Tesla has added a mini player to the Model 3 and Model Y
Teslamaniacs
Tesla's holiday update, which is update 2022.44.25.1, is jammed full of goodies, many of which require a second look. There are significant changes for Model 3 and Model Y owners. In addition, some features drivers use to operate daily, have changed location, size, and functionality.
Music Player
This one may take some getting used to. There is now a new mini-player that splits the music area into two sections. A smaller module for media controls is on the bottom left of the screen. This allows the most used buttons to be closer to the driver.
Users can swipe up on the mini media player to reveal sources, including Apple Music, Spotify, Bluetooth etc. Once a source is selected, the details open up on the right-hand side of the screen for users to select songs or playlists.
The mini media player also allows users to scroll to recent and favorites, settings, and a search function can also be found in this small, reconfigured player. The mini-player will automatically collapse after a few seconds if left expanded.
In addition, Tesla has reintroduced cards that can be found by swiping on the media player in the lower left corner. Cards allow you to view your odometer, trip meter and tire pressure. You can see the new UI cards in action which we took an in-depth look at earlier this week.
Media Player in the Center
Unfortunately, the media player can not be placed back in its previous location. At least, not most of the time. If you're confused, you're not the only one. Here's a breakdown of what's possible. If the music panel is expanded to reveal your song selection, the media controls can be placed on top of that panel, but only when the mini player is hidden.
If the mini player is visible, then the song selection panel on the right will only display your songs/playlists, which does create some additional vertical room to display songs and or album art. However, there is no way to have just the media controls on the right side in a minimal sort of fashion as you could before.
Your choices for media controls are now one of three on the Model 3 and Model Y. You can have the mini player on the left side, which is essentially the new default. You can have the media controls on the right side, but only when the music selection panel is fully expanded (covering the map) and the mini player is hidden, or you can have the media controls hidden completely. If your music controls are hidden, a gray music icon appears in your launcher to bring them back up again.
This can all be a little confusing, and it'd be nice to see Tesla introduce a simple toggle to have the media controls on the left or right.
If you're viewing your tire pressure or odometer in the new UI cards, the media player will also jump back to the center area.
Navigation UI
Tesla has improved the layout of the navigation information
Teslamaniacs
Tesla has redesigned the navigation user interface (UI) layout, which improves the placement of directions, such as the next turn and other available options. Tesla has split the nav UI into two pieces. At the top of the screen will be critical information about the route, including next-turn directions.
The rest of the information, previously found at the top of the screen, is moved to the bottom. These details include travel time, destination details, and options to alter or cancel your navigation.
Both of these modules can be expanded to show more information. For example, swiping down on the top module will reveal additional turns along your route, while swiping up on the bottom module, or tapping the three dots will bring up additional route options such as adding a stop or editing your navigation preferences.
Your current location/town has also been shifted slightly. It used to be placed at the bottom center of the screen, but it's now been shifted slightly and is at the far corner of the display.
Fan Controls
You can now tap to change the fan speed and remain in Auto
Teslamaniacs
When your climate system is set to Auto, Tesla now uses a 'LO', 'MED', and 'HI' fan speed, instead of the previous 1-10 scale. The slider is now gone and replaced with buttons to decrease or increase the fan speed.
Tesla will no longer automatically turn off the Auto climate when you adjust the fan intensity. Even when the fan speed is modified, the HVAC system will remain in Auto.
Manual Mode
You can still use fan speeds 1-10 in manual mode
Walgermo/Twitter
If you turn off Auto on your climate system, you'll still have granular access to the fan speed controls with the old 1-10 scale. You now also have the option to tap or use a slider to adjust the fan speed. A new slider will appear above the climate section, or you can tap the arrows to adjust the fan speed just like you do in Auto.
HomeLink
Tesla has made improvements to the HomeLink UI
Walgermo/Twitter
Tesla has made improvements to HomeLink as well. When near your home location, the HomeLink icon will now display in the status bar at the top of the screen with an 'Activate' or 'Cancel' button.
The HomeLink dropdown will automatically disappear if you shift into reverse, but the option to activate your garage door will remain.
Furthermore, if you have auto-open or auto-close enabled, the status bar will now display the number of feet or meters before the garage door is opened or closed.
Video of UI Updates
There are many more additions and changes in the latest update, but these will impact the user the most. Tesla owners usually love to drive and are accustomed to seeing information displayed the same way in the exact location on the screen. So be sure to give yourself a little extra time to familiarize yourself with the new layout.
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Tesla has finally launched the refreshed Model Y Long Range Rear Wheel Drive (LR RWD) in the United States. While the refreshed Model Y RWD was available as a Launch-Series option in the Asia-Pacific and European markets, it wasn’t yet available at all in North America. Once the Launch Series stopped being offered, Tesla began shipping non-Launch Edition Model Y LR RWDs in Asia and Europe earlier this year, but didn’t bring it to the United States until now.
The LR RWD is one of Tesla’s most affordable vehicles, starting at $44,990 (or $37,490 after the Federal EV Rebate).
Model Y LR RWD
Spec-wise, the refreshed Model Y LR RWD is a compelling alternative to the AWD model. Tesla has kept the premium interior and audio options on the North American variant, so you get the full experience of the refreshed Model Y. You also get more range and faster charging than the AWD model. The only downside is that it’s two-wheel drive and slower acceleration. However, given the lower price and additional range, those may be worth the tradeoffs.
Vehicle
Range*
0-60mph
Charging Speed (15m)
2025 AWD
501 km / 310 mi
5.0s
239 km / 148 mi
2025 LR RWD
525 km / 326 mi
7.9s
250 km / 155 mi
2026 AWD (Juniper)
526 km / 327 mi
4.3s
266 km / 165 mi
2026 RWD (Juniper)
574 km / 357 mi
5.9s
271 km / 168 mi
*Listed ranges are EPA Ranges.
Pricing
All in all, you get a fantastic deal, given the lower price tag. The refreshed Model Y LR RWD is priced $4,000 less than the AWD version while still offering many of its attractive features.
Model
Price (USD)
Price (CAD)
2026 Model Y LR AWD
$48,990
$84,990*
2026 Model Y LR RWD
$44,990
Not available
*Post-tariff pricing.
Availability
The Long Range RWD is expected to begin shipping immediately in the United States. Tesla has not made the vehicle available in Mexico or Canada yet, likely due to tariff complications. Once the tariff rates settle, Tesla will likely look to export the vehicles from the U.S. to the other two North American countries.
With the arrival of the Long Range RWD variant, the last version we’re waiting for is the refreshed Model Y Performance. That’s likely to be an exciting vehicle, and we’re hopeful it will be in customers’ garages before the end of 2025.
Tesla is adjusting its Supercharger prices based on current usage in a new pilot program. Tesla’s pricing structure has typically revolved around traditional time-based peak/off-peak schedules but is now migrating to a more dynamic model based on live Supercharger utilization.
This development, announced officially through the Tesla Charging X account, should make Supercharger pricing more accurately reflect the demand for the specific Supercharger site instead of basing pricing on past usage.
Live Utilization Pricing
The core of this new pilot will launch at just 10 Supercharger sites in North America. The particular sites in question have not been clarified, but one of the locations is the Supercharger located in Davis, California.
Tesla intends to expand the pilot based on feedback and the success of the initial rollout. We could be looking at the future of Supercharger pricing around the globe.
New Chart and Features
Today, Tesla typically offers two or three prices based on peak and off-peak demand, meaning that Supercharger prices are based on the hour of the day. The current Supercharger chart in the vehicle shows the hours and price on the X-axis, while the Y-axis is the typical demand (image below).
The current chart for Superchargers versus the new one at the top of the page
Not a Tesla App
However, with the new charts that will soon be added to vehicles, Tesla will display the time on the X-axis, and the Y-axis will show the historical demand and the current price (photo at the top of this page).
In theory, the Supercharger's historical demand and real-time usage should be pretty similar, but there will be exceptions, like holidays and other events. Unexpected high and low usage will play a role in the pricing, such as sporting events and natural disasters. If the Supercharger is busy, then pricing will be high; otherwise, it will be low.
This also introduces a new feature, since pricing is now based on actual demand, users could navigate to a Supercharger that is less busy and, therefore, cheaper. In the hero image, we can see that Tesla will add a new “Find Lower Price Charging” button in a future vehicle update. This will likely highlight other nearby Superchargers that are less busy and less expensive.
However, it seems like Tesla may also start charging more for Superchargers than they do today when they’re extremely busy. Judging by the screenshot Tesla shared, the estimated usage never passed the $0.45 per kWh at the Davis, CA Supercharger. However, it seems that there’s a new price of $0.54 per kWh when the Supercharger usage is at its peak.
The good news is that Tesla is being more transparent and indicating whether the price is low or high with new labels. This change will give users more choices in terms of charging prices. If you want to save a few bucks, you can drive to a less busy Supercharger. The price will also be based on actual usage, which seems like a fairer way to determine price.
While Tesla hasn’t updated vehicles yet to show these new charts, the latest version of the Tesla app already incorporates the changes.
What Tesla Says
Max de Zegher, Tesla’s Director of Charging, elaborated on the pilot program on X.
He points out that Tesla Charging’s rates have been consistent, and it has focused on improving the charging experience and availability. Off-peak and on-peak pricing will help to increase both of these.
Tesla has outlined exactly how this new live feedback loop will function. The more accurate real-time station demand can allow Tesla to adjust pricing if a station is experiencing congestion during traditionally “off-peak” hours. On the flipside, if a station is unusually empty, Tesla can reduce the pricing.
This easily incentivizes customers who are keeping an eye on charging costs, as changing your charging destination can be as simple as the tap of a button. Most interestingly, Tesla says that the average price paid by customers is expected to remain the same as with the previous time-based system, even with seasonal and real-time fluctuations.
Crucially, owners can always see the price per kWh on their vehicle’s primary display, as well as in the Tesla app before initiating a charging session. Additionally, Tesla will not change the pricing mid-charge, so there’s no need to worry about it fluctuating up or down while you’re charging.
When reading some of our old blog posts, you'll find that @TeslaCharging has been consistent in its pricing principles: improving the charging experience and Supercharger availability. True to those principles, we're now piloting live site utilization for off-peak and on-peak… https://t.co/rIqQzOZfcG
This move to live-based pricing is being presented as Tesla’s latest step towards managing its vast charging network with a more customer-centric approach. Tesla has had some historical progression in its pricing strategy, so let’s take a look at where we were versus where we are going.
kWh-Based Billing: Tesla has long pushed for billing by the kilowatt-hour (kWh) as the fairest method for customers to pay for the exact energy consumed, avoiding session fees that can obscure actual energy costs. This is now standard in most regions, but it wasn’t too long ago that pricing was determined by the minute.
Idle Fees (2017): To address vehicles remaining plugged in after charging was complete at busy sites, idle fees were implemented to improve stall availability – a practice now common across the industry.
80% SoC Limiter (2019): At busy locations, Tesla introduced an automatic 80% state-of-charge (SoC) charging limit (which users can manually override) to encourage faster turnover, as the final 20% of charging is significantly slower.
Time-Based Peak/Off-Peak Pricing (2020): Pricing based on estimated busy times was rolled out to incentivize charging during less congested periods, helping to distribute demand and manage costs.
Congestion Fees (2023): At particularly busy sites, congestion fees were introduced. These combine the principles of idle fees with disincentivizing charging to a very high state of charge when a station is crowded, with the stated goal of improving availability, not generating profit.
Commitment to Affordability
Alongside these pricing changes, Tesla has reiterated its focus on keeping Supercharging affordable for all its users. Tesla points out that, on average, in North America and Europe, Tesla’s Superchargers are 30% cheaper than other fast-charging options while also being far more reliable.
Beyond that, 2025 is set to be Tesla’s largest year for expanding the Supercharger network while also replacing many older V2 charging sites with faster, more capable V4 Supercharger stations.
