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Batteries on Wheels: How Your EV Could Also Power Your Home

William Attardi on April 1, 2026

Vehicle-to-home technology is gaining traction, with over 630,000 bidirectional electric vehicles on US roads, allowing owners to use car batteries to power homes during outages and save on energy costs. General Motors plans to make all new EVs bidirectional by this year, and a UK trial found that 78% of V2H users saved at least approximately $525 on their energy bills.  Batteries on wheels: How your EV could also power your home | Reuters

 

GM Drove a Chevrolet Silverado EV More Than 1000 Miles on a Single Charge

William Attardi on August 6, 2025

General Motors just revealed that its employees recently took a 2026 Chevrolet Silverado EV on a ridiculous 1,059.2-mile trek across Metro Detroit without stopping for a battery top-up. That journey has now secured a EV range world record for the brand, besting Lucid’s 749-mile journey earlier this year. The truck in question is a Silverado EV in Work Truck spec with the Max Range battery pack, which provides 205 kWh of juice. The automaker says that the truck’s hardware and software were entirely untouched and representative of a customer vehicle.  GM Drives Chevrolet Silverado EV 1059 Miles On a Single Charge

GM to invest $4 Billion to Shift Some Production from Mexico to the US

William Attardi on June 11, 2025

Shares of General Motors rose before the opening bell after announcing plans to invest $4 billion to shift some production from Mexico to U.S. manufacturing plants as the automaker navigates tariffs that could drive prices higher. President Trump signed executive orders in April, relaxing some of his 25% tariffs on automobiles and auto parts, a significant reversal as the import taxes threatened to hurt domestic manufacturers. GM said late Tuesday that the investment will be made over the next two years and is for its gas and electric vehicles.  GM to invest $4 billion to shift some production from Mexico to the US | AP News

General Motors Unveils New Futuristic Concept, Which Is a Corvette in Name Only

William Attardi on April 14, 2025

It’s a beautiful vision of an all-electric, wide hypercar, but it has nothing to do with the Corvette mark. One of three General Motors will unveil over the next year, each from a different design studio. It’s a beautiful supercar — low and wide with a classic mid-engine bubble-cockpit profile — but you’d never know it’s a Corvette. The front fin lights recall the design codes of GM’s premium label, Cadillac. The wrap-around windshield borrows from Koenigsegg and Saab. The porous aero elements mirror other electric hypercars like the Lotus Evija and Porsche Mission X, while the split between smooth upper aero and aggressive lower carbon elements appears on countless modern supercars. General Motors Unveils New Futuristic ‘Corvette’ Concept | The New York Sun

Deals on Leases Drive EV Market by Christopher Otts

William Attardi on January 13, 2025

Toyota Motor’s only electric vehicle widely on sale in the U.S. starts at about $37,000. But practically nobody plunks down that much for the mid size SUV, named bZ4X. “Almost everyone leases the car,” Toyota U.S. sales chief David Christ said in a re cent interview. “You’d be a fool not to.” The Japanese-made SUV, which qualifies for a $7,500 federal subsidy only if it is leased, illustrates a broader shift in the way car companies are marketing electric cars to consumers, with more-afford able monthly payments and no long-term commitment. People who leased the Toyota in 2024 paid $445 a month on average, compared with $717 for those who financed the car through a purchase loan, according to credit bureau Experian. WQWLtBjXe8K8Ki1Y3MfL-WSJNewsPaper-1-13-2025.pdf

The Statue of Liberty was made with copper but due to oxidation, it turned green.

When the “Lady in the Harbor” first arrived in New York in 1886, she didn’t look like the mint-green icon we know today. In fact, for the first twenty years of her life, she stood as a towering, metallic beacon of reddish-gold. Designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and engineered by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the statue was a gift from France to America. To build her, Bartholdi chose copper for three practical reasons:

  • Malleability:It could be hammered into elaborate, thin sheets.
  • Weight:Copper is lighter than stone or bronze, making it easier to ship 350 individual pieces across the Atlantic.
  • Durability:It was strong enough to survive a 27-day ocean voyage and the harsh winds of the harbor.

When she was unveiled on October 28, 1886, her skin—made of 300 copper sheets roughly the thickness of two pennies—shone with a bright, metallic brown luster. The transformation from “penny-colored” to “patina-green” wasn’t planned. Bartholdi actually expected the statue to age into a deeper, darker red. However, the unique environment of New York Harbor—a mix of salt air, moisture, and industrial pollution—triggered a process called oxidation.

The Timeline of Change:

  1. 1886–1900:The bright copper dulled into a dark, muddy brown.
  2. 1903:The first hints of a light green crust, or “patina,” began to appear.
  3. 1906:The color change was so controversial that Congress nearly stepped in. They appropriated $62,000 to paint the statue back to its original color, but the public protested, calling the idea “sacrilege.”
  4. 1910–1920:The statue was a patchy mix of brown and green until 1920, when the oxidation was complete, leaving her entirely teal.

While we now view the green color as iconic, it actually serves a vital structural purpose. The layer of verdigris (the green patina) acts as a protective shield. It seals the copper underneath, preventing the metal from further corrosion and weathering.  By the time the color fully changed, a new generation of immigrants had arrived in America seeing a green statue.