We’re constantly hearing about an EV downturn and how automakers are changing their electrification strategies because consumers aren’t consuming. And sure, sales of electric cars are down in countries like Germany, but in the US people are still buying EVs, and they’re buying more of them than they did 12 months ago.

EV registrations climbed 5 percent in October versus the same month in 2023, topping out at 101,403, according to data from S&P Global Mobility. And it wasn’t Tesla driving that growth, but legacy automakers.

Related: Global EV Sales Shatter Records In November Thanks To China’s Unstoppable Growth

Chevrolet’s EV sales jumped 38 percent to 6,741 helped by demand for the Blazer and Equinox, while Cadillac Lyriq registrations grew threefold to 2,489 and the Hummer shifted 1,015 electric trucks, four times as many as it did last October. 

Like the Equinox, Honda’s Prologue, which is built on the same GM platform and in the same Mexican GM plant, wasn’t available in 2023, but made its presence felt this year. It found 4,168 homes, only 12 fewer than Chevy did of its version. Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 facelift also gave its sales numbers the desired nip and tuck, boosting registrations from 3,555 to 4,485.

Although the overall number of EV sales is up, the rate of growth has slowed and some models registered fewer deliveries than previously. The Ford Mustang Mach-E, for instance, was down from 3,949 to 3,479 according to S&P Global Mobility’s spreadsheet and Rivian R1S sales dropped by more than 500 to 2,456. There are also fears that the EV segment relies heavily on tax credit availability to boost demand, and public interest could wane if Trump pulls the plug on the incentives when he takes office.

BEST SELLING EVs USA

Tesla’s registration numbers actually fell by 1.8 percent, and if you remove Tesla from the equation, EV sales increased not by 5 percent, but by 11 percent. And this isn’t a blip for Tesla: the automaker’s numbers have fallen in seven of the first 10 months of 2024, Auto News reports, and that’s despite the facelifted Model 3 and Cybertruck being new for this year. While the Model 3 gained ground, the Model Y fell back, sales tumbling from more than 25,000 to under 22,000.

But before anyone gets the idea that Tesla is falling behind in the EV race, we should make clear that it still outperformed the second best-selling brand’s EV models six times over. Or every single brand in the 2nd to 12th spots combined.

EV REGISTRATIONS USA

Rivian has quietly removed the under-seat storage compartment from all second-generation R1T and R1S models, a move that’s sure to leave some owners scratching their heads. Oddly, this comes several months after the Gen 2 R1 series launched with a slew of updates, making the disappearance of this small, yet surprisingly handy feature all the more baffling.

Read: 2025 Rivian R1S And R1T Combine Tired Looks With New Tech And More Power

News of the storage bin’s removal began circulating on Twitter, Reddit, and various forums earlier this week, catching new owners off guard. Some were surprised to find the compartment entirely missing, while others received their vehicles with the drawer still in place, sparking confusion and frustration. Carscoops reached out to Rivian for clarification and was informed that the storage bin has been removed from all R1 variants as of “late 2024,” though no specific timeline was provided.

Rivian’s Response

“Yes, we removed the passenger seat storage bin from production on all R1 variants in late 2024,” a Rivian representative told us.

“We are constantly evaluating our design and production strategy and the passenger seat storage bin has a low utilization rate,” the spokesperson explained. “We’ve found that personal items that might be stored in this space (ex: smart phone) won’t fit easily, so passengers would use another storage place instead. There has been no change to the storage bin under the driver’s seat, which remains available for small items like sunglasses and keys.”

Some owners seem disappointed by the removal of this storage area, especially since neither the R1T nor the R1S features a traditional glovebox. There’s also speculation that the under-seat cubby’s removal is part of a cost-cutting effort, though Rivian did not mention this in its response to us. That said, there are other storage areas in both the electric pickup and SUV, including in the door panels and large bins under the rear seats.

Still, it’s hard not to notice that certain small changes, like this one, seem to line up with a broader trend in automakers trimming the fat from vehicles. Rivian isn’t exactly struggling with its pricing strategy, but a few cuts here and there could certainly help the company with future cost efficiency.

What Else Is New With The Gen 2 R1?

Several other significant changes have been made to the second-generation R1 series. For example, the available Large and Max battery packs now feature redesigned modules that are more efficiently packaged, which should make them easier to manufacture and service. Rivian has also installed a new heat pump and a revised electrical architecture, which eliminates 10 ECUs and about 1.6 miles (2.6 km) of wiring. On the performance front, the dual-motor variants now deliver 665 hp, the tri-motor version is good for 850 hp, and the quad-motor models pump out a staggering 1,025 hp.

Rivian hasn’t forgotten about its semi-autonomous driving system either. The company has introduced a suite of new updates, including higher-definition cameras and improved AI prediction technology. The revised system now boasts 11 cameras and five radars, further improving its capabilities.

Lead photos Reddit@mhespenh & Reddit@Kryptonlogic

Tesla’s billionaire CEO Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy have been tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to head the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE for short. If it rings a bell, that’s because DOGE is a backronym referencing the Doge meme and Dogecoin cryptocurrency, both famously associated with Musk.

While it won’t function as an executive department, DOGE will be an advisory body expected to have significant influence on federal spending and operations. That’ll supposedly happen sometime after Trump takes office in January. When it does, it seems that Ramaswamy plans to investigate a big government loan to Rivian for a factory in Georgia. That’s only one of several programs now coming under scrutiny.

Rivian’s Georgia Factory Loan Under the Microscope

Rivian announced plans to build the factory back in 2021. Since then, it’s faced several roadblocks including opposition from some neighbors. In May of this year, it delayed plans for the plant after initially saying it would begin construction in 2024. Then, in October it said it was seeking a loan to start the work. In November, the Biden administration approved a $6.6 billion dollar loan to the automaker.

Notably, the loan comes from the Department of Energy, which provides financing to all sorts of private businesses. One of its mandates is to promote technological innovation and no doubt, this is the type of loan that could do that. Certainly, it also spurs on the creation of jobs and cleaner energy. That doesn’t mean that the deal doesn’t warrant scrutiny though.

More: Rivian And VW Are Teaming Up To Reinvent The New Electric Golf Mk9

“Biden is forking over $6.6B to EV-maker Rivian to build a Georgia plant they’ve already halted. One ‘justification’ is the 7,500 jobs it creates, but that implies a cost of $880k/job which is insane. This smells more like a political shot across the bow at @elonmusk & @Tesla,” Ramaswamy said in a post on X.

Biden is forking over $6.6B to EV-maker Rivian to build a Georgia plant they’ve already halted. One “justification” is the 7,500 jobs it creates, but that implies a cost of $880k/job which is insane. This smells more like a political shot across the bow at @elonmusk & @Tesla. https://t.co/YYLW3fk1jX

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) November 26, 2024

The politician went on to say, in a separate post, that “We are acutely aware of the reality that the outgoing Biden administration is pushing out $$ and proposing new regulations at a fast pace to get ahead of Jan 20. All midnight-hour expenditures & new regulations will get special scrutiny and should be rescinded where appropriate.”

Tesla’s Past Loan and Musk’s Potential Role

How much power and influence Musk will hold over any investigation of other EV brands is unknown at this time. It’s worth noting that Tesla also accepted a federal loan in 2010. The amount of that loan was $465 million and the brand paid it back almost ten years ahead of schedule. 

Typically, government loans for large production facilities like this can result in positive outcomes. As Fortune points out in its coverage, plants like this tend to bring other economic boosts to an area as tier I and II suppliers move in to fill the need of the automaker. If Rivian can post a profit in the fourth quarter, it could make this new loan look more lucrative to everyone involved. 

We are acutely aware of the reality that the outgoing Biden administration is pushing out $$ and proposing new regulations at a fast pace to get ahead of Jan 20. All midnight-hour expenditures & new regulations will get special scrutiny and should be rescinded where appropriate.

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) November 27, 2024

Ten years ago, the idea that two startups would be producing the two most compelling electric pickup trucks on the market would have been inconceivable. However, here we are in 2024 with the Tesla Cybertruck and Rivian R1T leading the charge in the electrification of one of America’s most iconic and popular vehicle segments. But, which of the two is best?

Both the Cybertruck and R1T have their own unique pros and cons so when Motor Trend recently got its hands on the duo, it decided to focus purely on pulling power, arranging the trucks together for a tug of war. However, this tug of war was not performed on the pavement where the Tesla and Rivian would have the best opportunity to put their power to the ground. Instead, it was done on dirt.

Read: Rivian Wants To Give You 3,000 Reasons To Move On From Gasoline

On paper, the flagship Cyberbeast and Rivian R1T Tri-Motor are very evenly matched. A pair of powerful electric motors give the Tesla 845 hp and 864 lb-ft (1,171 Nm) of torque, whereas the trio of motors in the R1T combine to churn out 850 hp and 1,103 lb-ft (1,495 Nm). Both also have max claimed towing capacities of 11,000 lbs (4,989 kg).

As the drivers of the two trucks plant down on the throttles, the two cars start to dig holes in the dirt and pull each other slightly back and forth. The Rivian ultimately does a little better and pulls the Cybertruck a little closer to the line.

A second tug-of-war was also performed. Once again, the Tesla and Rivian performed just as well as each other. Both were ferociously spinning up their wheels as the drivers attempted to gain an advantage. Ultimately, the R1T was awarded the victory, although it only had the slightest of advantages over the Cyberbeast.

It seems Volkswagen’s $5.8 billion joint venture with Rivian has some ambitious projects in the works, and by “ambitious,” we mean important enough to shake up VW’s EV strategy for the next decade. The electric vehicle disruptor will assist VW Group in developing its next-gen EVs, including the highly anticipated Golf Mk9.

Rivian is developing a next-generation electrical architecture tailored for software-defined vehicles. The first VW Group brands set to adopt this cutting-edge system will be Porsche and Audi, with implementation beginning in 2027. However, Rivian’s own R2 model could debut the tech even earlier if it stays on track for its planned 2026 launch. Still, the spotlight is firmly on the next-generation VW Golf, which has been confirmed for 2029 with a fully electric powertrain.

More: VW’s Entire ID EV Lineup To Receive Major Redesign Inspired By The Past

Speaking to the media, VW CEO Thomas Schafer shed more light on the company’s future plans, revealing that the Golf was specifically chosen to debut the new software-defined vehicle platform.

“We decided on how to do the software-defined vehicle. It will happen with Rivian, the joint venture, where we put the new electric electronics architecture together,” said Schafer. “But we have also decided that we want to start this journey with a more iconic product. So we’ll start with the Golf.”

A New Kind Of Golf Is Coming

As reported by Auto News, Shafer confirmed that the all-electric Golf “will be shown in 2029,” emphasizing that it will be a “real volume product.” The hatchback is set to ride on VW’s new Scalable Systems Platform (SSP), which promises improved efficiency and flexibility for future EVs.

Interestingly, the Golf Mk9 could serve as a de facto replacement for the MEB-based ID.3, which is slated for a second facelift in 2026. However, the Golf Mk9 won’t fully eclipse its gas-powered sibling, as the ICE-driven Mk8 is expected to remain in production until 2035, a reminder that VW is hedging its bets as it transitions into the EV era.

What About The Project Trinity?

While VW is pushing forward with the electric Golf, its high-profile Project Trinity flagship EV has hit the brakes, at least temporarily. Originally planned as the brand’s first software-defined vehicle, the Trinity has been delayed amid shifting priorities. “We just switched a little bit, moved it out a little bit, not because we don’t see it as a huge priority, but Trinity was never designed as a volume vehicle,” Schafer admitted.

Schafer didn’t provide specific dates, but recent reports indicate that the launch of the Trinity EV has been pushed back from 2026 to late 2032. Initially, VW had planned to construct a brand-new factory dedicated to this Tesla-rivaling flagship EV. However, the company reversed course last year, choosing instead to modernize its existing plant in Zwickau. According to Schafer, this decision has proven to be a smart move in light of the economic and supply chain challenges the company is currently facing.

Navigating Economic Turbulence

The VW Group is already feeling the pinch, with factory closures and cost-cutting measures looming large. Audi’s Brussels plant is set to shut down in February, and the company has proposed a 10% wage reduction alongside the elimination of bonuses. Adding to the tension, mass layoffs remain a possibility, an option that has provoked fierce resistance from the workers’ union, which has threatened a strike “not seen for decades” if these plans move forward.

Amid this unrest, VW’s best hope lies in delivering products that reignite consumer excitement and prove the brand can still compete in an increasingly electrified market.

The Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office has granted Rivian conditional commitment for a loan of up to $6.57 (£5.24 / €6.27) billion. The money is slated to be used for the development and construction of an electric vehicle plant in Stanton Springs North, Georgia.

The government said, if finalized, the loan will support construction of a 9 million square foot (836,127 square meters) facility that can make up to 400,000 vehicles annually. It will build the R2 and R3, which the Department of Energy optimistically called “mass-market” EVs. That’s a bit of a stretch as R2 pricing is expected to start around $45,000.

More: The 2026 Rivian R2 Looks Even Better Up Close

Nevertheless, the government said the funds should support up to 2,000 construction jobs and 7,500 operations jobs by 2030. Uncle Sam added the facility will enable Rivian to “reach production volumes that make its products more cost competitive and accelerate access to international markets.” They went on to claim that EVs made at the plant could result in an annual fuel consumption savings of approximately 146 million gallons (553 million liters) of gas.

For their part, Rivian said the project will be broken up into two phases and the first will result in production beginning in 2028. During this initial ramp up, the plant will have a capacity of 200,000 units annually.

CEO RJ Scaringe stated “This loan would enable Rivian to more aggressively scale our U.S. manufacturing footprint for our competitively priced R2 and R3 vehicles that emphasize both capability and affordability.” He added “a robust ecosystem of U.S. companies developing and manufacturing EVs is critical for the U.S. to maintain its long-term leadership in transportation.”

The loan isn’t set in stone and there’s already speculation that the Trump administration might attempt to kill it. While that remains to be seen, Rivian previously tapped the brakes on the facility and announced the R2 would initially be built at their plant in Normal, Illinois. At the time, the automaker noted using their existing facility would enable the crossover to be launched sooner and would provide over $2.25 (£1.79 / €2.15) billion in savings.

Google Cast is set to arrive in Rivian vehicles very soon. This was one of the standout announcements from a recent ‘fireside chat’ with Rivian’s chief software officer, Wassym Bensaid, attended by Carscoops. During the discussion, Bensaid offered a glimpse into the brand’s ongoing software development, teasing features to watch out for and a few that might raise eyebrows.

For a company that has deliberately eschewed Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, the addition of Google Cast marks an interesting, if somewhat lateral, step forward. Google Cast isn’t a perfect solution for that, but it will enhance the overall experience for Rivian customers. Now, the company is about to launch it with software update .47 coming before the end of 2024. Not stopping there, Rivian’s engineers are also working on enabling rear-seat passengers to cast content directly to the back screens.

Voice Controls To Rival Physical Interfaces

In addition to Google Cast, Rivian is honing its speech-to-text functionality, with artificial intelligence playing a pivotal role. Bensaid confirmed that it’ll co-exist with Alexa that’s already integrated into its vehicles. He also says that everything that you can access in the infotainment system should be accessible via speech-to-text.

More: Physical Controls Are Back Because Drivers Are Sick Of Endless Touchscreen Menus

That’s right, he’s hoping to make it so that your voice can do anything in the system that your hand could do. He also believes owners will have the ability to access the same features via their mobile device. On top of that, he says it’s coming in 2025.

Physical Buttons? Not Likely

To be fair, the brand never really had many physical buttons in its cars to begin with. Still, the market appears to be trending back toward physical buttons after a couple of decades of moving away from them in favor of touchscreens. When pressed on whether or not Rivian would also begin to include physical buttons, Bensaid made his position clear.

While the company is adding haptic buttons to the steering wheels of its cars, the main interface isn’t going to change much. “We believe that if we have a cluttered interface with lots of physical buttons that the challenge with physical buttons is that they’re there forever,” Bensaid said.

“You can never change them, you have assigned functionalities. Whereas if you make it software, you have the ability to improve it over time based on customer feedback. That’s the guiding principle of why we don’t want to constrain ourselves to physical buttons,” he added.

Carscoops pushed a little harder concerning things like climate control buttons. Here’s what Rivian’s Vivek Surya told us.

“In Rivian vehicles, climate controls are integrated into the overall software stack, which means they interact with different systems in the car,” said Surya. “We want as many features as possible to be scalable and modular so we can quickly evolve in-vehicle experiences – and reduce mental load on the customer as complex hardware and software work in concert behind the scenes for features like automation.”

For example, here are some recent features that demonstrate the flexibility “untethering” from physical buttons gives us:

• Driver profile specific customizable vent positions that can set multiple vents at the same time with a single touch
• Tri-zone climate control, which expands the customization and adds more access to fine tune controls.

Unlockable Power And Range May Be On The Table

Rivian’s Connect+ software also led to a question about range and power. As of this writing, Connect+ simply includes a list of additional features for $14.99 per month ($19.99 CAD) or $149.99 per year ($199.99 CAD). Owners can sign up in the vehicle, on their phone, or online. That said, the host asked Bensaid if that architecture would end up having other unlockables for sale.

“Do you think customers would want to have a performance or range upgrade?” he responded. When the host affirmed, Bensaid simply said, “Okay, if you think so then I think we should do it.” That could mean that we may see Rivians ship to customers with some of their full power or range, or both, locked behind a paywall. For now, there is no telling (or even if) when this might actually happen, but it seems to be under consideration.

Photos Stephen Rivers / Carscoops

Tesla will settle its lawsuit against Rivian after previously claiming its rival had poached employees and had stolen trade secrets.

The world’s leading EV maker first came after Rivian in mid-2020, claiming that its former employees hired by Rivian were stealing trade secrets alongside confidential and proprietary information, even adding that Rivian had encouraged these thefts despite existing confidentiality obligations of Tesla employees. Tesla then expanded the lawsuit 18 months later, asserting that Rivian had actively stolen trade secrets related to its battery technology.

Read: VW And Rivian Team Up To Develop EV Tech for 2027 Launch

Rivian has always denied Tesla’s claims. Late last week, Tesla informed the court that it had reached a conditional agreement with Rivian and expects the lawsuit to be dismissed by December 24. Bloomberg notes that no details about the settlement have been made public.

Rivian attempted to have the lawsuit dismissed shortly after it was filed, claiming that Tesla was trying to shut down competition in the EV market. With the lawsuit now behind it, the company will be able to better focus on its future growth plans.

One of the EV startup’s most important new pursuits is its joint venture with the Volkswagen Group. The German giant is investing $5.8 billion in Rivian to develop a new electrical architecture and software stack to be used on future models from both brands. These new technologies will be based on Rivian’s existing systems and could debut on the new Rivian R2 in 2026 before arriving in a VW-branded vehicle in 2027. Future models from VW, Audi, Porsche, and Scout brands will also use the same technology.

Rivian also needs to focus on increasing production. At the start of 2024, it expected to end the year having produced 57,000 vehicles, the same number it achieved in 2023. However, it updated its guidance in October and now expects to wrap up 2024, having delivered between 50,500 and 52,000 vehicles to customers.

Just days after Volkswagen and Rivian announced the finalization of their joint venture to co-develop a next-generation electrical architecture and software, another major shift has surfaced. Kjell Gruner, one of Rivian’s former top executives, is set to become the new chief executive of Volkswagen Group of America.

That executive is Kjell Gruner, who joins Volkswagen after serving as chief commercial officer and president of Business Growth at Rivian. Gruner took on the role at Rivian in September 2023 but resigned in July 2024, after just 10 months. He is set to become the new head of Volkswagen Group of America on December 12, succeeding Pablo Di Si, who is stepping down.

Read: VW And Rivian Team Up To Develop EV Tech for 2027 Launch

Until Gruner officially takes charge, Gerrit Spengler, the current chief human resources officer for Volkswagen Group of America, will act as interim CEO.

A Familiar Name in the Industry

VW will no doubt hope that Gruner’s expertise in the US market will help it broaden its reach across the region. Through the first months of this year, VW sold 769,000 vehicles in North America, a 7% increase from the previous year.

Gruner brings extensive experience in both the US and German automotive markets. While his tenure at Rivian was brief, it’s hardly his first time in a high-profile role. His career began as a consultant before moving to Porsche in the early 2000s. In 2004, he joined DaimlerChrysler, where he led strategy for Mercedes-Benz Cars. By 2010, Gruner returned to Porsche, this time as the global chief marketing officer. In 2020, he ascended to president and CEO of Porsche Cars North America, a role he held until his transition to Rivian in 2023.

“Kjell Gruner is an absolute expert for the US market. He has over 25 years of experience in the automotive industry and extensive know-how in exploiting and expediting growth opportunities in North America,” VW AG group board member for human resources Gunnar Killian said. “Volkswagen AG is indebted to his predecessor, Pablo Di Si. His outstanding commitment was of central importance in realigning our business in South America. He subsequently laid the foundation for the positive development of our North American strategy.”

A $5.8 Billion Bet on Rivian Tech

Gruner’s appointment comes as VW doubles down on its collaboration with Rivian. The automaker has committed a significant $5.8 billion investment into co-developing a new electrical architecture based on Rivian’s systems. The partnership’s first fruits will debut in 2027 with a VW-branded vehicle. Afterward, the software stack will roll out across models from Audi, Porsche, Scout, and others under the Volkswagen Group umbrella.

Employees work at a Rivian electric vehicle factory in Normal, Ill., in 2021. A historic recovery in manufacturing jobs between 2019 and 2023 was concentrated in small urban areas such as McLean County, where Normal is located, and where car and candy factories have added jobs. (Courtesy of Rivian)

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, McLean County, Illinois, was known mostly as the home of State Farm Insurance in Bloomington and Illinois State University in Normal.

Now, the area illustrates a trend that’s bringing more factories to small cities with lower costs of living: It has thousands of new jobs manufacturing Rivian electric vehicles and a new candy factory that will produce Kinder Bueno and other Ferrero candies.

“Food and electric cars. This is not something we were known for before 2019,” said Patrick Hoban, president of Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council in McLean County.

“We’re primarily an insurance and university town that’s just now seeing a rise in manufacturing. Rivian has ramped up from 300 to 8,000 employees, and I don’t think anyone realized how fast that was going to happen,” Hoban said.

President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to rebuild American manufacturing, and he won handily in most areas hollowed out by the movement of factory jobs overseas. But the rebound Trump promises has already been underway in many places: McLean County is part of an unusually strong jump in manufacturing jobs between 2019 and 2023 — the first time manufacturing employment has recovered fully from a recession since the 1970s, according to a recent report from the Economic Innovation Group, a bipartisan public policy organization in Washington, D.C.

There were about 12.9 million manufacturing jobs in 2023, slightly more than in 2019. However, the number of manufacturing jobs has declined precipitously since the all-time peak in 1979, when there were 19.4 million of them and they were a much larger share of overall employment.

Joseph McCartin, a Georgetown University professor and labor history expert, said manufacturing has been on an upswing since 2010 as the nation started recovering from the Great Recession. The pandemic interrupted the trajectory, but the United States recently saw a hopeful increase in pay for the new jobs, he said, as the Biden administration aimed to increase both wages and jobs through the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.

“The Biden administration tried to use policy to ensure that more of these would be union jobs or at least offer union-level wages,” McCartin said. “This approach is almost certainly dead due to the results of the election.”

Employers may have a hard time filling lower-paying manufacturing jobs such as meat processing if the new Trump administration deports the immigrants who fill them, said William Jones, a University of Minnesota history professor and former president of the Labor and Working Class History Association.

“These will be hard hit if Trump follows up on his deportation plan,” Jones said. “The political rhetoric is that a bunch of native-born workers will move into these jobs, that they’re getting squeezed out, but that’s actually not the case. Some of these industries are extremely dependent on immigrant labor.”

Where growth happened

Small urban areas such as McLean County got most of the increase in manufacturing jobs between 2019 and 2023, according to the Economic Innovation Group report. Rural areas lost those jobs, and large cities saw no change.

It was mostly Sun Belt and Western states that saw the increases during those years, according to a Stateline analysis of federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The largest percentage changes in manufacturing jobs were in Nevada (up 14%), Utah (up 11%), and Arizona and Florida (each up 9%). The largest raw numbers of new manufacturing jobs were in Texas (up 48,200), Florida (up 35,100) and Georgia (up 22,900).

Southern states such as Alabama and Mississippi also have seen more automotive jobs as manufacturers have taken advantage of lower costs and state “right-to-work” laws that weaken unions. Vehicle manufacturing jumped by 7,800 in Alabama and 6,600 in Mississippi, the largest increases outside California.

Meanwhile, traditional Rust Belt states have seen continued declines, with manufacturing jobs down about 2% in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania, and also in Illinois — despite McLean County’s success.

Manufacturing is playing a critical role in Nevada as it tries to diversify its tourist-oriented economy so it can better weather downturns such as the one during the pandemic, said Steve Scheetz, research manager for the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

Automotive and other battery manufacturing and recycling, driven by electric carmaker Tesla and battery recycling firm Redwood Materials, account for much of the increase in Nevada manufacturing, Scheetz said.

As in Illinois, the job growth tended to be in smaller areas outside big cities, such as Storey County, just east of Reno, with a population of about 4,200.

“Fifteen years ago, this small county in rural Nevada was relatively unknown,” Scheetz said, adding that jobs and economic output has risen tenfold and the number of total jobs — including manufacturing — has grown from less than 4,000 to almost 16,000 in those 15 years. The county also is home to plants making building materials, industrial minerals and molded rubber, among other products.

The Biden administration focused on bringing more blue-collar jobs to small cities like Normal and Bloomington, said Jones, the University of Minnesota professor.

“Much of the growth is due to [President Joe] Biden’s manufacturing investments. There was a conscious strategy to focus on small towns to get the political benefit in places that tended to vote Republican,” said Jones.

If there was a play for political benefit, it got mixed results: Vice President Kamala Harris carried McLean County, Illinois, on Nov. 5, but she lost Storey County, Nevada, by the largest margin for a Democrat in 40 years.

Blue-collar wages

The decline of unions and the availability of cheaper labor overseas have dampened U.S. factory job wages in recent decades. Even so, manufacturing jobs remain an attractive path for blue-collar workers.

Manufacturing pay still ranks fairly high among the blue-collar fields at an average $34.42 per hour as of October — less than wages in energy ($39.98) or construction ($38.72), but considerably more than hospitality ($22.23) or retail ($24.76). That also was the case in 2019, and it has led many state and cities to seek more factory positions to balance out the lower-paying service jobs that have blossomed as manufacturing has waned.

But in the past year, state Republican leaders have pushed back on a burgeoning Southern labor movement that aims to bring higher wages and better benefits to blue-collar workers.

In Alabama, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed a new law in May that would claw back state incentives from companies that voluntarily recognize labor unions. GOP leaders in Georgia and Tennessee also passed laws pushing against a reinvigorated labor movement, viewing unions as a threat to the states’ manufacturing economies.

Much of the increase in Alabama manufacturing jobs has been in the northern part of the state, near Tennessee and Georgia. Since the pandemic began, Mazda Toyota Manufacturing came on line with the goal of hiring 4,000 vehicle production workers and another 2,000 in nearby parts factories as other manufacturers also boosted hiring. Private investment in Alabama automotive manufacturing totaled $7 billion over the same time frame, Stefania Jones, a spokesperson for state Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair, said in a statement to Stateline.

Supply-chain problems during the pandemic illustrated the advantages of American-made goods, said McCartin, the Georgetown University professor. However, without union support, today’s factory workers are unlikely to achieve the middle-class lifestyle enjoyed by earlier generations, he said.

“The growth of manufacturing itself is unlikely to become a panacea for what ails working-class America,” McCartin said.

Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and X.

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As the year winds to a close, Rivian is clearly feeling the pressure to move more units off the lot. One way it’s doing that is by offering buyers cold hard cash in the form of discounts. To qualify, buyers need to do a few things including own a gas-burning car. Here are all the details on what it’ll take to get $3,000 off a new Rivian R1S or R1T right now.

The most important requirement of this deal, something that Rivian is calling the “All-Electric Upgrade Off”, is that the buyer must have a gas-powered vehicle, though there’s no need to trade it in. Without the ability to show proof of ownership or lease of such a vehicle, the deal is off. Of course, it applies to all gas-powered vehicles including hybrids. Check that box, and you’re already halfway there. But Rivian has a few more stipulations in store.

More: Rivian’s Software Boss Says Dash Buttons Are A Bug, Not A Feature – Is He Right?

Next, the buyer has to select a new Rivian. It can’t be a pre-owned unit, a custom build, or a demo unit either. On top of that, the R1S or R1T in question can’t be a Dual Standard trim level. Sure, that diminishes the discount since the next level up costs substantially more, but a price break is still a price break. Buyers must put in their order between now and November 30 and they must agree to take delivery before December 31.

Notably, this isn’t a sliding scale discount or anything of that sort, so everyone who checks the above boxes gets the same $3,000 off. Canadian buyers get $4,100 CAD discount as long as they abide by those same rules. Basically, those who have been eyeing a new Rivian now have another reason to consider it.

That’s good news for fans since Rivian just updated both the R1S and R1T this year with some thoughtful touches. It’s also nice that Rivian doesn’t require buyers to trade in their old car. As we come to the close of the year, other automakers are likely to offer discounts to move products too, so if Rivian isn’t really your bag keep checking here.

We’ll keep you posted on the latest deals and incentives hitting the market.

Rivian’s electric vehicles are some of the most advanced on the road, but the automaker lags behind other brands when it comes to protecting the workers who build those EVs, a new report claims.

Some of Rivian’s employees have suffered a cracked skull, had a finger amputated, or required surgery due to incidents at work. Others say they feel pressured to keep the production line moving at all costs.

Related: This Is The 2025 Rivian R1S, Now With New Photos

The report comes from Bloomberg, whose investigation led it to speak to multiple current and former employees about life at Rivian’s Normal plant and to analyze data from the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) comparing Rivian with other brands.

Despite only having a single plant, the company behind the critically acclaimed R1S, R1T, and Amazon’s delivery van has more black marks on its safety record than other brands with multiple sites. OSHA has handed Rivian 16 initial serious violations in the past 21 months, which sounds a lot, but of course means nothing without some context, so here it is: neither Toyota, GM, Honda, Nissan, or Ford earned more than 10 slaps on the wrist in that time and VW, BMW, and Subaru received none at all.

Rivian responded to Bloomberg’s bringing up OSHA’s findings by claiming that most of the “serious” citations were subsequently downgraded or dismissed altogether. But former OSHA employees told the reporters that the organization often only downgraded citations to encourage automakers to make safety improvements and to avoid litigation. In short, where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

Dangers highlighted by workers included forklifts being used to push carts around the plant and a leaky roof over the part of the facility where batteries are stored. One former employee even claimed she vomited Rivian blue liquid after being forced to work in the paint shop without adequate breathing gear. But a spokesperson told Bloomberg that it always provided all necessary safety equipment and said in a statement that it was “proud of our strong safety record – which continues to improve year over year.”

Rivian came up with more creative ways to turn “spooky” this Halloween season. The automaker announced a new software update for 2024, adding “Car Costumes” inspired by the Knight Rider TV series and the Back To The Future films, alongside several Halloween-themed features.

The update is available for both the R1T and the R1S for a limited time, between October 18 and November 4. The highlight is that the Rivian EVs can replicate features of the K.I.T.T. and DeLorean Time Machine movie cars, using custom infotainment graphics, together with lightning and sound effects,

More: This Rivian R1T Floated 150 Feet During Hurricane Helene And Still Runs Fine

The Knight Rider costume will turn your Rivian’s light bar into the iconic red scanner of the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, originally driven by David Hasselhoff. The actor even revisited his famous role for a cameo appearance behind the wheel of the Rivian R1T.

The Knight Rider treatment is more extensive inside the cabin. Rivian’s 15-inch infotainment display transforms into a replica of K.I.T.T.’s diagnostic panel with many colorful buttons, while the audio system plays the intro music from the popular series.

The next trick-or-treat special is inspired by Back To The Future. This one replicates the DeLorean Time Machine’s interface on the digital cockpit, with matching sound effects from the speakers. Furthermore, the “88 mph” button activates a light show on the exterior, making your time-traveling DeLoRivian even more noticeable.

The third option is the “Haunted Rivian Car Costume”, which gives you a choice between eight sound effects and three color themes. Depending on the selected Car Costume, the Gear Guard figure on the application dresses up like Knight Rider, Doc Brown, or a scarecrow.

Fun is good but safety is a top priority, meaning that the aforementioned gimmicks are only available when the vehicle is parked. Furthermore, the exterior lightning effects are reserved for the 2025 Rivian R1T and R1S models, making use of their light bars.

Besides the Car Costumes, the EVs swap the locking sound for different kinds of owl chirps. The digital instrument cluster turns pedestrians into zombies, while bicyclists and motorcyclists appear like headless horsemen. Finally, the Camp mode now features crows, pumpkins, and green flames, with similar Halloween-specific graphics for the drive modes.

This is not the first time that Rivian made Halloween a little more special for its customers, as the automaker rolled out similar updates in 2022 and 2023.