Tesla update 2023.12.1 adds several exciting features
Not a Tesla App
Tesla's 2023.12.1 software update brings various new features and enhancements to its vehicles. One of the most significant updates is the steering wheel customization, specifically for Model 3 and Model Y. The video below shows how easy it is to use and navigate multiple menus.
The left scroll button now has multiple uses, enabling drivers to adjust settings such as brightness and Acceleration Mode and perform actions like toggling the Camera App, opening the glovebox, and saving Dashcam footage. To access these options, long press the left scroll button to display a list of functions and scroll through the list. To choose the default function, go to Controls > Display > Scroll Wheel Function.
Steering Wheel Customization is currently only available for the Model 3 and Model Y, but that may be changing soon.
The Tesla release notes reveal an icon with an upward arrow on the car, suggesting possible future suspension adjustments from the scroll wheel menu — a feature currently exclusive to Model S/X.
New Search Function
The new search function, located under the menu, displays options as you type and offers suggestions for easier access to controls and settings. This should make it easier to adjust specific options, especially if you're unsure which menu they're under.
Points of Interest with Photos and Reviews
When selecting a point of interest or Supercharger location, the updated software now includes photos and reviews to provide users with more information. For example, you can tap on a restaurant and immediately receive information about the menu, pictures and reviews.
Undocumented Wiper Adjustment Feature
You can finally adjust the wiper speed using the steering wheel scroll wheel
LexBarker (edited by Not a Tesla App)
The ability to adjust wipers using the steering wheel has been discovered as an undocumented feature in the 2023.12.1 release notes. You
You can now adjust the windshield wiper speed by using the scroll wheel on the steering wheel. First, press the button at the end of the left stalk to activate the windshield wipers and have the controls appear on the screen.
You can then tilt the left scroll wheel left/right to cycle through the various speeds of the windshield wipers.
There are various enhancements and changes to the UI in this update that Tesla didn't mention in their release notes. For a full list of all those changes, be sure to check our the release notes for update 2023.12.1, where we list all the official release notes along with undocumented changes.
Optional Gear Chimes for Model 3/Y
Gear chimes have been added as an optional feature for Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. Similar to the same noise users hear when activating and deactivating Autopilot, a chime will provide an audible alert when the car is put in drive, park and reverse. This update is expected to extend to Model S/X and is available worldwide.
Spotify Web-based Player and Phone Call Controls
According to @GreenTheOnly, Tesla's Spotify player has transitioned to be a web-based player, similar to Apple Music. It appears that Tesla will be transitioning all music services to leverage their web-based player, allowing quicker development.
In the new Model S/X and Model 3/Y, you'll now also be able to control phone calls from the steering wheel. The left scroll button can be used to answer or decline incoming calls, mute/unmute during a call, or hang up.
Speed Assist
Speed Assist now leverages the car's cameras to detect speed limit signs, improving the accuracy of speed limit data on local roads and highways in select countries. Detected speed limit signs will be displayed in the driving visualization. The vision-based speed assist feature now includes support for several additional countries, such as Australia, Sweden, Portugal, and Luxembourg.
Expanded Zoom Availability in Multiple Countries
Tesla has extended Zoom availability to more countries, including Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and others. If you have a Zoom meeting in your Calendar, tap the link to start or join your meeting automatically. Participant video and screen sharing are only visible while parked and will switch to audio-only if you drive. It is the driver's sole responsibility to consult and comply with all local regulations while using Zoom. To access Zoom, tap Application Launcher > Zoom.
Tesla Update 2023.12.1 in Action
Legacy S/X Writing Support in China
Writing support has been added to legacy Model S and Model X vehicles in China, expanding the functionality for these owners.
Text Size Customization
Perhaps one of the biggest changes is that you can now choose between Standard or Large text sizes for the touchscreen display in the Model 3 and Model Y. Navigate to Controls > Display > Text Size to adjust your preference. With these exciting new features and improvements, Tesla's 2023.12.1 software update enhances the overall driving experience for its users.
This comprehensive overview of Tesla's 2023.12.1 software update showcases the automaker's commitment to continuously improving its vehicles' features and driving experience for its users. With each update, Tesla further cements its position as a leader in the electric vehicle market.
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Back in 2023, Tesla put together a rather unique Supercharger site idea - one with a CyberCanopy. This canopy is intended to provide solar power for Supercharging, helping to reduce the impact on the local grid while also providing a futuristic and Cybertruck-themed location that would set it apart.
Unfortunately, the plans never moved beyond the filing stage. Instead, Tesla opened a standard-looking Supercharger at the same Canton, Massachusetts location. However, the site is still well-situated just off the highway and benefits from natural tree cover in the parking area.
However, Tesla is at it again with a concept for another CyberCanopy with RGB lighting. Thanks to MarkoRP for spotting this. No April Fool’s this time.
We want to build a few Superchargers cool enough to be worthy of the trip itself. - Max de Zegher
CyberCanopy 2
This second Supercharger with CyberCanopy is set for Roswell, New Mexico, at the Whataburger in town. Featuring just eight stalls, this will be one of Tesla’s smaller Supercharger sites, but for what it lacks in size, it makes up for it in uniqueness. The charging stalls are covered from the rain by a futuristic, Cybertruck-themed canopy, which will have solar panels installed on the top of it.
According to the plans, the CyberCanopy boasts 20.88kW of solar panels on its roof, providing shelter from the elements while also providing some power back to the grid.
RGB Lighting
At nighttime, the Supercharger will make a big statement. Tesla intends to light the long edges of the canopy, which will not only look amazing, but it’ll actually make finding the Supercharger easier in a large parking lot.
The lighting coming off the edge of the canopy reminds us a lot of the lightbar on the Cybertruck and now the new Model Y. It’s definitely the direction Tesla is moving for all their models, so expect all future models to have it, including the new Roadster and the next-gen model.
Tesla’s Max de Zegher also took to X after the plans for the new Supercharger were found and shared the image above. He stated that Tesla wants to build a few cool Superchargers that will be worth stopping at, even if they’re out of the way a little bit. So it seems like this isn’t just a concept, but an idea that Tesla wants to expand to several areas around the country or world.
We want to build a few Superchargers cool enough to be worthy of the trip itself. Wish we could have kept it under wraps for longer, but submittal was needed for Planning Approval. We can't hide anything from @MarcoRPi1! 🙂 pic.twitter.com/X2WaKDd408
This particular site doesn't have a Megapack or other form of energy storage, unlike the upcoming Harris Ranch Supercharger site in California. That means that Tesla won’t be storing the solar energy gained from this site, but instead will be either offsetting the immediate grid impact or serving energy back to the grid when the site isn’t actively charging.
Tesla will likely be incorporating V4 Superchargers, including both V4 posts and the new, more powerful V4 Cabinets, as the permit states that Tesla will be redesigning the site internally before beginning construction. For Cybertruck owners, 500kW charging may be around the corner.
We’re hoping Tesla continues to deploy these kinds of Supercharger sites around the world - they make a stylistic statement about Tesla’s futurism, like the Shell gas station that was upcycled into a Supercharger site earlier this year in Spain.
They also make a big impact for ownership because it is a far more comfortable charging experience when you stop at a site that’s shaded from the elements - and one that’s better for the environment with offset emissions.
It was a rainy April 1st when a news-searching author went on a delve into the depths of April Fools to find fact from falsehood. And while we found a lot of fantastic jokes, we also found some good ideas.
So, with a shoutout to MarcoRP on X, whose April Fool’s Joke gave us a good run for our money for a couple of minutes, we thought to ourselves - what would a Cybercab Charging Station / Cleaning Hub really look like?
Cybercab Wireless Charging Sites
Now, before continuing, we’d like to point out that the image up top is a joke from Marco - it isn’t an accurate or real site map submission from Tesla. However, it gave us the impetus to think critically about what is required for a Robotaxi fleet, based primarily on the Cybercab, to be able to service a city.
Requirements
Tesla will likely need to charge a small fleet of Cybercabs at a single time and in a single place. That means that the site needs to be large enough to cover a major metro area while also still being compact enough to not cost too much money to build out.
In addition, we need to factor in charge times. The Cybercab is likely to launch with a battery around 50 kWh, which will result in a range of approximately 300 miles. With that much range, the average Cybercab may not need to charge more than once or at all during daytime shifts, so instead, most of the vehicles will charge overnight.
MarcoRP
Math and Charge Times
The overnight charging means that most of these vehicles could be charged slowly. When we did some back-of-the-napkin math last year, we determined that Tesla’s wireless charger will likely peak around 17 kW (for comparison, Tesla’s Wall Connector at 32 amps charges at about 7 kW). If we scale Tesla’s wireless charger down slightly to 10 kW, accounting for some energy loss and the potential size of the site, that means a Cybercab will be able to charge in about 5 hours.
Tesla’s upcoming V4 Supercharger unit can currently handle 1.5MW per cabinet, but this slower-speed charging is A/C, not DC, which means there is a step-down loss of about 3-5%. Let’s make that a comfortable 10% for any other overages, but we can estimate around 1.35MW of power. That 1.3MW will easily handle charging up to 100 Cybercabs at once - all wirelessly, using Tesla’s unique beam-forming and beam-steering technology to keep efficiency high at every single stall.
Within about 5 hours, a whole fleet of 100 Cybercabs could be charged overnight when electricity rates are cheaper and still be out in time for the morning commute.
While this is all just hypothetical, it really does make sense that Tesla will be establishing these sites that won’t require much space or a ton of energy.
Tesla recently curtained off a large section of the parking garage at Giga Texas, as well as some of their chargers on the eastern end of the facility, leading us to believe they may just be testing this at scale internally.
There’s a lot to look forward to with Tesla’s V4 Supercharger deployment coming this year and with Robotaxi launching in just a couple of months.
