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Our team has collectively owned and driven electric vehicles for over four decades, covering a broad range of models released across the past half‑century. Yet, despite that experience, many people still claim that a long‑distance EV road‑trip is impossible without relying on Tesla’s Supercharger network.

Tesla undeniably accelerated the rollout of fast‑charging infrastructure—whether by prompting competitors to improve their networks or by setting early expectations for reliability. However, by 2026 the majority of drivers worldwide no longer need to depend exclusively on Tesla chargers. But as you might note from our title, there's also the little asterisk*, because outliers do exist; in remote or heavily monopolized regions, Tesla may remain the only practical option.

While we’ve occasionally used Superchargers when necessary, we—and many of you—prefer to avoid a network owned by a figure whose public stances raise serious concerns.

Elon Musk has repeatedly aligned himself with politicians advocating authoritarian policies, promoted controversial “white‑replacement” rhetoric, disseminated misinformation targeting minority groups, and funded right‑wing initiatives reminiscent of some of the darkest chapters in American and European history.

On our recent San Diego trip we set out to demonstrate that a modern EV can travel 1,000 miles in two days, enjoy fast and reliable charging, and do so without contributing a single cent to Musk’s enterprises.

Editorial note: This video was captured during that San Diego journey. Filming stopped a few hours later when another car ran a red light and struck us, forcing us to postpone our planned shoot at Aptera. We’ll return to Aptera soon—stay tuned!

⏱️ Chapter Breakdown:

00:00 - Introduction

🔗 Links to Music used in today's video

Love's High - Feathers (https://artlist.io/royalty-free-music/song/feathers/137983)

Editorial note: Transport Evolved supports real - not AI artists. We're unhappy about Artlist's adoption of AI and only use human-created content. We are also exploring other music management solutions that does not use AI in any way. Please reach out if you know of a potential solution!

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🌱 Electric Vehicle Association - https://www.myeva.org

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🎙️ Credits:

Hosts: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

It's more than 15 years since the first Nissan LEAF rolled off the production line. Brought into existence before the Tesla Model S, and offering family-focused EV driving long before most automakers even had EV plans, the LEAF defined an early generation of EV adopters.

But it wasn't without its flaws: battery pack design let it down badly, and as Nissan tried to add more capacity to keep up with the competition, the first - and second-generation LEAF continued to suffer more noticeable loss in capacity than most of their rivals.

The second-generation LEAF limped on for longer than perhaps it ought, seeing its sales dwindle as customers purchased more competitive alternatives. But now, the Nissan LEAF is back with a new third-generation guise.

Built on the same platform that underpins the Nissan Ariya and multiple Renault EVs, the new LEAF combines a new, thermally-managed, better chemistry battery pack and slightly taller body styling that's somewhere between a hatchback, a fastback, and a crossover.

But can it recapture the joy of electric driving that the original LEAF offered? Or does it fall into the more boring choices made for the second-generation LEAF and Nissan Ariya?

We've spent a week with it - and we think it's worthy of the name. Here's why.

⏱️ Chapter Breakdown:

00:00 - Introduction - Opening Music: Yonatan Riklis - Far Away Galaxies

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Host: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

We’ve re-written this introduction a few dozen times.

We tried to make it about the EV world — about how one company’s success didn’t just kick-start a global EV sales race, but also made the world’s wealthiest man.

We tried to explain how, enriched by those successes, that same man has used his wealth to cajole and influence politicians and policy. How he has amplified conspiracy theories, spread misinformation, and helped usher in a U.S. administration that is, frankly, fascistic in its treatment of minorities, citizens, and other countries alike.

But we’ve failed to make that work.

So instead, let’s focus on the meat of the matter.

For the last few years, we — reluctantly — have relied on Starlink, alongside a local independent ISP, to provide the internet Transport Evolved needs to produce and upload videos.

Our initial decision to use Starlink came from a lack of adequate speed from our local provider. But thanks to improvements at that ISP — and some recent news regarding that same billionaire — we’ve decided we have to act unilaterally.

Here’s why — and what’s next.

00:00 Introduction

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At the very end of last year (okay, technically we published it at the start of this one - https://youtu.be/MHRYk8dJ9fY ), we shared the Home Assistant + Node-RED integration we’d been working on to get our JuiceBox EVSEs—fitted with Open EVSE hardware—working with load-sharing again.

After a few weeks of testing, Nikki has released an anonymized codebase (https://forgejo.insearchofportlandia.com/Aminorjourney/Node_RED_Open_EVSE_Load_Sharing) so you can try it yourself if you need the same setup.

In today’s video, she walks you through the code, gives an update on the notoriously tricky Ford Charge Station Pro, and asks whether we should invest in a Mongoose programming tool.

00:00 – Introduction

Links 🔗

Nikki's Node-RED Library: - https://forgejo.insearchofportlandia.com/Aminorjourney/Node_RED_Open_EVSE_Load_Sharing

Our previous videos on the JuiceBox/EnelX Debacle.

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In early October last year, we headed down to Los Angeles to see — and drive — the 2027 Chevrolet Bolt EV for the first time. Based on the now-discontinued 2023 Bolt EUV, but with a new battery pack, drivetrain, and power electronics, the 2027 Bolt EV seemed to tick plenty of boxes — including its sub-$30,000 starting price.

But at the launch, we were warned GM planned it to be a “limited production car,” with GM representatives remaining coy on exactly what “limited” would mean.

At the end of last week, we learned just how limited that production would be: GM has already confirmed it’s ending production of the Bolt EV later this year, with goals to continue selling it for another 18 months. The plant in Fairfax, Kansas? It’ll slowly be converted back to an ICE vehicle production facility starting in October this year.

So why exactly is the Bolt EV being produced in such small numbers? Why is this vehicle being cancelled just two weeks after sales began? And who is really to blame?

00:00 – Introduction & Montage 🎶

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*This video was filmed ahead of the horrific murder of yet another U.S. citizen by [redacted]. Transport Evolved vehemently opposes the taking of life, and the heavy-handed [redacted] tactics employed by the [redacted].

Stay safe, stay engaged. Please watch our livestream from earlier this month.*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxKt_APYQug

While Nikki had expressed some concern that the chickens weren't learning to use their new feeder, something seemed to click last week - and now they have graduated feeder school.

About The Transport Evolved Sunday Musings:

Presenter: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield.

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Not so long ago, most vehicles operated in a fairly standard way. From gear levers to pedals, indicators to warning lights, many of the basics were obvious — even if you’d never driven that exact model before.

But as technology has progressed and automakers have added more and more features, even simple things — like how to unlock the car, interpret a warning message, or deal with a low battery — have become less intuitive and more need-to-know.

As we come to the end of the first month of the year, in a climate where many people are feeling additional stress (something that can directly affect our ability to problem-solve), Kate takes a calm, practical look at your EV’s owner’s manual: where to find it, how to use it, and what it’s worth understanding before something goes wrong.

This isn’t about reading every page — it’s about knowing enough about your EV so that if the worst happens, you’re prepared, not trying to figure things out for the first time.

⏱️ Episode Timeline

00:00 – Introduction

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Host, Camera, Editor : Kate Walton-Elliott

The Lucid Air Touring: So Very British, and Quite Jaguar-Like

Usually, automakers insist on giving us the most expensive versions of their vehicles to test — so much so that many don’t even put their entry-level or commercial models into their press fleets at all.

But Lucid did something a little different. Instead of pushing us into its ultra-high-performance, range-topping Air Sapphire, the company reached out when it had a Lucid Air Touring available.

After spending time with it, we couldn’t shake one thought: this feels like the all-electric, UK-inspired luxury sports sedan Jaguar should have built… but never did.

[EDITORIAL NOTE]

During the filming of this review, we suffered not one, but two microphone failures during our in-car segment (Kate's microphone failed in the first segment, and Nikki's in the second). In addition to buying some new microphones (thank you Patreon supporters), we've had to use more extreme audio processing compared to our usual videos, and there's a higher level of audio artifacts and inconsistent tone/volume than you might usually expect from the channel. We have made sure our YouTube version has subtitles for those unsure about what's being said...

⏱️ Chapter Breakdown:

00:00 – Introduction

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Host: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

For decades, the U.S. auto industry has depended on Canada and Mexico for parts, production, and trade.

But under the second Trump presidency — amid increasingly aggressive trade policies and even rhetoric questioning long-standing international norms — Canada is beginning to loosen its deeply intertwined relationship with the U.S. auto sector.

As Prime Minister Mark Carney looks to China to strengthen economic ties, and Canada rolls back previously U.S.-friendly tariff policies on Chinese-built vehicles, a surprising outcome may be emerging: Canadian EV buyers could be among the biggest winners.

In this episode, we examine what might change as Canada pivots away from U.S.-centric auto policy, explore which Chinese EV models could realistically enter the Canadian market, and consider how increased competition might affect pricing, availability, and innovation.

And as a triple citizen of the U.K., Canada, and the United States, Nikki brings a uniquely personal perspective on why this shift matters — not just politically, but practically — for EV buyers, automakers, and the future of clean transportation north of the border.

⏱️ Episode Timeline

00:00 - Introduction

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Host: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

As regulars to the channel will know, when EnelX stopped support for JuiceBox charging stations in late 2024, we were among a group of frustrated former customers who opted to take matters into their own hands and hack their hardware.

Having played with juice pass proxy (which worked but required a fair amount of fettling), we were fortunate enough to be offered a chance to test out OpenEVSE drop-in replacement boards for our Gen 2 JuiceBoxes. It was a super-easy replacement, but we ended up without any easy way to load share.

While the team at OpenEVSE are now developing load-sharing capabilities, we've spent the holidays coming up with a software-based solution that relies on Home Assistant, Node RED, and some coding.

Here's what we achieved.

⏱️ Episode Timeline

00:00 – Introduction

Links 🔗

OpenEVSE: https://www.openevse.com

Our previous videos on the JuiceBox/EnelX Debacle.

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🎙️ Credits:

Host: Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield