As Tesla continues to redefine the automotive industry, insiders have revealed that the company's upcoming Hardware 4.0 (HW4) will not include the radar module in its Model Y vehicles, at least not initially. This marks a shift in the company's approach towards autonomous driving, relying more heavily on vision-based systems. This strategic decision builds on the recent introduction of HW4 in the luxury Model S and Model X models.
HW4 Evolution and Vision Focus:
Previously, the integration of HD radar in the Model S and Model X indicated an evolution in the company's Full Self-Driving (FSD) hardware. However, according to a trusted source, Tesla is not including HD radar in its new Model Ys with HW4. This surprising decision could mean several things, possibly indicating that Tesla views HD radar as a "ground truth" to help improve their vision systems rather than a vital component for FSD vehicles.
Ground-truth Radar: A Tool for Vision Improvement:
In this sense, ground truth refers to the objective reality or facts of a situation, typically used as a benchmark to measure the accuracy of an AI system's predictions or observations.
Last year, Tesla registered a new high-resolution radar unit with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), a move that sparked speculation about the company's approach to FSD. The radar unit, intended for imaging similar to LiDAR, hinted at Tesla's continuing interest in using ground-truth systems to train their machine-learning algorithms for vision accuracy. Despite Elon Musk's well-documented skepticism towards LiDAR for autonomous driving, Tesla prototypes have been spotted with LiDAR sensors.
HD Radar to be Added Later?
Although Tesla may be using its radar in HW4 vehicles to improve their vision system, other possibilities could have led Tesla to this decision. New Model Ys with HW4 may only be without radar temporarily, possibly due to a supply chain issue. New owners would still better off receiving a vehicle with HW4 and without radar than a HW3-equipped vehicle due to the improved cameras and faster FSD computer that includes redundancy.
Cost Savings
Of course, HD radar inclusion could also come down to cost. With the Model Y costing almost half of Tesla's luxury models, this decision could come down to cost. If Tesla believes their FSD system could perform almost identically to vehicles with radar, they may simply decide to forego the radio technology in lower-cost vehicles.
Balancing Vision and Radar: The Trade-Off:
While HD radar and LiDAR can provide highly accurate 3D depth measurements, their high cost and potential to overwhelm the FSD system with conflicting data have led Tesla to prioritize camera-based vision systems. Musk has consistently argued that self-driving cars should navigate the world in the same manner as human drivers, using cameras and computational power to navigate three-dimensional space.
Model Y With HW4 But Without HD Radar:
While excluding HD radar from the HW4 in Model Y might seem like a setback, it could prove to be a game-changer. Tesla's strategy of using radar to enhance vision rather than as a core component of its FSD system means that these vehicles may not be as disadvantaged as initially thought.
This approach is consistent with Tesla's earlier decision to remove ultrasonic sensors from some vehicles, enabling them to run vision-based park assist code and compare vision readings to ultrasonic sensor readings. This resulted in significant improvements in vision detection, further solidifying Tesla's commitment to a vision-oriented future.
Introducing HW4 into the Model Y may suggest Tesla's potential future strategies. For instance, commercial Robotaxis may employ multi-sensor systems, including radar and possibly LiDAR, to achieve full automation. Conversely, consumer self-driving vehicles could maintain the vision-only approach to keep costs down.
Ultimately, the transition to HW4 indicates Tesla's unwavering pursuit of refining autonomous driving technology. As the landscape of self-driving vehicles continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how Tesla's approach shapes the future of this sector.
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date on the latest Tesla news, upcoming features and software updates.
Earlier this year, Tesla released a update for its Beach Buggy Racing 2 game in update 2024.20, which brought a new leaderboard feature to the game.
Grab your wheel, and step on the accelerator, because it's time to take a look at Tesla’s updated Beach Buggy Racing 2 – Supercharger Edition.
Supercharger Leaderboards
Tesla introduced Supercharger Leaderboards to the game, which means anytime you’re at or near a Supercharger site, you can open up Beach Buggy Racing, and compete against other real people in a local leaderboard. Leaderboard are time-based, so that you’re able to compete against other drivers even if there’s no one else currently at the Supercharger.
Leaderboards are available for each track and are location specific, meaning that all Supercharger locations have their own unique leaderboard.
When you arrive at a Supercharger Tesla will prompt you to play Beach Buggy Racing and take a stab at the Leaderboards, but you don’t actually need to be charging to play. All the game requires is that your vehicle is physically at the Supercharger location.
So far, there are no global leaderboards, but competing with fellow Tesla owners at your local Supercharger offers a fun way to pass the time during a 15-minute charge.
Vehicle Colorizer
Not a Tesla App
One lesser known feature of Beach Buggy Racing is that changing your vehicle’s on-screen color through Tesla’s Colorizer will also change the way your vehicle looks in Beach Buggy Racing. It’s a neat little easter egg, but it's all the small details that count. The paint style options apply as well – so Solid, Matte, and Metallic also all reflect in the game.
How to Play Beach Buggy Racing
There are a few ways to play Beach Buggy Racing, and Tesla has thought of everything for this specific game.
You can open up the game from Tesla Arcade when the vehicle is in Park. You have three control options – using the touchscreen, using a Bluetooth or USB controller, or using your vehicle’s steering wheel.
If you’re using the steering wheel, keep in mind that unless you’ve got a Cybertruck with Steer-by-Wire, your actual wheels will also turn. This can add some flat spots to your tires if you play excessively. We recommend using a controller or the touchscreen. Keep in mind that if you’re playing with the vehicle’s steering wheel, you actually use the Brake pedal to accelerate, not the real accelerator pedal.
The author recently took first place at the Leaderboards for the Supercharger in Scarborough, so if you’re in Toronto anytime, feel free to challenge my score! If you’re a leaderboard holder, come let us know where you took first place in the forums.
On October 26, Tesla’s VP of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, announced that the company would soon release a fix for multiple warnings when FSD is degraded due to obstructed cameras. This update, part of FSD 12.5.6.2, addresses feedback from Tesla drivers, like X user TGWoodsy, who pointed out that these repeated alerts can be distracting, especially during bad weather.
FSD 12.5.6.2 started rolling out to employees on November 5th and was soon replaced with another update, version 12.5.6.3, a few days later. With FSD 12.5.6.3 now rolling out widely to AI4 vehicles, we have our first look at Tesla’s improved warning system.
Thanks to Jeff on X, we have our first look at Tesla’s new camera-obstructed warning. It now offers clearer, more specific information on which cameras are obstructed and actionable steps to improve visibility.
Warning
In previous versions, Tesla’s FSD would occasionally display a generic “degraded” warning whenever camera visibility was impacted, especially by rain, snow, or dirt. These warnings could trigger multiple alerts in quick succession, leading to audible notifications that were more distracting than helpful.
In FSD 12.5.6.3, Tesla has revamped this approach. Instead of repeatedly notifying drivers of degraded visibility, the system now provides a similar warning message that shows which camera’s visibility is limited and states that Autopilot features may be limited.
New Alert with Tips
@juztenough
In addition to the warning message, Tesla now displays an alert in the bottom left corner of the UI for Model 3 and Model Y owners that could be swiped away.
This notification gives you some additional information on why Autopilot may be degraded. It looks like Tesla stopped using the term FSD in these alerts and is now using “Autopilot,” hinting that this feature will also be available for regular Autopilot use. This new notification gives you a tip on how to improve camera clarity and even displays a thumbnail of the camera that’s obstructed.
This notification also has a View button that can be tapped to display more information about the camera or cameras that are obstructed.
Detailed View
Tesla has also added an option to view more in-depth information on the obstruction, allowing users to identify which specific camera is impacted and exactly where it’s located on the vehicle. By tapping “View,” drivers can open a detailed modal next to the FSD visualization. This pop-up displays a diagram of the vehicle and highlights the obstructed camera in question. This can be especially useful if it’s one of the front-facing cameras.
Tesla vehicles with Hardware 3 (HW3) have three front-facing cameras, while those with Hardware 4 (HW4) include two. The detailed view outlines the location of the obstructed cameras and shows a larger view of the obstructed camera, giving users a better idea of why it may be obstructed.
![First Look at Tesla's New 'Service History' Feature [Photos]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/service-mode/service-mode-records-4.jpg/8dd9d11fd3f5159c393831cbd9f4815a/service-mode-records-4.jpg)
![Elon talks about Twitter and job cuts at Bloomberg forum [video]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/images/news/2022/elon-musk-qatar-forum_300w.jpg)
