Enhance Auto Adds Stalks Back to Your Tesla With New Product

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

If you own or are considering a new Model 3 or a 2021+ Model S/X and prefer stalks over buttons, we’ve got something exciting to share with you.

Enhance Auto (Enhauto), of S3XY Buttons and S3XY Knob fame, gave us a preview of their upcoming product, the S3XY Stalks. While Tesla’s new stalk-less design is great for most — they’re not for everyone. That’s exactly where Enhance Auto’s new product comes in. They give owners the ability to add stalks back to their vehicles.

S3XY Stalks

The Enhauto Stalks bring back the turn signal stalks for the new Model 3 and redesigned S/X with full functionality. They’re wireless and communicate via Bluetooth LE to the Enhauto Commander. They’re powered by batteries, which means that they're super easy to install—which we’ll get into later. Because they communicate with the Commander, they’re also very customizable.

The stalks are configurable in the S3XY app, and you get multiple configuration sets—one set while the vehicle is driving and another while in park. With a tap of the lever, you can assign just about any command to the stalks, from turn signals to enabling Autopilot.

You’ll be able to set 17 actions per stalk, with actions assignable to things like a single tap, double tap, or even long press. There’s a ton of customizability, and it can do literally almost anything you can imagine—you could precondition your car with a double tap of the button on the end of the stalk, for example.

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You can customize it as much or as little as you want. For example, you can customize it so that the left stalk turns on the turn signals when you push it up/down, and the button activates the wipers. Similarly, you can have the right stalk activate Autopilot and shift gears. However, there’s so much more you can do. You can have a double press of a button activate your heated seats or adjust your climate temperature. The options you choose and how much you customize them are completely up to you.

Installation

The Bluetooth S3XY Stalk
The Bluetooth S3XY Stalk
Not a Tesla App

The installation procedure is super simple, especially if you’ve already got S3XY Buttons or a S3XY Knob. Simply power them on, peel off the 3M tape protector, and place them on the steering control column where you’d normally have your stalks.

This means that you don’t have to disassemble the steering wheel and remove the airbag inside. Removing the airbag is dangerous and, depending on your regional regulations, can potentially void your warranty.

If you don’t have the buttons or the knob, don’t panic - installing the Commander only takes a few minutes, and then you can set it up in the S3XY app.

Enhauto's website has instructions broken down by Tesla model and more detailed instructions based on model year to ensure you get the right fit.

Check out Enhauto’s launch video here:

How It Works

The stalks are battery-powered and wireless, removing any need for wires to the vehicle or to the main unit. They connect via Bluetooth to the Commander, the brains of the whole system, which communicates directly with the vehicle through the car’s OBD2 port. The Commander is the same unit that powers other Enhauto accessories such as the S3XY Buttons and Knob.

So the wireless stalks communicate with the Commander over Bluetooth and the Commander is directly connected to your vehicle to send commands like turning on your turn signals.

Who Is It For?

This product is perfect for people who love the idea of getting into a new Tesla or even getting their first one but are put off without having stalks to control turn signals or shifting. Plenty of people have built driving habits over decades, and suddenly having to re-learn how to operate an entirely different vehicle can be difficult.

The S3XY Stalks help bridge this gap and let anyone drive a new Model 3, Model S, or Model X without a major learning curve.

How Do I Buy It?

Pre-orders begin on Enhauto’s website today, and there’s an early bird special of 20% off - which will continue until December 20th. Use our code “NATA”, which helps support our site and receive an additional 10% discount.

If you order during the early bird special, deliveries will begin in late February - if you order after the 20th, you’ll see an April delivery window.

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

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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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