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In our highway fuel-economy testing, a Tesla Model S Long Range Plus went 320 miles at an average speed of 75 mph. This is the first EV that’s broken the 300-mile barrier in our range testing. The Long Range Plus model has the same 100.0-kWh battery pack as its predecessors, such as the Model S 100D, which went 270 miles in the same test. Tesla unlocked the extra range with a series of efficiency-minded modifications to the rest of the car.In the five years since we started conducting a 200-mile highway fuel-economy test, we’ve had the pleasure and inconvenience of running the test on a wide array of EVs. The test involves an out-and-back loop of a 100-mile stretch of interstate taken at a cruise-controlled 75 mph. Often, a highway fuel economy test of an EV involves a shortened loop and a lot of nail-biting on the part of whichever test driver has been assigned to the task. But when we recently got our hands on a Tesla Model S Long Range Plus, the scene was different. No shortened loop, no nerves. We had to lengthen the course instead, notching 320 miles at 75 mph, the best result of any EV yet.

The Model S Long Range Plus was a flash in the pan of Tesla’s lineup. Announced in June 2020 with an EPA-estimated 402 miles of range, it’s already off the menu as Tesla prepares for the launch of the Model S Long Range, Plaid, and Plaid Plus, which promise 412, 390, and more than 520 miles of range, respectively (not to mention claims of sub-two-second zero-to-60-mph times for the Plaids). But even if it’s destined to be quickly overshadowed by an even more impressive sibling, the lucky few who bought a Long Range Plus while it was available should take heart in knowing that, for now, they’re driving the only EV on the road that could actually beat certain gas cars in a range battle. The Model S Long Range Plus would tie in a range war with a Mustang Shelby GT500, which earned 20 mpg during our highway fuel-economy test and has a 16-gallon fuel tank. And that’s only if the driver of the GT500 could resist the siren call of the Predator V-8 and stick to a 75-mph cruise. At the 320-mile mark, the low fuel light would probably be on in a Jeep Renegade, which earned 29 mpg on our test but has a 360-mile range between fill-ups. The Model S Long Range Plus has a 100.0-kWh battery, the same capacity of its predecessors such as the 2018 Model S 100D, which had 335 miles of range according to the EPA methodology and went 270 miles in our highway range test. Tesla eked out 67 extra miles of EPA range by employing a number of efficiency measures, including shaving weight from the car’s interior, adding model-specific aerodynamic wheels and tires, and making tweaks to the electric motor. Those changes also helped us go 422.7 miles in a different Long Range Plus during a test in which we drove at 65 mph instead of the 75 mph we use for our highway fuel-economy test. We’re eager to get our hands on a Model S Plaid Plus, as it claims nearly 30 percent more range, but the launch of that trim has been delayed until the middle of next year, so the Long Range Plus should hold our EV highway range crown for a while.
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The Torsus Praetorian is an off-road bus that can hold up to 35 people.It uses a heavy-duty MAN truck chassis and a six-cylinder diesel engine.Prices range from the equivalent of $185,000 and go up to around $445,000.What vehicle would be best suited for the apocalypse? The typical answers tend to feature rugged trucks or SUVs. But what if you need to move more people?This could be the bus for the end times. Built in Slovakia, the Torsus Praetorian is able to carry up to 35 occupants further into the wilderness than almost anything else thanks to its combination of a bus body with the underpinnings of an off-road truck. Using a heavy-duty MAN chassis, four-wheel drive, and a six-cylinder diesel engine, Torsus claims it can climb a 33 degree incline and wade through water up to three feet in depth.

Torsus

Designed to haul personnel through the world’s toughest environments, the Praetorian uses a 6.9-liter MAN D08 turbodiesel engine which makes 286 horsepower and 849 pound-feet of torque and a nine-speed ZF automatic transmission. It can operate in rear-drive mode, or the front axle can be engaged. There is also a front differential lock, although selecting this restricts the front wheels’ steering angle. Torsus claims a 32 degree approach angle, 26 degree departure angle, and minimum ground clearance of 13.4 inches beneath the axles. Fully laden, the Praetorian’s maximum possible weight is a substantial 29,550 pounds—and it also has a standard 62-mph speed limiter. Given the forces involved, that’s probably sensible.Torsus is particularly proud of the Praetorian’s air conditioning system, which has been extensively tested in environments as hot as Australia’s Great Sandy desert. The company says it can reduce the temperature in the cabin from 140 Fahrenheit to 85 Fahrenheit in just three minutes, and down to 68 Fahrenheit in under 15 minutes—all while carrying a full load of 35 occupants. The system can also provide addition cooling to the engine in extreme situations, like trying to climb sand dunes. A similarly powerful heating system and the bus’s insulation are designed for Arctic conditions.

Torsus

The Torsus Praetorian has been on sale since 2018, but new innovations for 2021 include LED lighting, a power-operated door that incorporates pneumatic footsteps, and an automatic fire suppressant system for the 79 gallon fuel tank and underhood area. While designed primarily for industrial and military use, the Praetorian is available in various configurations, from bus to what the Torsus refers at as a “Command Center.” There’s even the chance for adventurous millionaires to buy overland camping versions, or alternatively to commission their own build based on the stripped-out entry level version. Prices start at the equivalent of $185,000 for the bare-bones version and rise to $445,000 for the top-spec Expedition. Sadly, the Praetorian isn’t federalized for sale in the U.S.
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Bring a Trailer is running an auction for the last Plymouth vehicle ever built, a 2001 Neon LX that rolled off the line in June 2001.The Neon in question is a single-owner car with 68 miles showing on the digital odometer.There’s no reserve, but as of Monday evening, the bidding stood at $10,250. The auction ends on May 10 at 2:15 p.m. Eastern time. We’ll update this story with the final selling price.If you’ve got several thousand dollars and a particular taste for pristine examples of objectively boring cars, have we got a car for you. Bring a Trailer (with which Car and Driver shares a parent company) is running an auction for the last Plymouth car ever built, a 2001 Neon. Hagerty reports that the car was custom ordered by Darrell Davis, who was then senior vice-president of parts and service for DaimlerChrysler. The car’s digital odometer has only recorded 68 miles of travel, and it’s currently based in Florida, safe from the salty winters of its Midwestern birthplace.

The Neon is in the LX trim. It has a silver exterior and a black leather interior, and it’s packed with options including wood-grain trim, a sunroof, and an in-dash CD changer. It has front-wheel drive and a five-speed manual transmission, and it’s powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine.

Bring a Trailer

Davis drove the car off the Belvidere, Illinois, assembly line himself and has saved every conceivable piece of memorabilia for the next owner. That person will take delivery of a banner displayed above the car as it came off the line, a never-installed radio antenna, the original window sticker, and assorted other paperwork and miscellaneous items. The car is stored in a climate-controlled garage, but there’s some corrosion visible on the muffler in the pictures provided to Bring a Trailer.

Bring a Trailer

The 2001 Neon was the second model year of the car’s second generation, and it was also sold as a Dodge in the United States and a Chrysler in other markets. After Plymouth folded on June 29, 2001 (the day after this car was built), Dodge continued building the cars and selling them in the U.S. until 2006.The Neon cost $18,210 when new. That works out to $27,250 in 2021 money. There’s no reserve on the auction, and at press time on the evening of Monday, May 3, the bidding stood at $10,000 after having risen quickly in the afternoon. The auction is scheduled to end on Monday, May 10 at 2:15 p.m. Eastern time. Davis, who says he has owned 160 cars in his life and is now selling the Neon in an attempt to shrink his fleet, is hoping the car will go to someone who can appreciate its place in automotive history.
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Ford and BMW have invested in Colorado-based solid-state battery startup Solid Power.Solid-state batteries are promised to offer greater energy density than the lithium-ion batteries that are currently used in electric vehicles.The upcoming EVs with the new batteries will arrive by 2030. Ford and BMW are investing $130 million in solid-state battery startup Solid Power in a push to reduce the cost and increase the range of their future electric vehicles. Ford initially contributed to an earlier investment round in 2019, and both automakers have joint agreements to use the technology in upcoming electric vehicles that will arrive by 2030. Solid-state batteries, which are not yet being used in mass-market cars, promise to offer greater energy density compared to the lithium-ion batteries typically used in today’s electric vehicles. Solid Power uses sulfide-based cells and promises that its solid electrolyte is not flammable, and it says they deliver more than 50 percent more energy density. The startup produces them using a manufacturing infrastructure similar to that used for lithium-ion battery production.

A BloombergNEF (New Energy Finance) report from December 2020 said that the production costs of manufacturing solid-state batteries could be 40 percent that of current lithium-ion batteries when they reach full-scale production. However, Ford’s chief product platform and operations officer told CNBC that its investment in solid-state batteries is currently “significantly smaller” than for lithium-ion.Solid Power will begin production of the automotive batteries early next year, according to Doug Campbell, CEO and co-founder of Solid Power. They’ll be used for the testing and development of upcoming Ford and BMW vehicles starting then, too. Ford announced last week that it’s opening a $185 million lab called “Ford Ion Park” next year to develop new processes for producing these solid-state battery packs in house. Ford just launched the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover, of which it has sold 6614 so far this year, and the electric F-150 Lightning will arrive next year. BMW currently has the electric i3 on sale in the U.S. and the i4 sedan and iX crossover will arrive soon. It says that its new generation of electric vehicles will launch in the middle of the decade. A prototype car with the technology will be on the road by 2025, BMW says.
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