Tesla Model S and X to Gain Ambient Lighting and Front Bumper Camera

This will have a minor refresh for the Model S and Model X

Edmunds

Tesla has found itself in a bit of a pickle. Its flagship vehicles, the Model S and Model X now have a similar feature set as the recently released new Model 3. While the new Model 3 does have an improved suspension, the Model S, Model X, and soon the Cybertruck are still the only Tesla vehicles with an air suspension. However, the new Model 3 now includes many features that were previously exclusive to the Model S/X, such as ventilated seats, a quieter cabin, and a rear screen, reducing the feature set gap between Tesla's economy and luxury lines.

Ambient Lighting for Model S & X

However, it looks like the Model S and X will be catching up in some regards. Greentheonly was able to find references to the Model S/X receiving the same RGB ambient lighting treatment as the new Model 3. The references were discovered in one of Tesla's recent firmware updates. As Green points out, Tesla is much more careful nowadays to include any code that may reveal upcoming features. Given the discovery, he believes that Tesla is already implementing or will soon start implementing the feature on its assembly lines.

Upcoming Minor Refresh

One of our sources has confirmed that the S/X will not only receive Tesla's latest interior lighting feature in an upcoming refresh, but that it will also be outfitted with a front bumper camera. It's unknown whether Tesla will introduce both these features simultaneously or in a phased manner. Considering Tesla's known strategy of incorporating upgrades as they deplete available parts, it wouldn't be surprising if they took the latter route.

Model Y Envy

After Tesla China's surprising reveal of an upgraded Model Y with some modifications like adding ambient lighting to the dashboard, the spotlight is now turning to what's in store for the Model S and Model X. The Model Y's changes, touted as its "evolutionary debut" by Tesla China on its official Weibo account came out of nowhere.

Ambient Lighting is a Must

Ambient lighting has always been a staple in luxury car interiors, enhancing the ambiance and offering a more sophisticated driving experience. For years, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Jaguar, Porsche, Volvo, and others have used ambient lighting, also known as mood lighting. That didn't seem to matter all that much to the Model S and Model X, which have worked their way up the luxury brand market.

But now that ambient lighting is in the Model Y, Model 3, and the upcoming Cybertruck, the omission of the features from the luxury models is noticeable.

With the Model Y's recent update featuring ambient lighting on its dash and front doors, there is speculation about the extent to which this feature will be introduced in the S and X. Will Tesla stick to the approach seen in the Model Y, or will they amplify the luxury feel with an almost 360-degree wraparound, similar to the new Model 3?

Front Camera

In addition to ambient lighting, the Model S and Model X will get a front bumper camera. We expected to see it in the Model 3 refresh. Still, it mysteriously didn't make the long list of changes when the car was revealed, even though the camera was spotted in various Tesla photos. However, the Cybertruck does have a front bumper camera.

It's not known if the front bumper will be used to improve Autopilot and Full Self Driving or if it could be more about enhancing parking assist capabilities. The front camera is not available in the existing fleet, which would put those vehicles at a disadvantage if FSD utilizes the camera in future updates.

With the last quarter of the year unfolding, Tesla enthusiasts and potential buyers have much to look forward to. A new Model 3, slightly refreshed Model Y, the Cybertruck, and maybe even an enhanced Model S and X are yet to arrive before Santa.

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An In-Depth Look at Tesla's New Music Player in Update 2024.14 [Photos & Video]

One of the exciting new features of Tesla update 2024.14 is the improved media player for the Model 3 and Model Y.

Tesla's media player has gone through some drastic changes over the years, but this appears to be the best revision yet.

The previous media player had four states... yes, four. It made for a confusing experience, even for owners who used the car every day.

The four states included:

• The "default" state included a small player closest to the driver with some of the most used buttons

• The second state was the enlarged view when you dragged up on the media player that revealed additional buttons such as shuffle and search

• There was also its minimized state, which placed the music player’s icon in the dock and led to confusion

• And lastly, if you had a music service open fully on the right part of the screen AND minimized the media player, then the player would hop over to the top of the larger music panel on the right.

It created for an inconsistent experience and all of the players had their downsides. There just wasn’t a solution that worked all of the time. Thankfully the new music player addresses most of these issues.

Tesla used to have a media player that ran along the bottom of the right part of the screen

What’s New

The first thing Tesla did was reduce the number of states essentially down to two. You have a regular media player and a minimized player. You don't have to drag up on the player to access the shuffle or search functions and you can’t “lose” the player by minimizing it to the dock anymore.

One-Tap Access to Shuffle, Repeat and Search

What Tesla did was move all of the crucial media functions from the previous larger player directly to the main player. This now gives you one-tap access to functions like shuffle, repeat, search, playback speed, audio levels, and search.

Not only were these functions hard to access before, but they were hidden underneath the player, making discovery for new owners difficult.

Improved Progress Bar

The progress bar on the previous player was difficult to see since it was just a slim line at the bottom of the player.

The new player has a thicker progress bar that separates the top portion of the player, which houses the album art, song title, and a couple of functions, and the bottom portion, which contains more controls. Tesla also added a circle to the progress bar, making it more obvious you can not only scrub through the media but also lets you easily see your current spot.

Accessing More Functions

More music player options open to the right

Since the larger media player was removed, so was some of the functionality that it included. All the important items were moved to the main media player such as audio settings and search, however, the other functionality such as access to Favorites, Sources, Recent Songs, and Next, was moved to the larger music app.

If you tap on the new music player, it’ll open up the current music app on the right side that includes music controls, as well as access to your favorites, music sources, upcoming songs and more.

This is also the only way to view the elapsed and remaining times for the current selection, which is useful for longer median such as audiobooks or podcasts.

New Minimized Player

Although the music player doesn't minimize to the dock, it does feature a minimalist version that docks to the bottom of the screen.

When you slide down on the audio player, it'll be reduced to a simple "one-line" player. It simply shows a music icon, the name of the title being played, and an arrow showing you the player can be made larger. There is no longer a gray music icon that appears in the dock when the player is in its “minimized” state.

The new music player no longer minimizes to the dock

Modern UI

The player itself also looks more modern, it now features a translucent background, instead of a solid color like before. The new background lets vehicle animations subtly shine through, a lot like the effects used on modern operating systems.

What Models Will Support It

According to Tesla’s social media post on X, the ‘Visual updates’ in update 2024.14 are limited to AMD Ryzen-based Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, meaning only vehicles manufactured after about 2022+. The exact timeline depends on your vehicle and region, but you can check to see which processor your vehicle includes by navigating to Controls > Software > Additional Vehicle Information.

New Player in Action [Video]

DominicBRNKMN shows off the new music player in action below.

Will We See Intel Atom Support?

The new music player isn’t doing anything crazy in this latest iteration. We believe we'll see this updated player come to Intel Atom vehicles eventually. The Cybertruck already includes the new media player, among the other design changes, so when Tesla said only for “Model 3/Y with AMD chip” on X, they likely meant in this specific update.

There's nothing that’s more computationally intensive about this new player except for maybe the translucent background, however, that’s already being done on Intel-based vehicles for some of the navigation modules. There isn’t anything new that the slower Intel processor couldn't handle.

It’s in Tesla’s best interest to keep a common interface between vehicles. Tesla wouldn't want to drastically change the way a common item like the "radio" works between different Model 3 and Model Y years if they didn't have to. That would complicate issues with service and documentation. Tesla wants owners to have the same UI as much as possible, so we there’s a good chance that we’ll see the new media player apply to Intel in the future.

Hopefully, in an upcoming update, Intel owners will receive this streamlined music player. Update 2024.14 is currently rolling out slowly to some vehicles. 

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Tesla Vehicles are the Cheapest to Maintain and Repair According to Consumer Reports Study

Consumer Reports

Tesla cars are the cheapest to maintain and repair according to a new study by Consumer Reports. Elon Musk commented on the survey on X emphasising that Tesla is “the lowest car to maintain”.

The study, which includes data from thousands of car owners in the US, was recently published and shows that Teslas averaged only $580 in maintenance and repair costs over the first five years of ownership. From years six through ten, the costs increased to $3,455, which brings the total to $4,035 for the first ten years of ownership — the lowest of any vehicle tested. It’s worth noting that the average length of car ownership in the U.S. is about 8 years. 

Buick and Toyota fall right below Tesla (both at $4,900) with Lincoln and Ford closing the top 5 with $5,040 and $5,400 respectively for maintenance and repair costs in a 10-year ownership.

German premium automakers BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz are among the 5 most expensive on the list with 10-year costs reaching $9,500, $9,890 and $10,525, respectively. The trio is only surpassed by the luxury German automaker Porsche with an average cost of $14,090 and Land Rover closes the list at $19,250. 

Car Maintenance

Vehicles with internal combustion engines (ICE) require additional maintenance, not only oil changes, but drive belts, transmission oil changes, coolant flushes, and more. Not only that, but ICE cars have more moving parts that decrease the reliability of the vehicle and can cause additional repairs such as transmission issues, clogged fuel filters or injectors, faulty spark plugs and the list goes on and on.

Since electric vehicles use regenerative braking to slow the vehicle down, brake pads also last much longer, sometimes lasting over 100k miles. This reduces wear on the brake pads, and rotors and even reduces brake dust on your wheels.

“EVs are cheaper to maintain, look after, and certainly to service,” says Matt Cleevely, from Cleevely Motors to Wired magazine adding that EVs “have half as many moving parts and require no regular oil changes”.

In Tesla’s case, the automaker suggests Model 3 owners replace the cabin air filter and HEPA filter every three years, check brake fluid every two years, and clean and lubricate the brake calipers every year or 12,500 miles, in areas where the roads are salted during the winter.

Gas Savings

These maintenance savings are only a small part of the reason why electric vehicles are cheaper to use for daily driving. Another large portion of savings comes from fuel costs. Tesla often promotes their vehicles’ gas savings on their website. For example, the Model Y has an estimated gas savings of $6,000 in the U.S. over the first five years of ownership alone. The savings may be even greater in other parts of the world where gas may be more expensive. After taking those savings into account, the world’s best-selling vehicle in 2023 starts at $29,490 after gas savings and the U.S. federal tax credit — and that’s before you include maintenance cost and time savings.

Cheapest cars to maintenance and repair through 10-years of ownership

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