Tesla Unveils Striking New Stealth Grey Color

Stealth Grey is now available for the Model S and Model X

Tesla

Tesla has introduced a new color for the Model S and Model X: Stealth Grey. This fresh addition, showcased in a dynamic video on X, offers a sleek and sophisticated choice for the Model S and Model X.

For a company that doesn't advertise much, it certainly hit up the excitement with a video posted on X. Capturing the essence of the new Stealth Grey, the footage highlights the color's depth and sophistication. The first glance at this hue suggests a deeper version of the Midnight Silver that has been punted from the lineup.

Stealth Grey Joins the Ranks at No Extra Cost

What makes Stealth Grey an even more appealing choice for prospective Tesla owners is its accessibility. Unlike previous times, when opting for a color other than the standard meant additional costs, Tesla has included Stealth Grey in the base price of both the Model S and Model X. This inclusion follows a trend of recent price adjustments by Tesla.

Global Availability and Future Expansion

Initially rolled out for the Model S and Model X, the excitement around Stealth Grey isn't limited to North American markets. Tesla has also announced its availability for the new Model 3 in Europe and Asia. This move suggests that Tesla might be planning to make the new hue available across other models and regions in the near future. Stealth Grey for the new Model 3 is one of the more expensive colors, along with Ultra Red. It's not clear whether Tesla will offer the current Model 3 or the Model Y in Stealth Grey in the future.

Looking Forward: Tesla's Colorful Horizon

The introduction of Stealth Grey is not a solitary incident. A year ago, in October 2022, Tesla's Giga Berlin factory began rolling out vehicles in the stunning Quicksilver and Midnight Cherry Red. Since then, we've eagerly awaited these colors to make their way to other regions.

While speaking on the Ride the Lightning podcast, Franz von Holzhausen, Tesla's Chief Designer, stirred up the excitement. Though always careful with his words, he dropped strong hints about North America, soon witnessing an infusion of new shades. His genuine enthusiasm for the colors developed at Fremont with his team was evident as he spoke about how photos don't do justice to these shades. To truly appreciate their beauty, one must see them firsthand.

Tesla has historically maintained a simple yet elegant color palette for its models, reminiscent of Henry Ford's famous sentiment about the Model T only being available in black. From the start with the Model 3, Tesla kept the options concise, with a black color variant being the standard and other hues costing a bit more. This limitation was in the spirit of streamlining production, especially during challenging ramp-up periods. However, times change, and Tesla appears to be embracing a more colorful future.

With all the attention on Cybertruck, Tesla is quietly working on the real game changer. Somewhere in Tesla's research and development is the Model 2, the next-gen, more affordable Tesla. It is the car that Tesla predicts will sell more than all of its other vehicles - combined!

The company has long been known for its futuristic and sleek designs, with the upcoming Model 2 touted as the most affordable and utilitarian offering yet. Yes, utilitarian were the words used by Elon Musk as he reiterated the primary focus for the Model 2 would be simplicity in design, manufacturing efficiency, and affordability.

But how might this vision translate into the actual car design? We have a few ideas using some hints and some lessons from the past. For simplicity's sake, we will refer to the next-gen car as the Model 2 in this article.

Teardrop Shape: Aerodynamic Mastery

Arguably the most aerodynamic shape for cars, the teardrop design minimizes drag, which is crucial for electric vehicles where range is paramount. The Model 2 could integrate this shape, focusing on the perfect harmony of form and function.

A vehicle is yet to be produced, but it has shown this design and how Tesla could use it. Aptera knows that in vehicle efficiency, drag coefficients are king. It is a crucial metric denoting aerodynamic resistance: while a Toyota Corolla registers at 0.29 and the Tesla Model 3 impresses with 0.23, the Aptera records 0.13. To put that in perspective, the bottlenose dolphin puts up a 0.1.

When McLaren set out to conceive their swiftest road-going model, it didn't merely optimize the engine; it sculpted the very form of the car itself. The McLaren Speedtail's streamlined silhouette, exemplified by its elongated tail, the omission of conventional side mirrors, and aerodynamic front wheel covers, is a testament to this design philosophy.

Three Wheels: Sneak Peak Lines up with Aptera

An image in the Walter Isaacson books seems to be a mock-up of a Model 2. Take a good look at both the product and the pictures on the wall behind it. It appears to be a three-wheel, tear-shaped vehicle. Aptera also has three wheels. The company says it "leads the pack by having the least "rolling resistance" â€" the energy needed to keep your tires rolling at a straight and steady pace."

Going to three wheels reduces the touch points and areas where energy can be lost. It could incorporate unconventional headlights or eliminate the traditional trunk. The Aptera's radically efficient design offers a glimpse of such out-of-the-box thinking.

Rethinking Doors and the Frunk: Simplifying Structure

While a four-door design is conventional, a two-door Model 2 would be simpler and likely cheaper to manufacture. Moreover, since the frunk primarily serves as storage in electric vehicles, Tesla could consider eliminating it altogether. This recalls Volkswagen's audacious 1-litre car concept, which featured gullwing doors and a futuristic design.

But we don't need to go back that far, as again, we can point to Aptera's design. The two-door, two-seater has storage room but certainly not to the same level as a Model 3. Given this Model 2 is going to be a point A to point B car, how much storage space is required?

Aero Wheel Design: Balancing Aesthetics with Efficiency

Tesla's Model 3 aero wheels have already demonstrated the balance between aesthetics and efficiency, offering up to a 3.4% boost in range. The Model 2 could take this further by fully enclosing the wheels or adopting innovative designs similar to the McLaren Speedtail's aerodynamic front wheel covers. It could go even further than that; see the next point.

Fender Skirts: Maximizing Range

Historically, fender skirts have shown a marked improvement in fuel efficiency. The original Honda Insight from 1999 achieved a drag coefficient of 0.25 with its covered rear wheels. By re-introducing fender skirts, Tesla could further streamline its impressive aerodynamics, extending the Model 2's range. But, as General Motors pointed out, this could require certain design adjustments, like narrower rear tires, to maintain safety and handling.

Mirrorless Design: Reducing Drag

Mirrors add drag, and if Tesla can persuade regulators, a mirrorless design would make the Model 2 even more streamlined. Replacing mirrors with cameras has been around for a while. Still, Tesla could be the one to popularize this in mass-market EVs. The company has already been touting this as a feature for the Cybertruck. However, some jurisdictions require external mirrors. At some point during the evolution of the car, regulators must understand that camera technology is superior to mirrors.

While these speculations are based on current trends and historical data, one thing is certain: Tesla's Model 2 will challenge conventions. As the company delves deeper into achieving unmatched manufacturing efficiency and affordability, the Model 2 will likely carry Tesla's legacy of innovation.

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Tesla Plans Massive 10x Robotaxi Expansion: A Look at the Potential New Area

The map above compares Tesla's current geofence with their potential expansion in yellow.

Not a Tesla App

With Tesla’s first major expansion of the Robotaxi Geofence now complete and operational, they’ve been hard at work with validation in new locations - and some are quite the drive from the current Austin Geofence.

Validation fleet vehicles have been spotted operating in a wider perimeter around the city, from rural roads in the west end to the more complex area closer to the airport. Tesla mentioned during their earnings call that the Robotaxi has already completed 7,000 miles in Austin, and it will expand its area of operation to roughly 10 times what it is now. This lines up with the validation vehicles we’ve been tracking around Austin.

Based on the spread of the new sightings, the potential next geofence could cover a staggering 450 square miles - a tenfold increase from the current service area of roughly 42 square miles.

If Tesla decides to expand into these new areas, it would represent a tenfold increase over their current geofence, matching Tesla’s statement. The new area would cover approximately 10% of the 4,500-square-mile Austin metropolitan area. If Tesla can offer Robotaxi services in that entire area, it would prove they can tackle just about any city in the United States.

In the map below, the blue icons are sightings of Tesla validation vehicles, while the yellow map area represents their potential expansion. The map overlays Tesla’s phases 1 and 2 and compares them to Waymo’s first two phases. You can toggle each one by tapping the icon at the top left and choosing which geofences you’d like to view.

From Urban Core to Rural Roads

The locations of the validation vehicles show a clear intent to move beyond the initial urban and suburban core and prepare the Robotaxi service for a much wider range of uses.

In the west, validation fleet vehicles have been spotted as far as Marble Falls - a much more rural environment that features different road types, higher speed limits, and potentially different challenges. 

In the south, Tesla has been expanding towards Kyle, which is part of the growing Austin-San Antonio suburban corridor spanning Highway 35. San Antonio is only 80 miles (roughly a 90-minute drive) away, and could easily become part of the existing Robotaxi area if Tesla obtains regulatory approval there.

In the East, we haven’t spotted any new validation vehicles. This is likely because Tesla’s validation vehicles originate from Giga Texas, which is located East of Austin. We won’t really know if Tesla is expanding in this direction until they start pushing past Giga Texas and toward Houston.

Finally, there have been some validation vehicles spotted just North of the new expanded boundaries, meaning that Tesla isn’t done in that direction either. This direction consists of the largest suburban areas of Austin, which have so far not been serviced by any form of autonomous vehicle.

Rapid Scaling

This new, widespread validation effort confirms what we already know. Tesla is pushing for an intensive period of public data gathering and system testing in a new area, right before conducting geofence expansions. The sheer scale of this new validation zone tells us that Tesla isn’t taking this slowly - the next step is going to be a great leap instead, and they essentially confirmed this during this Q&A session on the recent call. The goal is clearly to bring the entire Austin Metropolitan area into the Robotaxi Network.

While the previous expansion showed off just how Tesla can scale the network, this new phase of validation testing is a demonstration of just how fast they can validate and expand their network. The move to validate across rural, suburban, and urban areas simultaneously shows their confidence in these new Robotaxi FSD builds.

Eventually, all these improvements from Robotaxi will make their way to customer FSD builds sometime in Q3 2025, so there is a lot to look forward to.

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No Driver Needed: Tesla FSD Stops at Toll, Waits for Driver to Pay and Takes Off Again [VIDEO]

@DirtyTesLa on X

For years, the progress of Tesla’s FSD has been measured by smoother turns, better lane centering, and more confident unprotected left turns. But as the system matures, a new, more subtle form of intelligence is emerging - one that shifts its attention to the human nuances of navigating roads. A new video posted to X shows the most recent FSD build, V13.2.9, demonstrating this in a remarkable real-world scenario.

Toll Booth Magic

In the video, a Model Y running FSD pulls up to a toll booth and smoothly comes to a stop, allowing the driver to handle payment. The car waits patiently as the driver interacts with the attendant. Then, at the precise moment the toll booth operator finishes the transaction and says “Have a great day”, the vehicle starts moving, proceeding through the booth - all without any input from the driver.

If you notice, there’s no gate here at this toll booth. This interaction all happened naturally with FSD.

FSD 13.2.9 pulls up to a toll booth, waits for me to complete my transaction, then pulls away without a gate. 😳 Incredible. https://t.co/OsH1YAY8Ty pic.twitter.com/9hWAbLNrVa

— Dirty Tesla (@DirtyTesLa) July 27, 2025

How It Really Works

While the timing was perfect, the FSD wasn’t listening to the conversation for clues (maybe one day, with Grok?) The reality, as explained by Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s VP of AI, is even more impressive.

It can see the transaction happening using the repeater & pillar cameras. Hence FSD proceeds on its own when the transaction is complete 😎

— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) July 27, 2025

FSD is simply using the cameras on the side of the vehicle to watch the exchange between the driver and attendant. The neural network has been trained on enough data that it can visually recognize the conclusion of a transaction - the exchange of money or a card and the hands pulling away - and understands that this is the trigger to proceed.

The Bigger Picture

This capability is far more significant than just a simple party trick. FSD is gaining the ability to perceive and navigate a world built for humans in the most human-like fashion possible.

If FSD can learn what a completed toll transaction looks like, it’s an example of the countless other complex scenarios it’ll be able to handle in the future. This same visual understanding could be applied to navigating a fast-food drive-thru, interacting with a parking garage attendant, passing through a security checkpoint, or boarding a ferry or vehicle train — all things we thought that would come much later.

These human-focused interactions will eventually become even more useful, as FSD becomes ever more confident in responding to humans on the road, like when a police officer tells a vehicle to go a certain direction, or a construction worker flags you through a site. These are real-world events that happen every day, and it isn’t surprising to see FSD picking up on the subtleties and nuances of human interaction.

This isn’t a pre-programmed feature for a specific toll booth. It is an emergent capability of the end-to-end AI neural nets. By learning from millions of videos across billions of miles, FSD is beginning to build a true contextual understanding of the world. The best part - with a 10x context increase on its way, this understanding will grow rapidly and become far more powerful.

These small, subtle moments of intelligence are the necessary steps to a truly robust autonomous system that can handle the messy, unpredictable nature of human society.

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