Midnight Silver is the new free color option for the Model 3 and Model Y in North America
Tesla
There are a lot of white Teslas, says Captain Obvious. The free color of white mixed with record-high sales figures has produced a whiteout on many Tesla lots and several highways around North America. The stormtrooper paint job, also known as Pearl White Multi-Coat, will now cost you as the company has made Midnight Silver the free color option for the Model 3 and Model Y in North America.
The History of Tesla's Free Color Options
Tesla's history with color options tells a tale of evolution. Pearl White Multi-Coat has been the default color for the Model 3 since June 2019, taking the baton from Solid Black. The company's choice of free color heavily influences the vehicle's road presence, leading to waves of monochromatic Teslas. This new change to Midnight Silver promises to bring a touch of diversity to Tesla's presence on our streets.
In late 2021, a tweet from a Tesla owner to Elon Musk sparked a conversation around the abundance of white Teslas on the roads. The user suggested a change in the free color option, favoring silver over white. Musk must've taken this to heart, stating that he would discuss it with his team. Fast forward to today, and the team's decision is clear — Midnight Silver now reigns as the no-cost color choice.
Other Available Colors and Their Costs
Despite the change, customers can still opt for the Pearl White Multi-Coat, albeit for an additional fee. Other paid color options include Deep Blue Metallic for $1,000, Solid Black for $1,500, and Red Multi-Coat for a hefty $2,000. The color palette varies in different regions globally, adding to Tesla's distinctive and localized charm.
Model S and Model X Remain Unaffected
Importantly, this change in color options only applies to the Model 3 and Model Y. The Model S and Model X continue to offer Pearl White as the free color choice. Midnight Silver Metallic still comes as a $1,500 upgrade for these models.
A Colorful Future
This modification in Tesla's color offering is a fresh move that signifies the company's willingness to listen to its customers and adapt accordingly. However, there is no news on additional colors. We have seen Midnight Cherry Red and Quicksilver in other jurisdictions and Ultra Red offered for the Model S and Model X. While some may bemoan the additional cost of the previously free Pearl White Multi-Coat, others may rejoice in the change, adding a new hue to the Tesla family on the road.
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Tesla China has outlined some features in Tesla’s latest update in the region, which is version 2024.26.9. In the list of features, Tesla mentions many of the features we’re already aware of, including Automatic Emergency Braking Improvements, YouTube Music and more, but they also reveal one additional feature that’s exclusive to China. The new feature allows the new blind spot indicator to light up if there’s something in the way when you’re opening your door. The blind spot indicator is exclusive to the new Model 3 and Cybertruck, which features little red LEDs in the front speaker grills next to the mirror.
Blind Spot Door Warnings
With update 2024.26.9, Tesla says that if any vehicle door handle button is pressed on vehicles with a Blind Spot Warning Light (currently just the 2024 Refreshed Model 3 Highland and the Cybertruck), the blind spot warning indicator in the vehicle’s front speakers will illuminate.
This object detection includes cars, pedestrians, cyclists, and “other objects”. We’re not quite sure what fits into the “other objects” category, but likely things that FSD picks up on normally – including traffic cones, bollards, and other large obstacles.
According to Tesla’s description, there appears to only be a visual warning for the driver and front passenger, with nothing displayed on screen or an audible tone. We’re sure Tesla will continue to expand and refine this feature like they’ve done with various features in the past, but for now, it's only available in China. Blind Spot Door Warnings need to be enabled under Controls > Safety before this feature will function.
We’d love to see Tesla use the ambient light strip in the vehicle to warn passengers and drivers when their door is obstructed – it would be a fantastic use of a luxury feature for utilitarian safety – rather than just the single red LED inside the door speaker. Additionally, an audio warning would be excellent for those who may not see the red dot.
Tesla appears to be making progress on FSD in China, with the latest update available in the region now displaying the FSD button in the vehicle. Tesla makes no note of the change in the release notes, nor does it appear to be available in any other regions that are expected to receive access to FSD in the future.
FSD in the UI
In the Autopilot options in China, users could previously select Traffic-Aware Cruise Control or Auto Steer (Beta), however, as of 2024.26.9, the Full Self Driving (Supervised) button is now visible – but greyed out. Tapping on the option doesn’t do anything just yet, but the addition of the button could be a hint that Tesla is planning to enable the feature soon.
Underneath the Autopilot selection, Tesla also has a phrase that says, “Full Self-Driving (Supervised) needs to use an updated version of navigation maps. Connect to Wi-Fi to download” (Thanks, Luis Zhu). It’s possible the option is greyed out because the software needs updated maps to work. There are no reports yet of what happens when the navigation map is downloaded.
We previously reported that FSD was on hold in China, even after Tesla received approval to start testing FSD in China. This flip-flopping is interesting but could be due to regulatory issues between China and Tesla regarding data collection and where the data is stored. Now that the button is in the UI – Tesla is clearly confident that it either has received approval or will in short order.
It certainly appears that Tesla is going to be opening up FSD in the region fairly soon. It’ll be interesting to see if Tesla uses the same Safety Score feature they used in the U.S. when choosing drivers to beta test the program.
Elon Musk previously mentioned that FSD (Supervised) would be rolling out to global markets, including Europe and China, as Tesla received approvals from governments in those nations.
