Tesla's debut of vehicles without ultrasonic sensors raise questions

Will Teslas have a blind spot directly in front of the vehicle?

Munro

They may look sleek and smooth without those circular sonic sensors, but the non-ultra-sonic Tesla was not welcomed with open arms by hundreds of Reddit users.

Two weeks after announcing it was removing ultrasonic sensors (USS), new Model 3s were delivered to owners looking noticeably less polka-dotted, leading to heated debates and several unanswered questions as the company transitions to an improved Tesla Vision and its occupancy network.

A few users said they would cancel their order, questioning how the system could effectively replace the sensors parking. User Zeek215 posted: "I had a base Model 3 to be delivered next month. I'm cancelling because of this. Not just because of the USS, but it's a trend in the wrong direction for what is an expensive car." MunroLivereported Tesla would save $114 per vehicle by eliminating USS. Users said they would have gladly paid the additional $114 to keep the system in the car.

However, this figure doesn't include the additional logistics needed to source, stock and maintain these sensors.

Munro takes a look at Tesla's USS

The biggest question about removing the USS system and going strictly with Vision is regarding accuracy. Tesla owners like pulling into parking spaces or garages and having the sensors indicate down to inches the distance to objects. The concern is that precision will be lost, and many people believe there is no way Vision can replace it.

But people were defending the switch. Callmesaul8889 posted: "Who said they don't know if they can guarantee feature parity? I've heard a bunch of Redditors claim that, but Tesla has explicitly said they feel they can match or exceed the USSs with Vision alone in the original announcement... I get the impression that some of you guys assume Tesla has a bunch of dumb dumb engineers who are constantly cutting costs without thinking of the consequences..."

Tesla anticipated these concerns when it announced it was removing USS. In that announcement, it stated: With today's software, this approach gives Autopilot high-definition spatial positioning, longer range visibility and ability to identify and differentiate between objects. As with many Tesla features, our occupancy network will continue to improve rapidly over time.

Many Reddit users who were more supportive of the Vision system believe it will reach parity with USS quickly, as the company said in the initial announcement. We will know when Tesla is confident with Vision when the non-polka dot vehicles get some features enabled.

For example, the non-USS Teslas will not be able to use Park Assist, Autopark, Summon or Smart Summon. But according to Tesla's website: once these features achieve performance parity with today's vehicles, they will be restored via a series of over-the-air software updates.

Another popular question was if the company would stop supporting the system in USS-enabled vehicles. Telsa posted: At this time, we do not plan to remove the functionality of ultrasonic sensors in our existing fleet. USS will be removed from the Model S and Model X in 2023.

The Kilowatts on Twitter took a close look at these new Teslas' cameras and discovered no significant differences between the two.

The repeater camera on a Tesla without USS compared to a current Tesla with USS

@klwtts/Twitter

Some speculated that Tesla would add a front bumper camera, but that doesn't appear to be the case. The biggest noticeable change is that the repeater cameras on the fenders appeared to have a slightly different housing. There's no word whether the lens itself, the sensor, or the angle of the camera is any different from previous Teslas.

Cybertruck

Since the Cybertruck's introduction, we've wondered how Tesla would integrate ultrasonic sensors into the vehicle, however, it looks like we now have our answer.

There's no question that this move cuts costs and reduces complexity for Tesla, allowing them to manufacture even more vehicles and increase operating profits. The only question is how close can Tesla's occupancy network get to the accuracy that ultrasonic sensors provide.

Cybertruck Unveiling in Five Minutes

Tesla Increases Price of Model S; Starts Offering Free Lifetime Supercharging

Not a Tesla App

For the first time in quite a while, Tesla has increased the price of one of its vehicle offerings. The Model S Long Range and the Model S Plaid have both received a hefty price increase. However, not all is bad - as Tesla also added a new benefit for buyers.

Price Increase

The price increase for the Model S is $5,000 - currently only in the United States. This price increase will likely impact other markets, including Canada, in the coming days.

The Model S Long Range now starts at $79,990, while the Model S Plaid now starts at $94,990. The Model S and Model X now have the same starting price. Interestingly, that’s also the same pricing point for the Cybertruck AWD and Cyberbeast Trimotor non-Foundation Series. 

The vehicle configuration does not appear to have changed, so the new pricing is simply an increase rather than the addition or removal of features. Tesla previously cut the price of the Model S and Model X by 15% in 2023, so this could simply be an adjustment to ensure that the vehicle pricing stays in line with inflation and other factors.

Free Lifetime Supercharging

For those on the fence about ordering a Model S, Tesla has brought back Free Lifetime Supercharging when you order a new Model S on or after December 13, 2024. As always, Free Lifetime Supercharging is restricted to the buyer’s Tesla account and to that specific vehicle. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle or another owner after ownership transfer. It’s worth noting, that it also doesn’t exclude the owner from receiving Supercharger idle fees or congestion fees. There is currently no end date for this promotion.

There are currently no changes to the Model X, neither a price increase nor the addition of Lifetime Superchargering. However, when Tesla makes changes to one of their premium vehicles, it usually affects the other one as well. So be on the lookout for potential changes to the Model X offering in the coming days.

We’ve seen Tesla value Lifetime Supercharging at $5,000, so this falls in line with the price increase we’re seeing. It’s possible that Tesla will begin to bring back Lifetime Supercharging as a perk for buying into their more premium Model S and Model X cars, or this could be another temporary promotion to get buyers who are on the fence to go ahead and make their purchase while this promotion lasts.

Follow

Follow

Follow

Tesla’s Optimus Robot Learns to Walk Without Vision [VIDEO]

Optimus Falls - but catches itself!

Not a Tesla App

Tesla recently showed off a demo of Optimus, its humanoid robot, walking around in moderately challenging terrain—not on a flat surface but on dirt and slopes. These things can be difficult for a humanoid robot, especially during the training cycle.

Daily walks help clear your mind pic.twitter.com/dUsW58trS6

— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) December 9, 2024

A Look Behind the Curtain

Most interestingly, Milan Kovac, VP of Engineering for Optimus, clarified what it takes to get Optimus to this stage. Let’s break down what he said.

Optimus is Blind

Optimus is getting seriously good at walking now - it can keep its balance over uneven ground - even while walking blind. Tesla is currently using just the sensors, all powered by a neural net running on the embedded computer. 

Essentially, Tesla is building Optimus from the ground up, relying on as much additional data as possible while it trains vision. This is similar to how they train FSD on vehicles, using LiDAR rigs to validate the vision system’s accuracy. While Optimus doesn’t have LiDAR, it relies on all those other sensors on board, many of which will likely become simplified as vision takes over as the primary sensor.

Today, Optimus is walking blind, but it’s able to react almost instantly to changes in the terrain underneath it, even if it falls or slips. 

What’s Next?

Next up, Tesla AI will be adding vision to Optimus - helping complete the neural net. Remember, Optimus runs on the same overall AI stack as FSD - in fact, Optimus uses an FSD computer and an offshoot of the FSD stack for vision-based tasks.

Milan mentions they’re planning on adding vision to help the robot plan ahead and improve its walking gait. While the zombie shuffle is iconic and a little bit amusing, getting humanoid robots to walk like humans is actually difficult.

There’s plenty more, too - including better responsiveness to velocity and direction commands and learning to fall and stand back up. Falling while protecting yourself to minimize damage is something natural to humans - but not exactly natural to something like a robot. Training it to do so is essential in keeping the robot, the environment around it, and the people it is interacting with safe.

We’re excited to see what’s coming with Optimus next because it is already getting started in some fashion in Tesla’s factories.

Follow

Follow

Follow