Tesla Releases FSD V12.4.1 With Update 2024.15.5; Adds Green Dot When Camera is Monitoring [Now Going to Owners]

Updated: June 8, 2024

By Karan Singh

A green dot appearing on the screen when the camera is monitoring

Whole Mars Catalog

Tesla has rolled out FSD V12.4.1 to its employees today. FSD V12.4.1 is expected to introduce significant improvements to FSD and a batch of new features. The deployment, version 2024.15.5, will soon be available to nearly all vehicles in the fleet, bringing together FSD and non-FSD branches and beginning the elimination of steering wheel nags.

Update: Slightly ahead of Musk’s estimate, Tesla started rolling out FSD 12.4.1 to a small group of owners late last night. Musk had estimated this latest update would start rolling out this weekend to a small batch of customers after going out to employees on Thursday.

One change in this update is the green dot that appears on the screen (shown in the image above), when the cabin camera is actively checking for driver attention. If no additional bugs are found, we may see 12.4.1 roll out to additional customers later this weekend. Follow our roll out page to keep an eye on further releases.

Includes Spring Update Features

Tesla has introduced FSD V12.4.1 on branch 2024.15.5 – which means that vehicles on 2024.3.25, 2024.8.9, and 2024.14.11 and below will be eligible for the update! This is good news, as the majority of the tracked fleet will be eligible.

Users on 2024.3.25 and 2024.8.9 will also be receiving all the features from the Spring Update, including the updated UI and all the other features. This is going to be a major update.

Elon Musk has previously mentioned that FSD V12.4 will bring the fractured FSD and non-FSD branches together, and this looks like it will come true shortly.

Green Dot When Monitoring

With this update, FSD will primarily rely upon the camera driver monitoring system (DMS) to determine whether the driver is paying attention. Of course, this is the initial implementation and has a few limitations. While the cabin camera is monitoring the driver, Tesla will now display a green dot on the screen to let the driver know the camera is active. This is similar to how phones show a green dot when one of the cameras is on.

Driver Monitoring

The cabin camera cannot be occluded or obscured, and it must have continuous visibility of the driver’s eyes to eliminate the steering wheel nag. This means that there must be sufficient cabin illumination, the driver cannot be wearing sunglasses or a low-brim hat, and nothing is preventing the camera from seeing the driver’s eyes. Legacy vehicles without a camera are expected to remain with the steering wheel method of detecting attention.

At this point, regular eyeglasses should not impact the use of the improved DMS – but looking away for extended periods will trigger a warning. Continuous inattention will escalate warnings, and eventually lead to a strikeout.

With this update, drivers will not receive requests for steering wheel nags while the updated DMS is confident that they are paying attention and fulfilling all the conditions.

FSD V12.4.1 Improvements

Besides the elimination of the steering wheel nag, Tesla will be adding quite a few other features to FSD V12.4.1, including an updated Strikeout and Suspension system.

You can receive up to 5 strikeouts before being suspended for a week. Good driving behavior (without a strikeout) will result in a strikeout being removed, once per 7 days.

Musk also mentioned previously that Banish Autopark and Park Seek would be arriving with 12.4, but the release notes for this version don’t mention this. These don’t seem to have arrived just yet, but they could still be coming soon in a V12.4.X update.

Expected Release Date

Given Tesla’s rate of updates and the recent positive news on FSD V12.4.1 from both Elon Musk and testers, we could expect the first customers to start receiving V12.4.1 by this weekend or early next week.

Tesla Disables 12V Power Sockets and USB Ports While Sentry Mode is Active in Update 2024.32

October 6, 2024

By Karan Singh

Not a Tesla App

In Tesla software update 2024.32 and onwards, Tesla has made a big—and unexpected—change to how its vehicles handle power sockets. This change impacts every vehicle except the Cybertruck, where you can already adjust how power sockets are handled on a case-by-case basis.

Power Socket Change

This change to the power sockets means that in 2024.32, Tesla vehicles will have their 12v sockets and USB ports turned off while in Sentry Mode. Previously, while the car was awake or Sentry Mode was active, the 12v sockets in the rear of the vehicle and any of the USB ports would all remain powered.

Now, owners will no longer be able to operate devices that rely on these ports once the vehicle falls asleep. This change renders some accessories almost useless, such as vehicle fridges. Owners previously relied on Sentry Mode coming on when their vehicle was parked, which kept the fridge in the vehicle’s sub-trunk powered. This change will also prevent owners from using Sentry Mode to keep USB ports powered to charge laptops and other devices.

Until further changes are made, owners will have to use Camp Mode to keep 12v sockets and USB ports powered. However, Camp Mode leaves the vehicle unlocked, making it insecure and unsuitable for things like sub-trunk fridges.

Cybertruck Power Interface

Tesla may be planning to integrate the Outlets & Accessories menu from the Cybertruck into the rest of its vehicles. The outlets menu in the Cybertruck allows you to keep the cabin (and bed) outlets in the vehicle active, even when the vehicle isn’t in use. These outlets remain powered for up to 12 hours after the Cybertruck is exited.

The Power Menu in the Cybertruck

Not a Tesla App

Sentry Mode Improvements

Drew Baglino, Tesla’s now former SVP of powertrains and energy, said back in February of this year that Tesla was looking at reducing the amount of power that Sentry Mode used. He stated that Sentry Mode power consumption needs to be improved and that the team was working on an update to reduce power by about 40%. According to Baglino, the improvements were expected to come in the second quarter of this year, but it’s not clear if this change in update 2024.32 is part of those changes that will lower Sentry Mode’s power consumption.

Even if these are planned changes, we hope Tesla makes them optional, and lets owners choose when to keep outlets powered and when to conserve energy.

NHTSA Reveals Tesla Cybertruck Sales Number in OTA Recall Filing

October 5, 2024

By Karan Singh

DirtyTesla

Tesla has issued an OTA recall for the Cybertruck – unsurprisingly, one that has already been fixed for customer vehicles. We’ll expand on the recall a little later, but more importantly, the recall filing revealed that Tesla has now built and sold 27,185 Foundation-Series Cybertrucks for customers.

OTA Recall

The OTA recall – which was issued in update 2024.32.5.2 and above, covered an issue that could delay the rearview camera being displayed on the dashboard.

This would occur if the Cybertruck was powered on, and then quickly shifted to reverse. The rearview camera would not come up on screen within the prescribed 2-second timeframe.

According to the NHTSA filing, Tesla has already fixed this via the OTA update, and the rearview camera will now display within that 2-second timeframe as required going forward. This was another easy OTA fix for Tesla.

Not a Tesla App

27k Cybertrucks

The filing also revealed that Tesla has produced and delivered approximately 27 thousand Foundation-Series Cybertrucks through September 14^th. Tesla has been producing the Cybertruck for approximately 11 months now, with the 12-month anniversary coming up on November 13^th.

Elon Musk previously mentioned that Tesla intends to produce approximately 375,000 trucks per year to compete with the ICE pickup market. Today, Tesla produces 1.7 million Model 3 and Model Y vehicles per year, and about 80,000 Model S and Model X vehicles a year.

Overall, that 27 thousand over a year is only the start of production, and as Tesla expands and improves its production lines, we can expect that number to continue growing at a rapid pace. With the Foundation Series ending and Tesla opening up invites for reservation holders to configure their non-FS Cybertruck, that number is only expected to increase. The non-FS Cybertruck is priced at $79,990, $20k less than the Foundation Series. The Cybertruck will also become eligible for the Canadian iZEV Heavy EV Rebate.

This puts the Cybertruck in an excellent spot in the future—and it has already outsold its EV competitors in the same market. We’re looking forward to seeing how fast Tesla meets the upcoming demand for non-Foundation Series Cybertrucks.