autoevolution
 

Cristian Agatie

Contributor
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As a child, he grew up among tractors and heavy machinery and was covered in grease from tip to toe most of the time. It was a tractor that he drove for the first time and when asked what he’d become, he candidly replied: “tractor operator”. Later on, he drove all kinds of vehicles, from heavy trucks to off-roaders, all outside of public roads until he got his driving license.

He did not become a tractor operator, as you can tell already. Instead, he got interested in journalism and pursued a career finding stories for local newspapers and radio stations. But the first love is never forgotten, so when presented with the chance, he seized it and became a motor journalist in 1995.

Having found the perfect job to mix his passion for cars and journalism, he couldn’t help exploring other areas, like science, computers, and mobile devices. He took stints working for a computer magazine for a couple of years, and it was then that he had his first contact with new media. But cars always remained his passion, so he returned to motor journalism when Auto Bild started its local branch. Later, he became an internet junkie, and moving online felt only natural.

In the meantime, he also became obsessed with technology, electric vehicles, batteries, and whatnot, so he writes a lot about those. He found autoevolution a fertile ground for exploration and so he discovered his passion for RVs and campers, but also solar panels and new energy solutions.
Tesla Has More Market Share in the U.S. Than the Volkswagen Group, BMW, and Daimler
Tesla Has More Market Share in the U.S. Than the Volkswagen Group, BMW, and Daimler

29 Mar 2023, 11:18 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla is on track for a record quarter, surpassing many legacy carmakers in the U.S., as a Cox Automotive report revealed. Tesla’s results show that the EV maker is gaining market share in the U.S. faster than any other carmaker. Tesla has al...

 
Tesla Accused of Wrongful Death in Lawsuit Over Fatal Florida Crash
Tesla Accused of Wrongful Death in Lawsuit Over Fatal Florida Crash

29 Mar 2023, 08:59 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The family of a California couple killed in a crash in Florida last year has named Tesla in a wrongful death lawsuit. Mary Lou and Karl Seelandt died when their Tesla Model S hit the back of a tractor-trailer at a Florida highway rest stop. On J...

 
Lucid Announces Massive Layoffs as Company Struggles to Ramp Up Production
Lucid Announces Massive Layoffs as Company Struggles to Ramp Up Production

29 Mar 2023, 07:24 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / When Tesla announced massive price cuts in January, we figured EV startups like Lucid would be the most affected. Lucid has now announced a restructuring plan that involves laying off 18% of its workforce, or around 1,300 people. The move is meant ...

 
Musician Tries Tesla's In-Dash Music-Making App "Trax," Says It's Garbage
Musician Tries Tesla's In-Dash Music-Making App "Trax," Says It's Garbage

28 Mar 2023, 18:13 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Elon Musk thought he could write music, although his greatest hit, "Don't Doubt ur Vibe," failed to make waves outside the Tesla community. This is probably why Tesla introduced a music-making app in its cars with the 2019 Holiday up...

 
Can Electric Roads Make EVs More Efficient and Desirable?
Can Electric Roads Make EVs More Efficient and Desirable?

28 Mar 2023, 15:16 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Scientists from Chalmer University of Technology, Sweden, think the size of EV batteries can be reduced by up to 70% using electric roads. This would make them more affordable and efficient, maximizing the time spent on the road. I remember when...

 
Tesla Rumored To Push Major Autopilot Update in China, Is This the Unified Stack?
Tesla Rumored To Push Major Autopilot Update in China, Is This the Unified Stack?

28 Mar 2023, 13:48 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla is in the middle of a wide rollout of the Vision-based Park Assist feature, which will reach not only North America but also Europe and China. A popular Chinese blogger announced on social media that Tesla is poised to push a major Autopilot ...

 
Battery Degradation Study Shows That EV Batteries Last Much Longer Than Initial Estimates
Battery Degradation Study Shows That EV Batteries Last Much Longer Than Initial Estimates

28 Mar 2023, 11:19 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Many people think EV batteries wear out as fast as phone batteries, but they couldn't be further from the truth. Once considered among the worst, even Nissan Leaf's batteries can endure for decades without significant degradation. This is...

 
Tesla Cybertruck Prototypes Are Everywhere, Rear-Wheel Steering and Gigawiper Galore
Tesla Cybertruck Prototypes Are Everywhere, Rear-Wheel Steering and Gigawiper Galore

28 Mar 2023, 09:48 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla Cybertruck has become common on California roads, as more prototypes are out there undergoing final testing. Several people shared their encounter with the electric pickup on Monday, showcasing the rear-wheel steering or the (missing) gigawip...

 
Tesla Cybertruck Might Have a Sail Pillar Storage After All
Tesla Cybertruck Might Have a Sail Pillar Storage After All

27 Mar 2023, 17:47 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / A new report appears to confirm that the sail pillar storage compartment of the original prototype will make it into production after all. Only recently, a Tesla investor was told that the storage would not be available because of the rear-wheel st...

 
Tesla's HW4 Computer Reveals More Secrets, Hinting at Future Upgradeability
Tesla's HW4 Computer Reveals More Secrets, Hinting at Future Upgradeability

27 Mar 2023, 16:07 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla Hardware 4 Autopilot Computer is shipping now with the Model S and Model X. Tesla community was treated to a teardown in February that seemed to unveil all of its secrets. Reverse engineering the software reveals more interesting facts about ...

 
Tesla Marks Giga Berlin's First Anniversary With Important Production Milestone
Tesla Marks Giga Berlin's First Anniversary With Important Production Milestone

27 Mar 2023, 14:32 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla marks another production milestone at Gigafactory Berlin, reaching 5,000 cars per week one year after delivering the first cars to customers. The German factory is slightly ahead of Giga Texas in this regard, although the latter is still a wo...

 
Tesla Model 3 Successfully Hacked in Less Than Two Minutes, Hackers Snatched the Car
Tesla Model 3 Successfully Hacked in Less Than Two Minutes, Hackers Snatched the Car

27 Mar 2023, 13:06 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / People thinking Tesla cars are difficult or outright impossible to hack might want to think twice. White-hat hackers only needed minutes to gain control of a Tesla Model 3 during the Pwn2Own competition. Although the details were not public, the ac...

 
Tesla's New Hairpin Stator Revealed in Drive Unit Teardown, Sandy Munro Missed the Moment
Tesla's New Hairpin Stator Revealed in Drive Unit Teardown, Sandy Munro Missed the Moment

27 Mar 2023, 10:48 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Many Tesla owners reported problems with the rear drive units on the Model Y and Model 3. A new generation of the drive unit is now installed on vehicles built at Giga Texas and possibly other gigafactories. A recent teardown shows what changed for...

 
Tesla FSD Advancing at a Rapid Pace, Musk Says "One More Round of Refinement" Needed
Tesla FSD Advancing at a Rapid Pace, Musk Says "One More Round of Refinement" Needed

27 Mar 2023, 08:56 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla released the latest V10 build of its FSD Beta software in January, and it took more than a month before pushing the first V11 build to cars. The long hiatus was blamed on the FSD Beta recall Tesla agreed upon with the NHTSA. After that, thing...

 
Another Cruise Robotaxi Was Involved in a Crash in San Francisco
Another Cruise Robotaxi Was Involved in a Crash in San Francisco

26 Mar 2023, 11:00 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Faith in autonomous driving technology dwindles as another Cruise robotaxi recently hit the back of a bus in San Francisco. Fortunately, nobody was injured in the accident, but the crash is another setback for GM's robotaxi subsidiary. Auto...

 
The Electric Pickup Truck Segment Is Heating Up As Ram Prepares New Mid-Size Model
The Electric Pickup Truck Segment Is Heating Up As Ram Prepares New Mid-Size Model

25 Mar 2023, 08:47 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / For years the U.S. market has longed for an electric pickup truck offering, which only arrived late in 2021 with the Rivian R1T. Since then, the full-size pickup truck segment has gotten multiple offerings and even more promises. Thanks to Ford and...

 
Guy Rents His Tesla Model 3 on Turo, Finds Out Hyundai Benchmarked the Car
Guy Rents His Tesla Model 3 on Turo, Finds Out Hyundai Benchmarked the Car

24 Mar 2023, 22:28 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Hyundai has been caught red-handed by the owner of a Tesla Model 3 who rented the car on Turo. According to his story, the Korean carmaker has used the Tesla to train salespeople, comparing it side-by-side with a Hyundai Ioniq 6. Hyundai is prep...

 
US Air Force Using Elon Musk's Starlink To Communicate Across the Indo-Pacific
US Air Force Using Elon Musk's Starlink To Communicate Across the Indo-Pacific

24 Mar 2023, 17:26 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Starlink internet is slowly becoming a military asset thanks to its accessibility, affordability, and reliability. Although SpaceX's satellite service became famous during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. military has also integrated ...

 
Tesla's 4680 Cells Have a Third Electrical Terminal, and Everyone Wants To Know Why
Tesla's 4680 Cells Have a Third Electrical Terminal, and Everyone Wants To Know Why

24 Mar 2023, 16:13 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Battery experts have noticed that the 4680 cells have three electrical terminals, one more than other round cells used in electric vehicles today. This is puzzling, although some think Tesla might use it to monitor key battery parameters to optimiz...

 
Volkswagen ID.4 Bursts Into Flames While Charging at an Electrify America Station
Volkswagen ID.4 Bursts Into Flames While Charging at an Electrify America Station

24 Mar 2023, 13:41 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / A Volkswagen ID.4 was seen burning while hooked to an Electrify America charger in Tracy, California. This is not the first time an ID.4 has burst into flames, while Electrify America stations have also been involved in strange incidents lately. ...

 

Stories by Cristian Agatie