Tesla has publicly released FSD Beta v11.3.1 to some owners
Tesla
After many months of waiting, Tesla has finally released its next major update to FSD Beta. Early this morning Tesla released FSD Beta v11.3.1 to some of its customers.
Most of the customers that received this latest beta were part of Tesla's initial 1,000 public beta testers. This means that only a fraction of a percentage of FSD Beta users have access to this latest beta.
According to the NHTSA, Tesla now has over 362,000 owners who have FSD Beta installed on their vehicles.
Per Elon Musk's previous comments on Twitter, Tesla expects to release bug fixes to this beta before releasing this beta out more widely. He expects FSD Beta v11.3.2 to be the one that goes out widely to Tesla's customers.
Big Improvements with 'OTA Recall'
Another major change that we're seeing with FSD Beta v11.3.1 is the inclusion of fixes that address the NHTSA's concerns with the beta.
The NHTSA brought up several concerns with Tesla's FSD Beta in mid-February and Tesla paused the release of FSD Beta to new owners until the issues were addressed.
However, Tesla wasted no time addressing these issues by including fixes in FSD Beta 11.3.1 less than a month later.
The fixes address several safety issues, including the vehicle being more cautious when approaching yellow lights. According to the release notes FSD Beta will now take more things into account before going through a yellow light; considering things such as the amount of time needed to stop, time needed to drive through the intersection, the position of the vehicle, and the amount of time before the light turns red.
This is certainly impressive, and while it's essentially what we as humans do when encountering a yellow light, the precision and speed that FSD Beta can likely calculate these values will likely be far better than a human's.
Another large fix addresses how the vehicle sets its speed and handles speed limit signs. Previously the vehicle would determine its speed based on the speed limit and the driver's chosen speed offset. However, the problem was that the vehicle would only adjust its speed once it had passed a new speed limit sign, causing it to be over the speed limit for a certain period.
With this update, FSD Beta will now adjust the vehicle's speed before reaching a detected speed limit sign. The vehicle will also be more assertive in slowing down if the new speed limit sign is much lower than the vehicle's current speed.
Voice Drive-Notes
With this beta Tesla has included 'voice drive-notes.' This appeared to be Tesla's replacement for the snapshot button, although early testers appear to have both, the snapshot button and voice drive-notes. Upon a disengagement, the driver is presented with a chance to provide more detailed feedback on the disengagement through an audio recording.
Ironically, this feature doesn't appear in Tesla's FSD Beta v11.3.1 release notes like it did in v11.3, but according to beta testers the feature is there.
Tesla's improvements to AEB went beyond the standard functionality, adding the ability to detect and react to vehicles that cross the car's path or steal the right of way, such as a vehicle that runs a red light or cuts off the Tesla.
According to Tesla, nearly half of the collisions of this nature would be avoided with this newly expanded system. From Tesla's release notes in FSD Beta v11.3, Tesla stated:
Expanded Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) to handle vehicles that cross ego's path. This includes cases where other vehicles run their red light or turn across ego's path, stealing the right-of-way. Replay of previous collisions of this type suggests that 49% of the events would be mitigated by the new behavior. This improvement is now active in both manual driving and autopilot operation.
This feature is also not mentioned in Tesla's release notes for v11.3.1 so it's unclear whether it's just not mentioned like Tesla's voice drive-notes, or if the feature is not included in this update. It's certainly understandable if Tesla needs to test it further, as v11.3 was an internal-only beta and not all features are expected to be in the following public release.
Different Release Notes
There may be other differences between FSD Beta v11.3.1 and v11.3 since the release notes vary quite drastically. However, it's not clear if Tesla simply chose to highlight different features in the release notes of the public release.
Release to All
As with most Tesla updates, expect this update to roll out slowly as Tesla closely monitors it. Depending on issues discovered, Tesla may either expand the update to more owners or choose to address issues before distributing it further.
In the past, it has taken up to a month before the latest FSD Beta is available to all available owners. Before sure to check out the release notes for FSD Beta v11.3.1 to see everything that's included.
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date on the latest Tesla news, upcoming features and software updates.
Tesla recently introduced Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) payment options in the United States and Canada for items in the Tesla Shop, letting owners pay later for new vehicle accessories.
However, with Tesla app update 4.46, they’re expanding support to a much more critical area — Tesla Service. Qualifying owners in the U.S. and Canada will now be able to use Pay Later options for service performed by Tesla, which includes maintenance or repairs.
Services are provided by Affirm and Klarna, as per Mark Fonte, a Senior Software Engineer working on the Tesla app.
The new feature is seamlessly integrated into the existing service workflow within the Tesla app.
On the Service Estimate, before work on the vehicle begins, you will see a new message on the estimate screen: Pay over time - see if you qualify.
Tapping this link opens the payment calculator, which allows you to view potential payment structures and monthly costs. This provides a clear picture of what a payment plan would look like before you commit to servicing your vehicle.
Additionally, after service is complete and you are ready to pay, the final payment screen will present Affirm and Klarna (region-dependent) as selectable payment methods, alongside the usual options of Tesla Credit or your primary payment card.
Tapping Affirm or Klarna here will reopen the payment calculator, and a confirmation prompt will appear before selecting either BNPL option.
Service Now, Pay Later
Overall, the integration of BNPL providers for service is a thoughtful one for vehicle owners. The terms can vary widely, so it’s important to compare them to other payment options you may have access to. The additional financial flexibility, when faced with a large repair bill, allows more owners to get their vehicle professionally and properly serviced by Tesla.
For those getting larger work done, such as high-voltage battery pack replacements, this is an excellent option to spread payments over a longer period, helping reduce the burden of vehicle repair.
With the launch of Tesla’s Robotaxi Network, we didn't just get a peek into the future of transportation—we got a detailed look at the next version of FSD.
Videos from early access riders revealed some additional capabilities over current public FSD builds, showing off how it handles emergency vehicles and more.
Safety First for First Responders
One of the biggest changes in FSD’s capabilities is its improved handling of emergency vehicles. During a ride in Austin, Robotaxi is seen identifying an approaching ambulance using a combination of visual and audio data, activating its turn signal, and smoothly pulling over to the side of the road to let the ambulance by (video below).
This is a driving task that requires more than simple awareness of laws. It requires reasoning skills to determine where to move the vehicle to create a safe path, as well as the ability to quickly identify an ambulance or another emergency service vehicle with its sirens and lights activated. Understanding the context and executing a safe and predictable maneuver is crucial, as a wrong maneuver could actually make matters worse.
For FSD and Robotaxi to gain both public trust and regulatory approval, this skill is non-negotiable, and Tesla demonstrated its advancements right here. It’s not surprising Tesla added this ability before Robotaxis made it to public roads.
How does a fleet of Robotaxis keep its eyes clean without constant human intervention? Well, a clever new feature that Tesla has previously hinted at in their FSD release notes provides the answer. Robotaxi can now trigger a specific wiper and washer fluid sequence designed to clean the main front-facing cameras.
This might seem like a small detail, but it’s a brilliant solution to one of Tesla’s primary challenges - maintaining sensor clarity. While the vehicle could simply wipe the windshield multiple times, this is a clever solution to clean the most important area of the windshield as thoroughly as possible by focusing extra wiper fluid and wipes on that area.
Complex Maneuvers
Two areas where current builds of FSD V13.2.9 sometimes show hesitation are U-turns and navigating busy parking lots. The latest Robotaxi build appears to improve on both of these areas.
This first video shows a Robotaxi performing a flawless U-turn with no hesitation, and then smoothly switching lanes to take a turn.
Another video on X shows FSD’s updated confidence in navigating a complex parking lot for a precise drop-off. Today’s builds can sometimes struggle in parking lots, being slow and overly cautious when not needed, or too confident elsewhere. This appears to have been improved in these Robotaxi FSD builds with improved path planning and confidence.
Tesla Robotaxi service is just so smooth. Handles parking lots very well, noticeably better than the competitors pic.twitter.com/D5OxSrajCW
We’re also likely to see FSD begin to handle more complex destination options, including parking garages and driveways, which have been promised features for almost a year. The Robotaxi FSD build has also gained the ability to safely pull over on a road, similar to the ambulance example above, but it uses this capability to drop off and pick up passengers. This is a feature that was mentioned in FSD v13.2’s Upcoming Improvements section.
Better Nighttime Performance
Driving at night presents additional challenges, including headlight glare and reduced visibility. The latest version of FSD appears to handle it with almost the same grace as it does during the day. Remember that Tesla’s Robotaxis are available up until midnight. Early access riders mentioned that FSD is far smoother and is a step up from the behavior of current FSD builds.
Impressive nighttime performance from Tesla Robotaxi, dropping us off at In-N-Out as smoothly as it did during the day. pic.twitter.com/yQOhphtR0q
Now, what happens when a passenger feels unsafe or has a critical question? Tesla has placed two key buttons on the rear screen for just those purposes. Users are given control over the ability to Call Support, which almost instantly connects them with a real human agent at Tesla’s Robotaxi Operations Center via video call.
Here’s what happens when you hit the support button in Tesla’s Robotaxi’s.
While it isn’t a fundamental driving feature, it does mean that Tesla’s team can provide support to Robotaxi vehicles remotely, like issuing directive commands to have a vehicle proceed straight, rather than attempting to turn through a gated community.
The other option, Pull Over, allows a rider to immediately request the vehicle to safely pull over, which it will do when it can find a safe and open location. At this point, you can either continue your trip or get out of the Robotaxi.
Both options prompt you with an “Are You Sure?” button before letting you continue, which means you won’t have your Robotaxi ride come to an abrupt stop if you tap the ‘Pull Over’ button by accident.
What This Means for Tesla Owners
These features are likely to be included in future FSD builds. This is essentially the new benchmark by which to judge FSD, at least once it begins rolling out to customer vehicles.
Many of the core driving improvements, such as the more confident maneuvering and emergency vehicle response, will make their way to the wider fleet in upcoming FSD updates.
Remember - Robotaxi isn’t just a service, it is also a preview of Tesla’s driverless FSD builds.