Tesla brought out something not many expected at its Robotaxi event—the Robovan. It’s a fairly large vehicle, and just like the Cybercab, it's fully autonomous: there is no driver’s seat, steering wheel, or pedals.
In its default configuration, the Robovan can seat up to 20 passengers, and Tesla has already envisioned multiple other uses for it, including package delivery, RVing, and others.
So, get your futuristic bus pass ready, and let’s take a ride to see what the Robovan is bringing!
Exterior
The Robovan takes Art Deco – the classic 1950’s style, to the future. It's a spectacular showcase vehicle and doesn’t look like anything you would ever expect to be pulling up to the curb to pick people up. The Robovan looks almost like a train or tram engine and has a sleek front with no visible windshield, and the wheels are tucked underneath the body, where you can’t see them.
It’s a painted aluminum shell, just like the Cybercab, but also mixed with glass. The glass is tinted dark from the exterior – so you can’t really see inside, affording a fairly high level of privacy to those in the vehicle.
One of the most interesting things about the Robovan is its super low ground clearance. It looked like it was floating mere inches off the ground when it pulled up at, We, Robot. According to Elon Musk, this super-low clearance is achieved by having an automatic load-levelling suspension that raises and lowers based on road conditions.
This means that the Robovan will be able to traverse obstacles such as speedbumps and potholes – and that this feature is likely to make its way to FSD sometime in the future. While FSD can already (mostly) correctly identify speedbumps, it cannot identify other obstacles on the road, such as debris or potholes. Having FSD be able to identify and avoid potholes to smoothen the ride would help to improve the comfort of the experience.
The Art-Deco aesthetic is back!
Not a Tesla App
Interior
The interior is quite spacious – it's able to seat up to 20 passengers in its maximum configuration. In a bus or passenger van format, the Robovan could easily be used to replace short-route buses or, with increased frequency – compete against a full-size 40-seat bus.
Tesla also intends for the Robovan to be used in a delivery capability, as it will be available to order in a format without any seating, which provides a fairly spacious interior for package handling on last-mile and local routes. It could conceivably be a competent competitor to large vans once FSD can reach a fully autonomous state.
Beyond that, Tesla also sees the Robovan being fitted for things such as Tesla Service, RVing, or any other use for vehicles with large interior spaces. There’s a lot of open space on the interior, so we’re looking forward to seeing what ideas people come up with. Maybe a mobile diner?
As per Elon, it is very easy to see out of the Robovan, as the dark windows seem to be one-way tints. Some interior videos, like the one below, also show just how much visibility is afforded to passengers. And those big glass doors? They slide open. It seems that the Robovan has the same set of doors on both sides, but all the pictures showing it off have it only opening on the street side (right side), with right-hand-drive here in North America.
Back to the passenger configuration – the interior showed off was in a clean and classic Tesla white, with lots of interior lighting and HVAC on the interior ceiling. There is a bench seat at either end of the cabin, and then a pair and single seat with an aisle dividing them. The configuration shown was symmetrical and only seated 14.
The van also features a large screen at either end of the cabin, which could be used for entertainment or route information. Tesla didn’t provide any detail on these displays, but they appear fairly large.
Beyond the delivery capacity, the Cybervan also has storage at the rear and front – both fascia plates slide upwards to expose additional storage room – essentially a bus-sized frunk and trunk.
The frunk, oddly enough, looks like it has far more capacity than the trunk in this case – with about 10 suitcases in the open frunk, while the open trunk only looks like it has capacity for 2 suitcases.
The frunk storage. Very spacious!
Not a Tesla App
The trunk storage. It seems oddly small.
Not a Tesla App
Release Date
There’s no date or pricing for the Robovan just yet. While it hails back to the 1950’s, it may be further out in the future than Tesla made it seem. Tesla didn’t share a price point or time frame for when the van would become available.
Oh, and Elon mentioned that it's called the ruh-BO-vahn. Like Suburban, but Robovan. We’d love to see what everyone thinks about its name. Let us know how you think it's pronounced.
Tesla has released software update 2025.2.6, and while minor updates typically focus on bug fixes, this one introduces a major new feature. With this update, Tesla has activated the in-cabin radar, a sensor that has been included in some vehicles for more than three years but remained unused until now.
Why Not Vision?
Unlike vision-based systems, radar can precisely measure object dimensions and even detect movement behind obstacles by bouncing radio waves off surrounding surfaces. This allows for more accurate and reliable measurements of objects that vision may not even be able to see, such as behind the front seats.
What Tesla Announced
Tesla recently highlighted the 4D radar in the new Model Y, explaining how it will improve passenger safety. Tesla executives stated that the radar would be used to properly classify passengers and improve the way airbags deploy.
Tesla went on to say that in a future update, Tesla will use the in-cabin radar to detect any potential passengers left in the vehicles. Since radar can even pick up on heartbeat and breathing patterns, it can provide a much more accurate method of detecting children left in a vehicle. Tesla talked about how the vehicle will send owners a notification via the Tesla app and enable the HVAC system if it detects a passenger in the vehicle. It’ll even call emergency services if needed.
New Feature in Update 2025.2.6
Tesla has officially named this feature in update 2025.2.6, “First-Row Cabin Sensing Update,” which appears to align with the first portion of what Tesla discussed in the new Model Y video.
In the release notes, Tesla describes the update as:
“The first-row cabin sensing system has been updated to use cabin radar, which is now standard in all new 2025 Model Ys. Your Model Y was built pre-equipped with the necessary hardware, allowing Tesla to also bring this technology to your vehicle.”
For now, it appears that Tesla is using the radar to detect and classify passengers in the front seats. This could eventually replace traditional seat sensors, reducing the number of hardware components and lowering production costs.
Tesla plans to expand the feature later this year, bringing rear-seat passenger detection in Q3 2025. While Tesla talked about the feature for the new Model Y, we expect it to be available for all vehicles with the in-cabin radar.
Supported Models
Although Tesla is vague in their release notes, this feature is being added to all Model Ys that include a cabin radar. Tesla started including the cabin radar in 2022, but its availability may vary by region and model. The Model 3 didn’t receive the cabin radar until it was redesigned in 2024, while all Cybertrucks already include it.
The owner’s manual for the redesigned Model S and Model X doesn’t specifically mention the interior radar, although Greentheonly believes the vehicles also include one, so we’ll have to wait to determine whether those vehicles also receive this new feature.
At this time, the feature appears to be only going out to Model Y vehicles, but we expect it to become available on other supported models soon.
We love to see these kinds of updates. Tesla is increasing the safety of existing and new vehicles through a software update while also making them more affordable to own.
Tesla has updated the Tesla app to version 4.42.0, and this time, it’s more than just bug fixes. The app includes a new service interface, introduces support for the new Model Y, and, for the first time, includes some code for the Robotaxi coming later this year.
This update was released for iOS and should be available on Android within a few days.
Refreshed Model Y 3D Model
First up in the update is the introduction of the 3D model for the refreshed Model Y. Interestingly, while we all know it as Juniper, the file code name inside the update lists the vehicle as “Bayberry.” The Bayberry name was introduced in Tesla app update 4.41.5. Tesla’s internal code names sometimes change as the vehicle evolves - and we’ll continue to refer to it as the refreshed or new Model Y for ease of understanding.
A rear-angle shot of the Refreshed Model Y from the Tesla App
@olympusdev_ on X
As usual with Tesla’s 3D models in the app, there’s a lot of detail, although it’s not easy to see since you can pinch and zoom the model in the app. The 3D models used in the app are actually the same models that Tesla uses in the vehicle, although sometimes they include different lighting effects, but they’re all highly detailed.
Robotaxi API
Tesla has added a new endpoint in their app for Robotaxi - and it’s the very first Robotaxi or Cybercab-related item we’ve seen in the app. With the Robotaxi fleet launching in June, according to Tesla, it looks like they’re now adding support to the Tesla app.
What the Robotaxi interface is supposed to look like in the future.
Not a Tesla App
The new app API is called “rides_feedback_upload,” which seems pretty explanatory. Tesla will need to gather a lot of information on ride quality and all the little things in between. What better way than to get feedback directly from users?
While Tesla previously released prototype images of what the Robotaxi app will look like, the introduction of this API into the Tesla app leads us to believe that Tesla will utilize the current app for Robotaxi use.
Updated Service Interface
The Updated Service Panel in the Tesla App
Not a Tesla App
Tesla has released an updated UI for the Tesla Service panel, and we have a ton of details on these changes. This new pane displays appointment details more prominently. If you have a service appointment scheduled, you’ll now see a lot more details on the main service screen. The app will now display:
Your current service status
Appointment date and time, which you can now tap on to add the event to your calendar
Address and hours of the service center. You can now also tap on the address to open up the location in your maps app
There’s also a new appointment details screen (the right portion of the image). This screen displays additional details that were previously unavailable, such as your transport type. The app will display whether you’ll get a loaner vehicle, demo vehicle, or something else.
There are a ton of user experience (UX) improvements in this update regarding service, including clearer language, improved UI fixes to images, and more.
Tesla has been making a lot of positive updates to the Service-related sections of the app lately, and we’re happy to see these coming rapid-fire. Tesla Service is now easier to use and understand. In the previous app update, Tesla also added the ability to pull down to update the service screens.
![The Design & Engineering Behind the New Model Y [Video]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/model-y-2025/2025-model-y-speaker.webp/e933556c6b2b4ce77ab652524f3a8ac0/2025-model-y-speaker.jpg)
