Tesla Announcements: New Date for Robotaxi, FSD in Europe & China, Giga Mexico on Hold and More

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Yesterday Tesla held their Q2 2024 Earnings Call. Let’s take a deeper look at some of what was said.

Affordable Tesla

Tesla’s affordable model – previously dubbed the Model 2 by many, is supposed to be revealed in the first half of 2025. Tesla has been targeting a price point of about $25,000 USD for this vehicle, and many are excited to see an affordable EV from Tesla that doesn’t require the Federal EV Rebate to come down below $30,000.

The Model 2 is supposed to be built off the same production lines as Tesla’s other mass-manufactured vehicles — the Model 3 and the Model Y. Tesla has reserved their unique unboxed process testing for the upcoming Robotaxi instead.

New Date for Robotaxi Event

Speaking of the Robotaxi, Elon Musk confirmed in the earnings call that the Robotaxi event will be taking place on 10/10. In line with what we previously reported,  this delay was due to some important design changes. In addition, the extra time allows Tesla to “show off a few other things,” according to Musk.

We’re quite excited to see what these other things are – they could be previews of the affordable Tesla model, the Cybervan or a demo of the Robotaxi.

Unsupervised FSD Goal

In terms of FSD, Musk also mentioned that the hope is for Unsupervised FSD to be rolled out sometime between the end of 2024 and the end of 2025. That’s a pretty big time gap, and while we’re used to expecting the usual two weeks, Musk came clean and said he’s been overly confident in the past.

Instead, this new estimate is based on the current trend of miles per intervention, which has been growing at a steady clip since FSD v12 rolled out and has become more refined.

Expansion of FSD

But that’s not all. Tesla also intends to introduce FSD v12.5 or FSD v12.6 to Europe, China, and other countries by the end of this year, which is rapidly approaching. That’s a major piece of news for many countries that have limited access to Full Self Driving or Autopilot. Tesla previously worked hard to get regulatory approval for FSD in Europe and China and just launched some Vision-based features outside of North America.

Giga Mexico on Hold

Giga Mexico is now on hold, along with Tesla’s plans to produce their next-generation vehicle there. Instead, Tesla will be producing these vehicles at Giga Texas. This hold comes after US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump has said that if he’s elected, he will enforce heavy tariffs on vehicles that are produced in Mexico and imported to the United States.

Optimus Robot Timeline

Optimus has seen some timeline solidification between the Shareholder Meeting and this Earnings Call. While there are a few test units on the factory floors today, Tesla intends to begin limited production at Giga Texas for a V1 unit, to be used internally. This production run will be starting in early 2025.

They expect to work out any initial kinks and bugs, and then begin work on Optimus V2, which should be available for purchase to outside organizations by early 2026.

Megapack

Tesla Energy has seen the greatest growth, with production, revenue, and sales all being greater than in Q1 2024. In fact, Tesla’s megapack factory in Lathrop is continuing to expand and scale production, all while Mega Shanghai is also breaking ground. Overall, deployments of static energy storage doubled in Q2 from Q1, which already saw a doubling since last year.

Tesla is banking quite a bit on its energy business, and working to expand its supply chains, while also selling Megapacks to energy utilities around the world. And it's more than energy utilities interested – Megapack is being seen as an energy backup source for AI compute – data centers suck power extremely fast, and Megapack can help provide the juice needed.

There’s more on that front too – Tesla and energy utilities are looking to buffer power plants with Megapacks – which means powerplants can run at optimal capacity while Megapack handles the ebbs and flows. There could be a 2-3x increase in power plant efficiency, and this could also help with power plant base loading.

Earnings Call Video

So that’s it for all the big key points from the Earnings Call. If you want to know more about the call, you can review our recap, which includes some of the financial data, as well as lots of other information. You can also see the investor slide deck, or watch the earnings call below.

Tesla Intel Atom (MCU 2) and AMD Ryzen (MCU 3): Feature Differences and How to Tell What You Have

By Karan Singh
DirtyTesla

Tesla vehicles are equipped with two main computer systems: the MCU (Media Control Unit), which is responsible for entertainment and display functions, and the Autopilot/FSD Unit, often referred to as the FSD Computer.

Both of these systems have evolved over the years, and they’re commonly referred to by their generation. For example, MCU 2 refers to the second generation of the Media Control Unit. Similarly, the FSD computer is identified by its generation, often called Hardware 3 or Hardware 4, when referring to the third and fourth-generation hardware. More recently, Tesla has started referring to the FSD Computer as AI3 and AI4, but you’ll still hear the older terms used interchangeably.

These two systems are separate and they’re not upgraded at the same time, meaning it’s possible to have a vehicle with MCU 2 and FSD Hardware 3 or MCU 3 with Hardware 3. Some vehicles even feature MCU 1 alongside Hardware 3.

The MCU is not involved with Autopilot or FSD functions—it’s purely for infotainment and in-vehicle features such as vehicle visualization, gaming, maps, and entertainment. It doesn’t impact the capabilities or limitations of Tesla’s autonomous driving systems.

MCU 1 - NVIDIA Tegra 3

MCU 1 was the first media control unit to be introduced in Tesla vehicles, starting back in 2012. This system was used in the Model S and Model X until about April 2018, when Tesla began transitioning to MCU 2.

By the time the Model 3 launched in late 2017, it already included MCU 2. To keep legacy vehicles up to date, Tesla offers an infotainment retrofit that upgrades MCU 1 to MCU 2, which helps make the infotainment unit much more responsive and adds a variety of newer features. Tesla continues to support vehicles with MCU 1, although upgrades are much further apart. In 2024, Tesla added Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) improvements to vehicles with MCU 1 and even support for FSD V12.3.6 (FSD HW3 required).

Period Offered: 2012 through April 2018

Upgrade: Available as a paid upgrade for Model S and Model X vehicles to go from MCU 1 to MCU 2.

MCU 2 - Intel Atom

The launch of the Model 3 introduced MCU 2, which ran on Intel’s Atom mobile processor. While the Intel Atom was capable at the time, it’s now considered outdated compared to modern standards. As Tesla continues to roll out new features, the limitations of the Atom processor have become more apparent.

There is a notable list of features that are unavailable to vehicles with MCU 2. Although Tesla has optimized software to improve compatibility, not all features have been made accessible to these vehicles.

Period Offered: MCU 2 was offered in 2017 (Model 3) through 2022 (availability differs based on region and model).

Upgrade: As of now, Tesla has not offered an upgrade path or retrofit to transition from MCU 2 to MCU 3, and they’re unlikely to do so.

MCU 3 - AMD Ryzen

In December 2021, Tesla began shipping vehicles with MCU 3, powered by AMD’s Ryzen processor. The first vehicles to feature MCU 3 were the refreshed Model S and Model X, which debuted in 2021. Shortly after, Model 3s and Model Ys were also equipped with MCU 3, and today, all Tesla vehicles, including the Cybertruck, come standard with MCU 3.

This MCU is now the most widely used on the road and is Tesla’s most advanced infotainment processor. It supports impressive 3D visualizations, allows improved gaming on the center touchscreen (and rear screens in equipped vehicles), and offers a host of other capabilities. MCU 3 is also the most feature-complete version, with new features being designed for it first and then backported to MCU 2 or MCU 1 when possible.

Period Offered: The first MCU 3 vehicles were released in December 2021 and is current through today.

Upgrade: MCU 3 is the most current infotainment unit that Tesla offers.

Features Missing on MCU 2 (Intel Atom)

High-fidelity park assist is limited to vehicles with MCU 3
High-fidelity park assist is limited to vehicles with MCU 3
Not a Tesla App

While Tesla does its best to continue to support MCU 2, there is a growing difference between the features available on a vehicle with an Intel Atom infotainment unit and one with the AMD Ryzen processor.

Feature

MCU 2

MCU 3

Games / Arcade

⚠️ Limited Games*

✅ Additional Games**

Parked View

⚠️ Split screen visualization with vehicle on left and map on right

✅ Full-screen Parked Viz - Shadows, Sun Reflections, Shadows

Vehicle Visualizations 

⚠️ Some limitations, such as non-transparent glass

✅ Improved visualizations

Full-Screen FSD Visualization

⚠️ Only Available in North America

✅ Available in All Regions

Zoom Meetings

❌ Not Available

✅ Available

High Fidelity Park Assist

⚠️ Top-Down Visualization Only

✅ Full 3D Visualization

Autopark Visualizations (video)

⚠️ Top-Down Visualization Only

✅ 3D Visualization

Improved UI for Display Modules - Media, Next Turn, Trip Planner

⚠️ Solid Color/Semi-Transparent

✅ Transparency + Background Blur for Display Modules

*Many recent game additions are available to MCU 3 only, including the ever-popular Vampire Survivors and Castle Doombad. Only certain Model S and Model X vehicles include a GPU and the ability to play games on Steam.

**Atari Games were removed from MCU 3 vehicles due to Emulator Licensing issues.

How to Tell - Intel or AMD

Identifying which MCU your vehicle has is straightforward. Simply go to Vehicle Options > Software > Additional Vehicle Information.

In the interface, you’ll find details about whether your vehicle is equipped with an Intel Atom (MCU 2) or AMD Ryzen processor (MCU 3).

MCU 4?

It’s been more than three years since Tesla introduced the AMD Ryzen-powered MCU. Despite advancements, including the transition from FSD Hardware 3 to AI4—and eventually AI5—there’s been no indication of an MCU 4 on the horizon.

The Ryzen processor’s impressive capabilities make it a solid choice for infotainment, and it’s well-suited to serve until there’s another big leap in CPU performance.

While Tesla will upgrade to MCU 4 at some point, it doesn’t seem imminent. Some may argue that Tesla transitioned to MCU 3 too late, leaving vehicles just a few years old feeling outdated. It’s possible Tesla might choose to introduce MCU 4 ahead of the need for more processing power, ensuring that older vehicles can continue to benefit from new software features in the future.

Tesla Expected to Add Turn Signal Stalk Back to Model 3

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Following the surprising return of the turn signal stalk on the refreshed Model Y, reliable Tesla source Chris Zheng has indicated that the Model 3 will also be receiving a turn stalk. While it initially seems surprising, Tesla mentioned that after receiving lots of customer feedback, there is a lot of demand for the return of the stalk.

For those who appreciate the newer turn signal buttons on vehicles like the Cybertruck, this might come as a surprise. However, the Model 3 and Model Y are designed for the average driver transitioning from a traditional vehicle, making the removal of the turn signal stalk an unexpected and potentially disappointing change.

Turn Stalk

In a conversation during the latest episode of Jay Leno’s Garage, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, Lars Moravy, mentioned that Tesla works to remove superfluous parts. In this case, they removed one part too many - and are now bringing back the turn signal stalk.

The updated stalk on the refreshed Model Y is a simplified version of the current Model Y stalk. It doesn’t include multi-stage turn signals (short three flashes versus staying), buttons, or other features. Pure and simple - it is utilized for signaling left and right. The rest of the functions of a traditional stalk remain either on the wheel or on the screen.

Lack of Right ‘Shifter’ Stalk

Tesla has no intent to bring back the right stalk, which is traditionally used to shift the vehicle from Drive to Reverse and Park in Teslas. It’s also used to activate Autopilot. The shifting functionality will remain on-screen or available via the backup by tapping the buttons on the ceiling near the hazards button. Shifting via the dash is intuitive and convenient once you get used to it - and with AutoShift hopefully coming out of Beta sometime soon, this could get even better.

Autopilot activation will remain with a button on the steering wheel. While a vehicle with a single stalk may look a little odd at first, Lars mentioned that Tesla didn’t receive many complaints about shifting or Autopilot use.

Retrofit

Not a Tesla App

We haven’t heard anything about retrofitting the 2024+ Model 3s with the turn signal stalk at this point. However, we imagine this may be a possibility in the future.

However, we can recommend using the wireless Enhauto’s S3XY Stalks if you want to bring a single or dual stalks back to your refreshed Model 3 and don’t want to wait for an official retrofit to arrive. They’re easy to install, well-designed, and reliable.

Other Models

The big question now is: will Tesla bring back the turn signal stalk for its other models? It’s possible, but we doubt it. The Model S and Model X, especially with the Yoke, feel more natural without a stalk, and the button-based signals suit their design. While a stalk might occasionally be useful—like signaling in and out of a roundabout—any future refresh of the S or X would likely include steer-by-wire instead.

On the Cybertruck, the absence of a stalk goes unnoticed, thanks to steer-by-wire, as the squircle steering wheel is never in an awkward position. After thousands of kilometers of daily driving, including plenty of roundabouts, the author can confidently say the signal stalk isn’t missed at all. In fact, the turn signal buttons feel more intuitive, given how the Cybertruck handles.

That said, could Tesla offer signal stalks as an option for those who prefer them? It’s not out of the question. We’ll keep you updated, but in the meantime, let us know—do you prefer turn signal buttons or a traditional stalk?

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