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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The long long wait for FSD (Supervised) in Australia and New Zealand may be coming to an end. Thom Drew, Tesla’s Country Director for Australia & New Zealand, has confirmed on LinkedIn that Tesla has been working with local authorities in both countries and that there are no regulatory blockers for the release of FSD in the region.
The confirmation came in response to questions following Tesla’s FSD demo video in Sydney, Australia.
Hurdles Cleared
For many years, the main question surrounding the release of FSD in other Asia-Pacific countries, especially Australia, has been the status of regulatory approval. Drew’s statement provides the clearest answer yet regarding regulatory barriers, and it appears that the path is clear from a governmental standpoint.
“We have been working with local authorities across AU & NZ and there are no regulatory blockers for release. We are running through the final stages of validation prior to public release. Looking to start with HW4 on certain vehicles and then release in phases from there.”
Thom Drew, Tesla’s Country Director for Australia & New Zealand (LinkedIn)
With the regulatory question answered, the timeline for the release is now entirely in Tesla’s hands. According to his statement, Tesla is in the final phases before a public rollout, likely meaning Tesla is doing some final testing and veritifcation on local roads before flipping the switch.
— Tesla Australia & New Zealand (@TeslaAUNZ) July 17, 2025
The Rollout Plan: HW4 First
Drew also provided the first details on how Tesla plans to launch FSD in the two countries, and it seems to be a similar approach to the one Tesla took in China.
That means that the release will begin with AI4 (HW4) equipped vehicles first. Once those vehicles are up and running, they will slowly begin to phase in older AI3 (HW3) vehicles over the next few releases.
For owners of HW3 vehicles (everything we know about the HW3 upgrade), this phased release means that they’ll be waiting a little longer than other owners, but at least there’s progress and some clear next steps now. A little more waiting isn’t too bad, especially when you consider just how long many owners in Australia and New Zealand have been waiting for any semblance of FSD in their nations. Tesla initially outlined Q2 2025 as the target availability date for FSD in RHD markets, so this timing is roughly on track with what Tesla initially announced in September 2024.
Hopefully, Tesla also opens up the opportunity for FSD transfer for HW3 owners in both countries, as we’re sure many people would upgrade alongside the official release of FSD to the latest hardware.
And just in case you thought the first video wasn’t true because it wasn’t upside down - well, Tesla provided us the original too.
Another quarter has passed, and that means it’s time to submit questions and vote for Tesla’s Q2 2025 Earnings Call. While Q1 was a tough quarter for the company, Q2 saw some recovery in sales, although there’s still some work to be done.
However, there’s always a lot to be excited about during Tesla’s Q&A session, where we usually learn a lot about future software improvements and upcoming vehicles. We may hear more about FSD Unsupervised, Robotaxi, or the more affordable vehicle, or its upcoming larger 6-seater Model Y, the Model Y L. Tesla also mentioned a potential FSD price hike back in the Q1 2025 Earnings Call, so that could be something that is brought up as well.
Tesla’s Q2 So Far
Tesla has already released their Q2 2025 Production and Delivery numbers, which were up from Q1 of this year, but still down compared to Q2 last year.
Production
Deliveries
Model 3/Y
396,835
373,728
Model S, X, and Cybertruck
13,409
10,394
Total
410,244
384,122
How to Submit & Vote
Tesla lets shareholders submit a question that will be voted on and may be answered during the Q&A session. To submit your own question or vote on an already submitted question, you’ll need to be a verified shareholder. You can go to Say’s platform and link your brokerage accounts.
Once it is verified, you’ll be able to log in and vote your shares on your own question, or on someone else’s question.
Here’s the link to get started on Say’s Tesla Q&A. You must submit your questions and votes by July 23rd, 2025, at 4:00 PM EDT.
Top Questions So Far
Unsurprisingly, people have already been submitting questions, and here are the top ones so far.
Can you give us some insight how robotaxis have been performing so far and what rate you expect to expand in terms of vehicles, geofence, cities, and supervisors?
What are the key technical and regulatory hurdles still remaining for unsupervised FSD to be available for personal use? Timeline?
What specific factory tasks is Optimus currently performing, and what is the expected timeline for scaling production to enable external sales? How does Tesla envision Optimus contributing to revenue in the next 2–3 years?
Can you provide an update on the development and production timeline for Tesla’s more affordable models? How will these models balance cost reduction with profitability, and what impact do you expect on demand in the current economic climate?
Are there any news for HW3 users getting retrofits or upgrades? Will they get HW4 or some future version of HW5?
When do you anticipate customer vehicles to receive unsupervised FSD?
And here are some other ones we found interesting:
Have any meaningful Optimus milestones changed for this year or next and will thousands of Optimus be performing tasks in Tesla factories by year end?
Are front bumper cameras going to be necessary for unsupervised full self driving? If so, what is the companies plan to retrofit vehicles that do not have them?
Will there be a new AI day to explain the advancements the Autopilot, Optimus, and Dojo/chip teams have made over the past several years. We still do not know much about the HW4.
Earnings Call Details
Tesla will hold its earnings call on Wednesday, July 23rd, at 4:00 PM EDT. It's still early for an access link, but we’ll make sure we have a link up on the site before the earnings call that day.
If you do miss the earnings call, no worries. We will provide a full recap following the call, and we’ll also do some in-depth dives into what was said and what we know.