EV Geek Podcast

This week on The Friday Charge, Joel and Sebastian break down the biggest EV news stories you need to know! Tesla officially unveils the long-awaited Model Y L in the U.S. with six seats, a longer wheelbase, and a premium Launch Edition—but is it worth the price? We also discuss massive Polestar discounts of up to $25,000, Ford's recall of more than 42,000 Mustang Mach-Es, Waymo's expansion into Las Vegas and three additional cities, rumors that Tesla could require Face ID to activate Full Self-Driving, and GM's recall and delivery stop for the Cadillac Vistiq. Join us as we separate the hype from reality and explain what these developments mean for EV buyers and owners.

Think Tesla owns the charging game? Think again. Walmart just doubled its ultra-fast charging network in 60 days, and they’re solving the biggest problem in EV ownership. Here’s how the retail giant is leaving traditional networks in the dust.

Join Joel and Sebastian for The Friday Charge EP92 as we break down the biggest EV news of the week! We discuss Tesla's new FSD Lite rollout for HW3 vehicles, BMW's impressive new iX5 with 435 miles of estimated range and 460kW charging, Electrify America's expanding NACS rollout, Jeep's pricey new Recon EV, and the growing Cybertruck PCS charging issue. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and let us know which story caught your attention most! ⚡

The premium electric SUV segment just got a massive wake-up call. On today's episode, we are diving deep into the massive news out of Munich: the official debut of the first-ever, all-electric 2027 BMW iX5 xDrive60. This isn't a minor refresh. Built on BMW’s dedicated "Neue Klasse" architecture, this luxury family hauler is completely rewriting the rules of highway range and road-trip charging speeds. We’re breaking down the full technical spec sheet, including: • The Structural Secret: How BMW used unique 120mm tall cylindrical cells in a cell-to-pack design to jam a massive 144 kWh usable battery pack under the floor—hitting a targeted 435 miles of EPA range (525 miles WLTP). • Meltdown-inducing Speeds: Why the iX5’s 460 kW peak DC fast-charging rate puts the competition on notice, pulling a 10% to 80% charge in just 22 minutes. • The Engineering Nuance: Why BMW ditched permanent magnets on the rear axle for an electrically excited synchronous motor managed by the 10x faster "Heart of Joy" supercomputer. • The Software-Defined Cockpit: A look at the pillar-to-pillar Panoramic Vision windshield projection and Alexa+ AI automated routines. • The Supply Chain Play: Why building the iX5 and its packs locally in Spartanburg and Woodruff, South Carolina is a genius operational shield against volatile automotive tariffs. Is an $81,250 starting price for a luxury EV with a 435-mile real-world range enough to make you switch your primary family hauler? Plug in, get the numbers, and let’s get into the charge!T

In this episode of The Friday Charge...

- Slate announces pricing

- The Polestar is dead.....in the U.S.

- Lucid layoffs

- Tesla new Supercharger contest

- EA going BIG on charging