Tesla brings back UI cards in this year's Holiday Update
@bnkwupt/Twitter
Tesla’s highly anticipated holiday update is reintroducing UI cards to the Model 3 and Model Y.
Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y contained widget-like cards in the lower-left corner of the screen that could be swiped to view certain information such as the vehicle's trip meters and odometer, as well as tire pressure readings.
However, with Tesla's UI redesign during last year's holiday update, these cards were removed and integrated into the vehicle's menus. It certainly makes sense to have this information in the menus as that's where all of the other vehicle information is available, however, it was a step backward in terms of quick access to this information.
The information these cards provide is almost identical to the ones previously available, however, their design and layout have been updated.
Two informational cards provide quick access to the vehicle's tire pressures and the vehicle's odometer.
The tire pressure readings display a photo of the vehicle with the tire pressure reading displayed near each wheel. Previously tire pressure readings were only available while the vehicle was in motion, but thanks to a recent update, the vehicle will now display the last known tire pressure reading if the vehicle is parked.
The odometer and trips card will display the amount of energy used for each trip as well as the distance traveled. Like before, you'll be able to view energy and distance traveled for the current drive, since last charged and for each trip meter.
Differences From Old Cards
There are two small changes here. The previous iteration of cards displayed the time your "Current Drive" started, and also displayed how many minutes you had been driving, which was a useful metric. However, now all trip meters display the same information, which is the distance traveled, kWh used and average Wh/mi.
The old cards also required you to scroll vertically to go through the various trip meters. However, Tesla has now designed it so that all trips are viewed together on a single card, which is a nice improvement.
Tesla brings back UI cards in this year's Holiday Update
@showp1984/Twitter
However, the downside of this is that not all trip meters can be viewed at once, since there are five in total when counting the current drive, since last charge, Trip A, Trip B and the odometer. To fix this issue Tesla now lets you decide which trip meters should show up in the 'Trips' card.
By navigating to Controls > Trips, there is now a new checkbox under each trip, letting you choose whether that trip meter should show up in the card.
A nice addition is that you can now tap these cards to jump to the specific area in the vehicle's menu. For example, tapping on one of the trip meters will take you to Controls > Trips.
Cards in Action
View Cabin Camera
With version 2022.44.25.1, owners will also be able to remotely view their internal camera when their vehicle is in Sentry Mode or Dog Mode. In the event of a break-in, owners will have footage of the bandit and be able send that footage to local authorities. This has been a highly requested feature for years now.
View the cabin camera from the Tesla app while using Dog Mode or Sentry Mode to keep an eye on your puppy ? pic.twitter.com/yyeyfF5XTd
Tesla recently launched software update 2025.8.3, which included a bunch of “minor updates.” Nestled away in the release notes are a couple of interesting features - including some major changes to the Energy App.
We’re not quite sure we’d call these minor updates, so let’s take a bit of an exploration of the revitalized Energy App.
The Energy App has received some new categorization features in the Consumption tab. You can once again limit the graph by distance. As part of the 2024 Holiday Update, Tesla redesigned the consumption tab and brought it to the new Model S and Model X for the first time. However, with the redesign, Tesla removed the ability to choose the distance shown in the graph, instead providing a static display of the last 200 miles (300km).
The first part of the improved Energy App is bringing back this distance filter. You can now choose between showing the last 10, 100, or 200 miles (15, 150, or 300 km). This differs from the previous available distances of 5, 15 and 30 miles, but brings back the ability for the driver to choose a distance that may be more applicable to how they’re driving.
We’d love for Tesla to introduce custom distances by pinching and zooming the graph or simply add the ability to choose “This Drive Only” to the list of available distances.
Reset Energy App History
@EV3_Model3 on X
Sadly, the “Instant Range” button that was available in the Energy App before is still not available, but Tesla introduced a new feature that may be even better. You can now clear your driving history so that the graph only reflects your current driving style.
This is a little hidden, but if you tap the little info icon at the top near your average Wh/mi, you’ll now be presented with a dialog that lets you clear your history.
This could be useful if you’ve just come from some hard driving on a track or off-road, where energy consumption could be exaggerated. It could also be useful if you just started towing or a different type of driving that is drastically different from your current driving.
Other Changes
In addition, it looks like future predictions of the Energy app now take into account your driving history and apply that in addition to expected vehicle consumption, weather, altitude, and the multitude of other factors that your Tesla constantly takes into account while calculating your expected range.
While these are smaller improvements to the Energy app, they added some important functionality, as it helps users better understand their vehicle consumption and display data that is more applicable to the current driving style.
This is a great example of Tesla listening to its customers and bringing back features they had previously been removed. Check out the video below by akide on the updated Energy app in update 2025.8.3.
Sandy Munro once again had the opportunity to chat (video below) with Lars Moravy, Tesla’s Vice President of Vehicle Engineering, as well as Franz Von Holzhausen, Tesla’s Chief of Vehicle Design. This time, rather than focusing on the improvements to the refreshed Model Y and all the new engineering behind it, the focus was on Tesla’s autonomous ambitions.
In this case, the Cybercab and Robovan were the key highlights, with a distinct focus on the Cybercab. With that all said, let’s dig into all the fun new stuff. You can check out the entire video at the end of the article.
Cybercab Unboxed Process
The Cybercab will be the first of Tesla’s vehicles to use their new unboxed assembly process, which builds vehicles in parallel sections, and then brings them together all at once for final assembly. Traditionally, vehicles are assembled from the ground up, and sometimes even disassembled for parts of production to take place.
This innovative method involves using a big rear and front casting, brought together by a structural battery pack on the floor. The door rings are hot-stamped and laser-welded to form the side shell of the Cybercab, resulting in a very rigid structure that can also absorb crash impacts due to its unique manufacturing.
Paint-Free Panels
We’ve already talked about the Cybercab’s unique paint-free panels, but we’ve never heard until now exactly how Tesla intends to manufacture them. Tesla will inject colored PU plastic onto the backside of another plastic part (formed from various processes) and then ultrasonically weld that entire piece to an inner part.
That essentially combines multiple parts into one smooth piece that is easy to repair - because all you have to do is remove the entire panel - it just comes off as the interior fasteners are removed. There is no subframe holding it together - instead, the subframe is part of the panel.
The only area of the vehicle that will have any paint will be the hot-stamped door rings - which will be painted to improve corrosion resistance to protect the steel.
Aerodynamics
Aerodynamically, the Cybercab boasts the largest aero-cover-to-wheel ratio of any Tesla vehicle. This updated aero cover improves efficiency, even with the Cybercab’s relatively large tires—chosen to reduce rolling resistance. Interestingly, the impact of unsprung weight on efficiency is minimal compared to the benefits of improved rolling resistance and aerodynamics.
Another key to the aerodynamics is the teardrop shape of the Cybercab itself. With its low profile and smooth shape, it is extremely aerodynamically efficient. While neither Sandy nor Lars delved into drag coefficients, we expect it will likely be more efficient than the Model 3’s already fantastic Cd of 0.219.
Range and Battery Pack
Tesla currently has prototypes undergoing real-world testing at Giga Texas to evaluate range and efficiency. The goal is to ensure the vehicle can operate throughout an entire day in the city before returning to charge.
Tesla is targeting a battery pack under 50kWh, delivering close to 300 miles of real-world range—an impressive efficiency of around 166Wh/mi, even outperforming the Model 3’s lowest at 181Wh/mi.
When Does It Arrive?
So, with all that new knowledge - when does the Cybercab arrive? Well - the prototypes for the June Robotaxi network deployment in Austin are getting prepared now - but Tesla expects to begin production and sales sometime in the first half of 2026.