Tesla Announces Two Model 3 Variants Will Not Be Eligible for the U.S. Tax Credit in 2024

December 13, 2023

By Kevin Armstrong

Model 3 Tax Changes

Tesla has warned customers that the electric vehicle tax incentive may be cut. The company predicted the government would reduce it by half, but now the incentive is completely off the table for several EVs, including some Teslas.

Model 3 Variants and Tax Credit Eligibility

Tesla updated its configuration page, reflecting the impact on its popular Model 3 line. Notably, the Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) and Long Range variants, priced at $38,990 and $45,990, qualify for the $7,500 IRA tax credit only until December 31, 2023. On January 1, 2024, the $7,500 disappears. The Model 3 Performance variant, starting at $50,990, remains eligible for the full credit, and at current prices, will be cheaper than the AWD variant.

Under the Biden Administration, the U.S. government increasingly focuses on reducing reliance on foreign entities, particularly from countries like China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. This focus influences the eligibility for the IRA tax credit, as the government seeks to limit EV battery materials and components sourced from these countries.

Broader Impacts and Challenges

The EV industry, including Tesla, faces challenges due to these new regulations. The rules necessitate a shift in the supply chain, particularly concerning battery materials and components, to meet the IRA's stringent requirements. This shift demands significant time and resources, potentially creating a gap between the regulations' implementation and the availability of compliant materials.

The electric car tax credit system is undergoing substantial changes, with specific requirements for battery components and critical minerals. For example, to be eligible for a $3,750 credit, a significant percentage of the battery components must be manufactured or assembled in North America. These percentages will increase progressively each year, reaching 100% by 2029. The critical mineral requirement follows a similar trajectory.

Qualifying Models

For consumers, this means adjusting expectations and possibly accelerating purchase decisions. The changes emphasize the importance of staying informed about evolving regulations and understanding how they impact the total cost of EV ownership.

According to the Street, the new regulations leave only 10 EVs eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit.

Tesla Model 3 Performance – $50,990

Tesla Model Y Performance – $52,490

Tesla Model X – $79,990

Cadillac LYRIQ – $58,590

Chevrolet Bolt EV – $26,500

Chevrolet Equinox EV – $48,995

Chevrolet Silverado – $51,895

Chevrolet Blazer EV – $60,215

Chrysler Pacifica PHEV – $53,425

Ford F-150 Lightning – $49,995

The IRA represents a significant shift in the U.S. government's approach to promoting EV adoption. While it aims to strengthen the domestic supply chain and reduce foreign dependencies, it also introduces complexities for manufacturers and consumers. Tesla's adaptation to these changes, consumer awareness, and strategic planning will be crucial in navigating this new era of electric mobility.

Tesla to Add Restricted Driver Profiles for Safer Teen Driving

May 14, 2024

By Not a Tesla App Staff

Tesla is set to introduce restricted driver profiles in an upcoming update, aiming to improve safety for teenage drivers. Tesla hacker @greentheonly, also known as Green, recently decompiled the 2024.14.3 update, revealing the change.

Restricted Driver Profiles

Over the years, many people have asked Tesla to bring in restricted driver profiles, similar to Tesla’s currently existing Valet Mode. Valet Mode already serves to restrict the car’s maximum speed, reduces acceleration, and disables the use of Autopilot and FSD. The new restricted profiles will let you apply certain restrictions to driver profiles without the full-fledged restrictions of Valet Mode which also limits HomeLink, GPS history and more.

What Restricted Profiles Could Do

From Green’s post on X, restricted driving profiles will display “training wheels” next to the profile, indicating their usage for new drivers. The ability to add a maximum speed and enforced chill mode are expected to be part of the feature package.

Other restrictions that could also be implemented could include disabling the use of Autopilot and FSD, or perhaps requiring certain features to remain disabled or enabled, like disabling “Joe Mode”, frunk or glove-box access, summon, and locking Sentry Mode to active.

Given how easy it is to swap profiles on a Tesla, Tesla would need to prevent a user from switching from a restricted profile to a regular profile. Tesla could do this in a variety of ways, such as tying driver profiles to a key card or mobile device and requiring a PIN code to exit the restricted profile, much in the same way they do it in Valet Mode.

Enhanced Safety Implementations

Additional safety measures could include alerts that notify parents or guardians when the vehicle reaches its destination or exceeds set speed limits. Given that a Tesla can automatically call emergency services in a crash, this could be an excellent feature for ensuring the safety and security of young drivers on their own for the first time.

Release Date

Elon Musk has previously mentioned that FSD V12.4 is being rolled out sometime shortly, and given that Green has found this 2024.14.3, it could be coming very soon. The latest Tesla update being rolled out now is 2024.14.6.

Tesla Intel Vehicles Receive Some of the Visual Updates in Spring Update 2024.14

May 14, 2024

By Not a Tesla App Staff

callmeKuRue/X

Tesla announced last month that its Spring Update, version 2024.14, would come with visual updates, but that they would be exclusive to the Model 3 and Model Y with Ryzen processors.

Tesla has slowly started rolling out update 2024.14, but until last night, it was only available to vehicles with the Ryzen processor.

We now have our first glimpse into update 2024.14 on vehicles that include the older Intel Atom processor.

Visual Updates

According to Tesla, none of the visual updates would be available on vehicles with Intel infotainment units, however, it looks like those vehicles will be receiving some of the features as well.

The Visual Updates include four items:

A new immersive full-screen visualization while parked that features the vehicle front and center.
A new media player that has a better layout and includes more controls and a new minimized state.
Expandable Autopilot visualizations that are available to everyone include a smaller map in the top-right corner.
And a redesigned and more compact drive mode strip for vehicles for Auto Shift, which doesn't apply to Intel vehicles.

New Parked Visualization

This is probably the biggest feature just because it’s executed so beautifully. Unfortunately, it’s not available on vehicles with MCU 2 (Intel Atom)… at least not at this time.

It appears that Tesla may be using a higher-resolution 3D model or different shaders to create this new visualization. This could be the reason for its exclusivity to the faster AMD Ryzen processor. However, it could just take some time for Tesla to optimize it for Intel Atom processors or use a different model that is more suitable for the older processor.

The Model S and Model X are also not receiving this new parked visualization at this time. Although the Model S and Model X use the instrument cluster for visualizations, given the appeal of the new parked visualization, we wouldn't be surprised if it became available on the Model S/X in the future as well.

The Cybertruck already uses the new parked visualization, although it doesn't include an instrument cluster like the Model S/X.

New Media Player

Tesla's new media player on the Model 3/Y

The improved media player that exposes additional controls and has a new minimized state, is arriving on vehicles with Intel processors.

Tesla included the new audio player as part of the Visual Updates that would be exclusive to AMD Ryzen vehicles, but the new media player on Intel appears to look and function exactly like it does on AMD vehicles. If you haven’t seen the new media player, take a look at our in-depth look at Tesla’s new audio player.

Expandable Autopilot Visualizations

The new, expandable Autopilot visualizations are also available on Intel vehicles. Although users with FSD already had full-screen visualizations, Tesla is bringing over additional features. This includes everything we've seen on AMD vehicles, including the new media player, the 'Navigate to' module, and the map preview in the corner of the screen.

For owners without FSD, this will bring full-screen visualizations to Autopilot for the first time. The full-screen visualization will look and function much like it does in Europe. It includes all of the new controls, improved vehicle detection, and the ability to display turn signals, but it won't display everything FSD does, including curbs and drivable areas.

Update: Intel vehicles are only getting the full screen visualizations if they have FSD and they’re in the U.S. or Canada. It’s not clear why the full screen visualization option is not available without FSD since other vehicles without FSD, but with the AMD processor are receiving the feature. This will hopefully be fixed in an upcoming update.

Other Updates

While Intel-based vehicles aren’t receiving all of the visual updates as expected, they are receiving a lot of the other functionality in update 2024.14, including Audible, Sentry Mode Previews, Trip Progress Bar, Spotify improvements, Better Route Available and many more.

Final Thoughts

Although this update doesn't bring the most appealing part of the Spring Update to Intel vehicles, it brings more than was expected.

The new parked visualization is the most exciting, but arguably least useful aspect of the new update. While it's beautiful and fun to play with, the new media player that features quick access to the most used controls is a much more useful addition.

The improved full-screen driving visualizations being available to everyone with the map in the corner is also a nice addition.

While we're not seeing the new parked visualization available on older vehicles with this update, it may arrive later once Tesla has a chance to optimize it for the slower Intel processor.

If you haven’t checked out Tesla’s new Spring Update, take a look at some videos of the best features in Tesla’s 2024.14. update.