autoevolution
 

Cristian Agatie

Contributor
editor photo
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.
Novel Chemistry Paves the Way to Ultra-High Power Density EV Batteries, Beating Tesla 4:1
Novel Chemistry Paves the Way to Ultra-High Power Density EV Batteries, Beating Tesla 4:1

6 Feb 2023, 20:04 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The future of electric vehicles largely depends on how fast EV battery development advances. For now, Li-Ion batteries rule the world, but new research into Li-air batteries might make them obsolete. Scientists at the Illinois Institute of Technolo...

 
Tesla Makes It Into Consumer Reports' Top 3 Most Loved Car Brands
Tesla Makes It Into Consumer Reports' Top 3 Most Loved Car Brands

6 Feb 2023, 18:22 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla ranked third in Consumer Reports’ owner satisfaction survey, behind Porsche and Genesis. The EV manufacturer has often been criticized for its lackluster build quality. Nevertheless, Tesla is still among the most loved car brands in the...

 
Tesla FSD V11.3 "Tougher Than Expected". Elon Musk: Should Be Live by Week's End
Tesla FSD V11.3 "Tougher Than Expected". Elon Musk: Should Be Live by Week's End

6 Feb 2023, 15:51 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Elon Musk explained why the long-awaited Tesla FSD Beta V11 is not yet ready to deploy in January, as he promised several times before. According to one of his recent tweets, the V11 has been tougher than expected because it required a “signi...

 
What's Behind Tesla's Incredible 900% Sales Increase in Germany?
What's Behind Tesla's Incredible 900% Sales Increase in Germany?

6 Feb 2023, 11:38 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla managed a successful turnaround in January following a massive price cut in most markets. Tesla sold 4,241 vehicles in Germany, representing a 912.2% increase over January 2022. It sounds impressive, but the figures don’t tell the whole...

 
Tesla FSD Beta Struggles With Automatic Gates, Owners Share the Frustration
Tesla FSD Beta Struggles With Automatic Gates, Owners Share the Frustration

6 Feb 2023, 09:47 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla Vision is not yet trained to recognize when automatic gates are closing or not fully opened. Several Tesla owners discovered this the hard way, with at least one of them having their car hit hard while driving through the gates. It’s a ...

 
Tesla May Have Started a Price War, but Most Carmakers Aren't Willing To Fight
Tesla May Have Started a Price War, but Most Carmakers Aren't Willing To Fight

5 Feb 2023, 01:08 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / In January, Tesla’s massive price cuts shook the auto market, and everyone expected a price war. Nevertheless, few carmakers can afford to follow Tesla into the ground. So far, Lucid and Ford are the only ones that have adjusted their prices ...

 
Tesla Raises Model Y Prices After IRS Made All Trims Qualify for $7,500 Tax Credit
Tesla Raises Model Y Prices After IRS Made All Trims Qualify for $7,500 Tax Credit

4 Feb 2023, 13:07 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The same day that IRS changed classification rules, making all Tesla Model Y trims eligible for the $7,500 tax credit, Tesla raised the prices in the U.S. This is the second price hike following Tesla’s shocking January decision to cut prices...

 
Verdict Secured: Musk Found Not Guilty of Defrauding Tesla Investors in Take-Private Case
Verdict Secured: Musk Found Not Guilty of Defrauding Tesla Investors in Take-Private Case

4 Feb 2023, 10:40 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / A jury has found Elon Musk not liable for investors’ losses in a security fraud trial over his 2018 “Funding secured” tweet. Musk then said he is considering taking Tesla private at $420 a share, a statement that a judge ruled was...

 
All Tesla Model 3 and Model Y Trims Qualify for a $7,500 Tax Credit After IRS Rule Change
All Tesla Model 3 and Model Y Trims Qualify for a $7,500 Tax Credit After IRS Rule Change

3 Feb 2023, 18:01 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The Treasury vehicle classification related to IRA tax credits has confused many people, considering the arbitrary rules used to divide vehicles into classes. Thankfully, the auto industry and consumer lobby have convinced the IRS to switch to the ...

 
Scientists Found Out What Kills Solid-State Batteries and Are Working on a Solution
Scientists Found Out What Kills Solid-State Batteries and Are Working on a Solution

3 Feb 2023, 16:45 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Solid-state batteries offer many advantages over their counterparts that use liquid electrolytes. They are inherently safe, thanks to the fact that the electrolyte is not flammable, and they can store more energy. Nevertheless, they are prone to de...

 
Tesla Semis Spend More Time Receiving Assistance Than Hauling Goods
Tesla Semis Spend More Time Receiving Assistance Than Hauling Goods

3 Feb 2023, 14:54 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla finally delivered the first electric Semi trucks to its launching partner PepsiCo, but the first reports don’t paint a bright picture of the truck’s reliability. Although only 36 trucks were delivered, people have already seen sev...

 
Amid the EV Price War Tesla Started, Suppliers Are Expected To Shed Blood for the Cause
Amid the EV Price War Tesla Started, Suppliers Are Expected To Shed Blood for the Cause

3 Feb 2023, 12:31 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The price cuts that Tesla announced in January upended the automotive industry and rattled Tesla investors. Nevertheless, it is now clear that Tesla is looking to outsource the lost margins upstream, to its suppliers, with reports indicating that T...

 
New Tesla Model 3 "Project Highland" Prototype Spotted in the Wild
New Tesla Model 3 "Project Highland" Prototype Spotted in the Wild

3 Feb 2023, 10:49 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Amid the hype surrounding the Tesla Cybertruck, people tend to forget that Tesla is now juggling a lot of tasks with many new products in the pipeline. A red Model 3 prototype was spotted in the wild, covered in the same black claddings as others w...

 
This Is How the Musk-Reviewed Beta Cybertruck Looks and Drives in Real Life
This Is How the Musk-Reviewed Beta Cybertruck Looks and Drives in Real Life

3 Feb 2023, 08:54 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The same day Musk confirmed he had reviewed the Tesla Cybertruck in production beta, the internet started filling up with pictures and videos of the actual prototype. The latest iteration of the electric pickup truck sports a new side mirror design...

 
This Neat Little Trick Will Enable Full-HD Resolution in the Tesla YouTube App
This Neat Little Trick Will Enable Full-HD Resolution in the Tesla YouTube App

2 Feb 2023, 20:21 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / A couple of days ago, Tesla owners started complaining that the YouTube app on their cars started displaying videos in 360p resolution. The change was likely introduced with the latest OTA update and might not be a bug. Luckily, people found a work...

 
Tesla Model Y Track Mode Optimizations for Winter Fun (From a Brave Owner)
Tesla Model Y Track Mode Optimizations for Winter Fun (From a Brave Owner)

2 Feb 2023, 17:44 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla made a lot of Tesla Model Y Performance owners very happy before Christmas, when it released the Track Mode as part of the 2022 Holiday Update. It turns out tweaking the Track Mode settings for winter fun is not that easy, considering the myr...

 
Tesla's Patent Rampage Hints at Dry Battery Electrode Breakthrough
Tesla's Patent Rampage Hints at Dry Battery Electrode Breakthrough

2 Feb 2023, 15:35 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla is working hard on a dry battery electrode manufacturing process, but the progress is slow to materialize. Nevertheless, a series of patents filed with the USPTO hint at a breakthrough in this field. If this is indeed the case, Tesla might be...

 
Tesla Raises Giga Shanghai Output Amid Increased Demand Fueled by Recent Price Cuts
Tesla Raises Giga Shanghai Output Amid Increased Demand Fueled by Recent Price Cuts

2 Feb 2023, 14:07 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / Tesla aggressively slashed prices across its lineup in January, a move that started with the Chinese market. The price cuts energized Tesla sales, so the company is now stepping up production at Giga Shanghai to meet increased demand. Tesla face...

 
Audi e-tron Loses Its Battery Pack During a Collision, Hinting at Structural Problems
Audi e-tron Loses Its Battery Pack During a Collision, Hinting at Structural Problems

2 Feb 2023, 11:12 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The video of a crash involving an Audi e-tron SUV is making rounds on social media. The weird part is that the battery pack was ejected during the crash, which was not supposed to happen. Are Audi e-tron affected by structural problems? We wish an ...

 
Tesla Model S Is the EV Range Champion in Extreme Cold-Weather Testing
Tesla Model S Is the EV Range Champion in Extreme Cold-Weather Testing

2 Feb 2023, 09:54 UTC · By: Cristian Agatie / The Norwegians at Motor.no wanted to see which electric vehicles are the least affected by low temperatures in the northern country. The Tesla Model S showed impressive results, going the furthest on a charge. It also showed one of the smallest ran...

 

Stories by Cristian Agatie