Tesla Adds 4680-Based Model Y Variant and Slashes Prices Across the Board

By Kevin Armstrong
Tesla made significant price changes across its line up
Tesla made significant price changes across its line up
Tesla

Tesla, the world's leading electric vehicle manufacturer, has announced yet another round of price reductions on its popular models. This move is expected to attract more buyers and help the company meet its ambitious sales targets for the year. In addition, it aims to satisfy investors and maintain its position as a market leader.

Model S and Model X Receive Significant Price Cuts

The most notable price cuts are for Tesla's luxury offerings, the Model S sedan and Model X SUV. All versions of these electric vehicles are now $5,000, following similar $5,000 price cuts a month ago and even more significant reductions in January. The Model S Plaid, for example, has seen a massive $21,000 discount since last year.

Model 3 and Model Y Get More Affordable

To make Tesla's vehicles more accessible to a broader audience, the company has also reduced the prices of its more affordable models. The Model 3 sedan now comes with a $1,000 price cut across all variants. A rear-wheel-drive Model 3 now starts at $41,990, down from $43,990 in January. However, it's worth noting that the RWD Model 3 will lose half of its IRS clean vehicle tax credit starting April 18. All-wheel-drive Model 3s and all Model Ys will still qualify for the full $7,500 credit.

Introducing the Model Y AWD with 4680 Battery

Tesla has expanded its Model Y lineup by adding the Dual Motor AWD variant, powered by the innovative 4680 battery cells. Priced at $49,990 before incentives, this model offers 279 miles of range, a top speed of 135 mph, and a 0-60 mph time of 5.0 seconds. The addition of this new Model Y variant showcases Tesla's progress in ramping up 4680 battery cell production, a crucial part of their strategy to improve battery efficiency and reduce vehicle costs.

The pricing of the Model Y SUV has experienced several changes in recent months. In January, Tesla reduced the prices of the Model Y Long Range and Model Y Performance by $13,000. However, the company later increased the prices by $2,000, following a decision by the US Department of Treasury regarding clean vehicle tax credits.

Now, Tesla has once again cut the prices of the Model Y Long Range and Model Y Performance by $2,000, making them more attractive to potential buyers. The new starting prices for these models are $52,990 and $56,990.

Tesla's Push to Meet Ambitious Sales Targets

Despite a 36% growth in global sales, Tesla fell short of its ambitious targets earlier this year. However, by lowering vehicle prices, the company aims to accelerate sales and reach its goals in the year's remaining months. These price reductions, coupled with Tesla's commitment to innovation and environmental sustainability, are expected to help maintain its position as a leading player in the electric vehicle market.

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Tesla Releases FSD V12.6.1 for Model 3 & Model Y

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Last night, Tesla released software update 2024.45.25.15, which includes FSD V12.6.1. This update adds support for all HW3 vehicles, including the Model 3 and Model Y. We’re excited to see the continued support for HW3 owners. 

FSD V12.6.1

V12.6.1 is now going wide, according to Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s VP of AI. This update is going to the Model 3 and Model Y for the first time - as only the Model S and Model X were included in FSD V12.6. 

V12.6 is a big step forward for HW3 - it includes End-to-End on Highway, Improved City Streets Behavior, and Smoother and More Accurate Tracking - all contributing towards a better, smoother, and more comfortable build of FSD. You can read our comparison between FSD V12.6 and V13.2.2 here

In short, FSD V12.6 performs considerably closer to V13 than V12.5.4.2 - which is a massive improvement. It performs as well as the Cybertruck version of FSD V13, which is still missing a few features when compared to other HW4 vehicles, but it’s a great sign for HW3. A lot of the improvements can be pointed to in the improvements to lane selection and decision-making - the vehicle tends to hesitate far less on V12.6, meaning the ride is a lot smoother. Many early V12.6 testers mentioned that it felt more like V13-mini than anything else.

Legacy Model S & X

We haven’t seen this update hit any legacy Model S and Model X vehicles just yet. We’re not sure whether Ashok’s statement of “generally” applies here - but it should. If you do get the update, please let us know.

Legacy Model S and Model X vehicles are still on an older FSD build and potentially won’t see another FSD update for a little while longer. While they do have the same FSD hardware as other vehicles, there are enough hardware differences that require a build specifically for these vehicles.

Release Date

Update 2024.45.25.15

FSD Supervised 12.6.1 & 13.2.4
Installed on 0.4% of fleet
81 Installs today
Last updated: Jan 11, 12:00 am UTC

FSD V12.6.1 is going out now to the redesigned Model S and X with HW3 and all Model 3 and Model Y vehicles with HW3. The initial wave went out last night, and we expect to see more later today or tomorrow. If this release ends up going “wide,” we should see much larger waves go out next week.


Tesla Issues Physical & OTA Recall for Hardware 4 Computer

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Tesla has issued a recall for some vehicles due to issues linked to a revision of the Hardware 4 (HW4) computer that was introduced this past November. This recall affects all vehicles with the revised hardware except for the Cybertruck, as it uses a slightly modified version of the HW4 system.

Many vehicle owners have reported a complete failure of their Autopilot computer, which not only leaves the vehicle without FSD and Autopilot but also disables many of the active safety features that make a Tesla what it is.

Let’s take a look at this recall - because the recall is partially physical and partially a software recall.

HW4 Failure

Tesla has identified the failure and flagged it to the U.S. NHTSA (but not Transport Canada or Euro NCAP at the time of publishing) as a recall.

Tesla mentions that the vehicle’s FSD computer circuit board may short circuit, resulting in the loss of the rearview camera image. The recall itself is focused on the rearview camera - as not having a functional rearview camera breaks a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard. However, it does impact more than just the rearview camera.

As previously mentioned, users have experienced the full loss of Autopilot and FSD on these vehicles, as well as reduced traction control and removal of safety features such as automatic emergency braking, collision avoidance assist, and forward collision warnings. 

While the vehicle remains driveable, it is not necessarily a good idea to drive the vehicle with many of these features, especially with the reduced traction control noted by many people. We’ve already noted that while Tesla has been sending tow trucks to pick up some vehicles, it is also prompting owners to drive the vehicle to their service center in some cases.

Remedy

Unlike most of Tesla’s recalls, this one isn’t entirely an OTA recall, owing to the fact that people have already experienced circuit board shorts and are already waiting for replacements.

The software portion of the recall has already been mostly completed for any vehicles with Tesla software update 2024.45.25.3 or greater. However, a significant portion of the tracked fleet remains on update 2024.44.25.2 (approximately 20%), so we recommend updating your HW4 vehicle whenever you receive the notification.

On the hardware side, Tesla is immediately identifying and replacing hardware that has had circuit board failure. Tesla is also reaching out to customers who have expressed intermittent issues with Autopilot features, active safety features, or vehicle cameras that don't display correctly. If you have experienced any of these issues in a late 2024 vehicle, we recommend submitting a service ticket with Tesla to ensure that your vehicle isn’t affected by this recall.

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