Tesla Offers Free Supercharger Credits for Model S and X Orders to Boost Q1 Sales

By Kevin Armstrong
Tesla's Model S is available in the new Ultra Red color
Tesla's Model S is available in the new Ultra Red color
Tesla

It's nearing the end of the first quarter and you know what that means - a Tesla push! The company is offering free Supercharger credits to buyers of their Model S and Model X electric vehicles in the United States and Canada. The offer is valid for those who purchase the vehicles before March 31st and includes 10,000 free Supercharging miles in the US and 10,000 free Supercharging kilometers in Canada.

These credits can be used at any Tesla Supercharger station and are valid for two years from the delivery date. Tesla has been known to use such promotions in the past to boost sales and encourage customers to make purchases earlier than planned.

However, despite the success of these promotions, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has expressed his desire to reduce the size of end-of-quarter pushes in favor of a more efficient and steady pace of deliveries.

Building on Strong Q4 Earnings

Tesla's end-of-quarter push comes after the company reported strong earnings for the previous quarter. The company beat expectations on both earnings and revenue, with earnings of $1.19 per share (adjusted) compared to the expected $1.13 per share (adjusted) and revenue of $24.32 billion compared to the expected $24.16 billion. The automotive revenue for the quarter was $21.3 billion, representing a 33% year-over-year growth.

Tesla has been making efforts to reduce prices on its cars worldwide, which has led to an increase in demand, as seen by the company's orders in January, which were almost twice the rate of production.

Tesla has also been expanding its production capacity, with factories in Austin, Texas and near Berlin, Germany, each having the capacity to make 250,000 Model Y vehicles annually. In addition, the company has installed the capacity to manufacture 100,000 Model S and X vehicles annually and 1.8 million Model Y and Model 3 vehicles across all of its factories. The company has also announced that its Cybertruck is on track to start production this year in Texas but will not reach volume production until next year.

Supercharging Benefits

For those new to Tesla, the Supercharging network is an innovative and valuable addition to the company's electric vehicle offerings, providing Tesla owners with a convenient and accessible way to quickly charge their vehicles while on long-distance trips. The Supercharging network currently has over 40,000 charging connectors worldwide, making it the largest fast-charging network in the world.

Tesla's Supercharging network is an innovative addition to the company's electric vehicle offerings, providing a convenient and accessible way to charge electric vehicles while on long-distance trips. These promotions, combined with the company's strong earnings and expansion of production capacity, show Tesla's continued commitment to innovation and growth in the electric vehicle industry.

Tesla Customers Can Now Buy Out Their Leases

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Tesla offers the ability to buy or lease their vehicles. However, leasing a vehicle came with a major shortcoming. Leasing a Tesla meant you couldn’t buy out your lease at the end of the contract. Instead, you were required to return the car to Tesla, leaving you the option of leasing another or purchasing a new vehicle.

For the first time in Tesla’s history, lease buyouts are being introduced for the Model 3 and Model Y and are returning for the Model S and Model X as well.

Lease Buyouts

Tesla’s social media team took to X to announce that the company is going to allow lease buyouts in the United States for the first time. As Tesla works with its financing partners, we expect this option to roll out to other regions too. These lease buyouts include all its vehicles, including the Cybetruck.

A lease buyout is an end-of-contract option that lets you purchase the vehicle for its residual value, allowing you to keep the car instead of returning it. It’s a great way to test-drive a car long-term, giving you the flexibility to decide if it’s the right fit before committing to ownership. For many new car buyers, it offers a lower-risk alternative to buying a vehicle outright, making it an attractive option for those seeking less upfront commitment.

Offer to be Extended to Current Leases

The price of the buyout is normally determined at the signing of the lease contract - rather than at the end of the lease. While Tesla initially said that the buyout of leases is only for new leases - that quickly changed. Tesla is confirming that end-of-lease clauses will become available for current leasees over the next few weeks. Leasees will be able to reach out directly through the Tesla app to get buyout quotes - or reach out to their financial institutions if the lease was done through a third-party financer.

Details for lease buyouts are available here.

If you’ve been hesitant to lease a Tesla due to the inability to buy it out, stay tuned—this teaser might just change the game. For many, it’s the final nudge needed to take the plunge and lease a new Tesla. With the added perks of the updated referral program and other incentives running right now, now is an excellent time to buy a new Tesla.

Tesla Introduces New Service Mode Features in 2024.44 Update

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Tesla has been continuously improving and adding features to its Service Mode feature, and update 2024.44 is no exception.

Tesla also recently launched Service History for vehicles. With the new additions to Service Mode and price cuts to ToolBox 3 (TB3), their in-house service software, Tesla is really pushing Service accessibility.

If you’re interested in knowing more about Service Mode in general, check out our Guide to Service Mode.

Service Mode Improvements in 2024.44

This update introduces several new Service Mode features, so we’ll break down each new feature in Service Mode for 2024.44. Thanks to @max_bracco on X, who shared these photos with us.

Brakes Panel

The Brakes Panel has been updated to allow for the diagnosis of wheel speed sensors, which were previously only accessible in TB3 while physically connected to the vehicle. In addition, information on the Electronic Parking Brake, Electronic Stability Program and iBooster (Electromechanical Brake Booster) are now available in the Brakes Panel as well. 

This new panel is under Chassis > Brakes and has multiple subpanels with brake details. This update is exclusive for the Cybertruck.

Brake Burnishing Update

Brake Burnishing is a process to help condition or break in your brakes, helping to make sure you’ll get optimal performance out of them. It can also be used as regular maintenance for an EV - because you’ll rarely use your friction brakes with Tesla’s one-pedal driving.

The update to Brake Burnishing will now allow you to continue performing this service task even if the vehicle goes into reverse. Previously, any UI, including the rear-view camera, popping up would cancel Brake Burnishing and close the service window - meaning you’d have to restart.

Placing the vehicle back in drive automatically resumes the service task, which makes it easier to do so in a smaller location.

This improvement applies to all vehicles, including legacy Model S and X.

Speakers Panel and Audio Test

A Speakers Panel has become available for some vehicles to help diagnose issues with any of the internal vehicle speakers. You’ll be able to play test tones through any selected speaker or set of speakers. This could be helpful to figure out if a speaker isn’t working properly or to diagnose a rattling speaker or subwoofer.

As part of the Audio Test, you can also play specific frequencies - helping to figure out what exactly is wrong with the speaker. Previously, you’d have to use TB3 to perform this test, so it's nice to see Tesla moving things to Service Mode and increasing accessibility for owners and third-party technicians.

This new speakers panel is only available for the 2024+ Model 3, and the Model Y with the AMD Ryzen infotainment processor.

SCCM Update

The Steering Wheel Control Column (or Yoke) has received updated graphics to correctly display what you’ve got equipped in your vehicle. You’ll also be able to initiate the steering wheel/yoke swap on a Model S or Model X in this UI as required, assuming you’re swapping them.

Previously, this feature was only accessible to Tesla’s Service Technicians or through a fairly complex procedure in TB3 that required outside scripting support - well beyond the knowledge and skills of most third-party technicians who aren’t intimately familiar with TB3. This makes the procedure something that can be done by the user at home - as long as you’re following the Service Manual carefully.

This is only applicable for the Model S and Model X. The Cybertruck has a special Steer-by-Wire panel in Service Mode.

Interior Lighting Diagnostics

Not a Tesla App

The last item to get added to Service Mode is an entirely new panel for testing the ambient lighting system, which is availablle for the new Model 3 and Cybertruck. This panel allows you to diagnose and repair the vehicle’s RGB lighting. It also allows you to view the health state and run an RGB lighting addressing routine, which is required when replacing some of the lighting strips.

Earlier this summer, Tesla also added a Battery Health Test to Service Mode.

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