, a car thief might stick a hanger in car window to unlock the door (or simply smash the glass), hop in, and hot wire the vehicle. Hollywood loves to show this kind of thing, sometimes with wires dangling beneath the steering column, and other times with a screwdriver jammed into the ignition. Trying to steel a Tesla Model X takes more effort, though perhaps not as much as you think, as a security researcher recently demonstrated. Today's vehicles are more reliant than ever on computer systems, and Tesla is at the front of the pack, with its advanced self-driving and other technologies. And like many modern vehicles, keyless entry is a common feature. That is also where the...
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Tesla released its Q4 earnings report this afternoon, and needless to say, the company didn’t disappoint. For starters, it was Tesla’s second straight quarter of profit, coming in at $105 million for Q4 2019. This represented earnings of 56 cents per share for the quarter. However, Tesla posted an annual loss of $862 million, though investors seem unfazed by that figure. Two straight quarters in the black along with a steady increase in EV deliveries has investors rubbing their hands together. Tesla reported deliveries of 112,000 vehicles for Q4 2019, and a total of 367,500 deliveries for all of 2019 (a record for the company). Looking ahead, Tesla says that it will deliver...
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Tesla is famous for its immensely powerful electric cars and their ever-increasing range thanks to advances in battery chemistry, motor design, and software updates. The company is also famous -- for better or worse -- for its Autopilot software, which allows the vehicle to take over the task of driving, and even changing lanes in certain instances. However, new analysis out from Consumer Reports suggests that one subset of Autopilot -- Navigate on Autopilot -- is somewhat half-baked in its current iteration and needs a lot more work. As we've previously reported, Navigate on Autopilot is the latest step towards full autonomy for Tesla vehicles. The feature allows a Model 3, Model...
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When it comes to electric cars, Tesla had a big head start versus traditional automakers when it introduced its first [ground up design] Model S in 2012. It then followed up with the Model X crossover and the Model 3 entry-level sedan. Automakers like Mercedes-Benz have watched as Tesla has increased EV mindshare with the public and is looking to take its own steps into this “green” market with the EQC. Mercedes-Benz first announced the EQC back in September 2018, but the company today announced that the first production models are now rolling off the assembly line in Bremen, Germany. In fact, rather than getting its own bespoke factory, the EQC is being produced at the...
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Range anxiety? What range anxiety? Just as traditional ICE (internal combustion engine) auto manufacturers are attempting to field their own entries into the luxury electric vehicle market, Tesla is moving the goal posts again. The company's EVs already have greater range their new competitors (by a fair margin), and now drivetrain updates are widening the gap even further. Tesla announced this week that it is using a new permanent magnet synchronous reluctance motor -- which has previously seen duty in the Model 3 -- on its Model S sedan and Model X crossover. This could with improvements to its bearings, gear design, lubrication and cooling allow the company to achieve a stunning...
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The automotive world is inching towards fully autonomous rides that can take us where we want to go without driver intervention. Tesla seems to be reaching towards full autonomy faster than competing brands; earlier this month the automaker announced that its Autopilot system could change lanes without driver input. Tesla has now announced that its latest self-driving hardware is available and it's called the Full Self-Driving Computer or FSD. The hardware was formerly known as Autopilot Hardware 3.0. Tesla also clarified that the new FSD is already installed in all new Model S and Model X cars that were built starting around March 20th. The new hardware is also inside many Model 3 vehicles that...
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Tesla is moving one step closer to fully autonomous driving with the latest update to its Autopilot software; more specifically, the optional Navigate on Autopilot feature. With Navigate On Autopilot, you can punch in a destination and while on the highway, the vehicle will autonomously take you to your destination with prompts to commit to lane changes along the way. The way it currently works, if your Tesla wants to make a lane change, the driver must confirm the action before the vehicle proceeds to take the necessary action. The new update allows the car to decide for itself if and when to change lanes automatically – all without driver intervention. Tesla writes: Once enabled,...
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We already know that Porsche is fully committed to electrifying its vehicle lineup. The German automaker has dabbled with hybrid-electric performance vehicles for the past decade, and its first production electric car -- the Taycan -- is expected to be revealed in production form later this year. However, the company today just announced some jaw-dropping news regarding its best-selling vehicle, the Macan. The second-generation Macan, which will go into production early in the next decade, will be electric-only. What makes this move so shocking is that fact that this isn't some low-volume vehicle that Porsche can just "experiment" with. Porsche sold nearly 90,000 units globally...
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Tesla has been making some changes to its pricing strategy over the past week, and the biggest change in quite some time comes today with the premium-market Model S and Model X. CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to announce that the 75 kWh battery pack for both electric vehicles will be discontinued and that customers only have until Sunday night to place orders for vehicles with that battery option. For those that don't keep up with all things Tesla, the Model S 75D with the 75 kWh battery has a base price of $76,000 and can travel up to 259 miles with a full charge. The heavier $82,000 Model X 75D with the 75 kWh battery can travel up to 237 miles per charge. Starting on Monday, Tesla will no longer...
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The luxury electric vehicle sector is starting to heat up, years after Tesla turned the industry on its head with the Model S. Now, the competition is finally fighting back with new EVs of their own, with the latest coming from Nissan's Infiniti. The company first teased its QX Inspiration back in December, and now it has posted two renders of the vehicles from various angles (save for the rear). It's definitely a new design direction for Infiniti and is littered with numerous sharp creases all around. Although it’s a new look for Infiniti, it doesn't break any new design ground in the EV space; however, the grille-less face is a bit unsettling at first. Perhaps the most...
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Tesla is ready to begin testing the next generation self-driving platform, which is called Autopilot Hardware 3.0. While Tesla's current-generation Autopilot 2.0 platform makes uses of NVIDIA hardware, Autopilot Hardware 3.0 will be using custom Tesla-developed AI neural net hardware with vastly superior processing capabilities. According to an internal email obtained by Electrek, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has put out a call to employees to help test Autopilot Hardware 3.0. Musk is looking for "a few hundred" internal participants to basically serve as beta testers for the hardware/software platform. Employees who own a Tesla vehicle, are accepted into the test program, and...
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Ever since the original Model S launched back in 2012, one of the bedrocks of Tesla's forward-looking mission was the inclusion of integrated (and free) in-car internet. This cellular internet connection powers everything from vehicle navigation enhancements, to music streaming, to over-the-air updates that continually provide new functionality to the Tesla EV family. However, it looks as though Tesla has grown tired of giving away its full-fledged internet service to customers and will begin making some changes starting July 1st. We should come right out and clarify that the new policy that takes goes into effect on July 1st doesn't affect current Model S, Model X or Model 3 owners. These...
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BMW has been experimenting with alternative powertrains for quite some time, and has offered vehicle like i8 sports carand the funky i3 whatchamacallit(which is available in fully-electric and range-extending variants). Now, the company is looking to bring an electrified version of its hot-selling X3 crossover to market, and it will be called the iX3. The vehicle debuted in concept for today, and it retains the same basic shape as its gasoline-engined sibling. Most of the changes occur upfront where the twin kidney grille gives way to a version that sort of merges the two together. To our eyes, it reminds us a bit of a KIA grille, but we digress -- it's a false grille anyway given...
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On March 23, a Tesla Model X driver died after his vehicle drifted from its intended driving path and plowed into a concrete highway barrier. A subsequent investigation by Tesla determined that Autopilot was engaged during the time of the crash, and that that driver had not touched the steering wheel for six seconds prior to the collision. As is usually the case with these kinds of incidents, Tesla is off course trying to shift blame away from itself, and in this case is placing it on the deceased driver. This became even more apparent this week as the family of the deceased driver, Walter Huang, is preparing to sue Tesla for negligence in his death. However, Tesla is pushing back strong,...
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Tragedy struck last week for a man and his family in California. The man was driving in his Tesla Model X when the vehicle struck a concrete barrier on Highway 101 near Mountain View -- he died as a result of the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has been investigating to determine if the Autopilot feature was engaged, and now Tesla has now confirmed that it was in fact turned on at the time of the accident. Tesla wrote, "In the moments before the collision, which occurred at 9:27 a.m. on Friday, March 23rd, Autopilot was engaged with the adaptive cruise control follow-distance set to minimum. The driver had received several visual and one audible hands-on warning earlier...
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Tesla is gaining yet another competitor in the electric crossover vehicle realm, and it’s from a well-known brand. Jaguar first revealed its I-PACE concept in late 2016, and today it pulled the wraps off the production version of the vehicle. Unlike most concept-to-production transformations, not much has been lost here with respect to styling on the I-PACE. The vehicle advances Jaguar's current design language and applies it to a lifted four-door "coupe" profile (even though we hate the coupe term when used for anything but a two-door). It's a forward-looking design, without looking somewhat tacky like the Hyundai Kona Electric. On the inside, the futuristic design trends continue...
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Tesla seems to have a lot on its plate these days; the company is humming along with production of the Model S and Model X, while it is struggling to meet production targets for the entry-level Model 3. In addition, the company is taking deposits for its long-haul Semi, while its kickass second-generation Roadster is far along in development. For a relatively small auto manufacturer like Tesla, that would be more than enough to keep busy for the foreseeable future. But Tesla CEO Elon Musk wants more. The overachieving Musk took to Twitter yesterday to inform fans that a Tesla pickup truck is on the way. Yes, you heard that right. I promise that we will make a pickup truck right after Model Y....
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If you are the lucky owner of a Hardware 2.0 (HW2) Tesla Model X or Model S, a new software update is beaming down to your vehicle that enables some new functionality. The Tesla 8.1 software update brings with it a number of updates for the Autopilot 2.0 system and adds some UI improvement for the vehicles’ massive display screens. With respect to Autopilot 2.0, many of the features simply bring functionality to parity with the first-generation Autopilot system. Tesla has improved Autosteer, which now allows the vehicle to steer on the highway at speeds up to 80 mph (previously, the limit was 45 mph). For safety reasons, Tesla says that your hands must remain on the wheel at all times with...
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Tesla recently brought some New Year’s joy to owners of recently-delivered Model S and Model X EVs. CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to announce that brand new Autopilot software for HW2 vehicles has been pushed out to roughly 1,000 vehicles. In case you were wondering, HW2 stands for Hardware 2.0, which includes all the necessary hardware for full self-driving capabilities. All vehicles made since October are HW2-compliant. Tesla described HW2 in October, writing: Eight surround cameras provide 360-degree visibility around the car at up to 250 meters of range. Twelve updated ultrasonic sensors complement this vision, allowing for detection of both hard and soft objects at nearly twice the distance...
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We often hear about everything that goes wrong when it comes to Tesla’s Autopilot system that is featured on the Model S and Model X (and soon, the Model 3). But what about when it gets everything right and helps to avoid an accident? Avoiding an accident might be a common occurrence for Autopilot, but what about when it predicts an imminent crash — two cars ahead of you? That is exactly what happened in The Netherlands. You can see a Tesla Model X cruising along in the left lane, while the vehicle directly in front of it is speeding along seemingly oblivious to what is taking place ahead. However, the Model X sees all, and predicts that the traffic ahead is coming to a stop. What happens next...
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If you’re the current owner of a Tesla Model S or Model X electric vehicle (EV), consider yourself lucky. If you manage to take delivery before the end of the year, you will have also dodged a bullet — you still have free lifetime access to Tesla’s Supercharger Network. But in a rather disappointing turn of events for future Tesla owners, the global Supercharger Network will no longer be completely free to use for new EV purchases made after January 1st, 2017. Tesla is hoping to make this bitter pill a little easier to swallow by giving new buyers 400 kWh of free Supercharging credits annually. This is equivalent to roughly 1,000 miles of emissions-free driving. Once that 400 kWh is exhausted,...
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Tesla has announced updates to its autonomous driving capabilities, with the company stating that all of its new vehicles produced from this point forward have the necessary hardware for “full self-driving capability at a safety level substantially greater than that of a human driver.” This puts the scope of this system even beyond current implementations of Autopilot and is fully complaint with Level 5 autonomy. The new hardware included to help drive these capabilities includes new forward-facing radar (which can see through rain and fog) and 8 cameras that provide a full 360-degree view of the vehicle’s surroundings at a distance of up to 250 meters. In addition, there are 12 ultrasonic sensors...
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