Tesla removes radar from cars. What this means for you.

May 28, 2021

By Nuno Cristovao

Tesla has officially removed radar from their latest cars off the production line in the US. According to Tesla, all new Model 3 and Model Y vehicles produced in May 2021 or later will no longer come with radar. Instead the cars will rely on Tesla’s vision system completely for Autopilot and safety features.

Tesla removes radar from latest US models

Autopilot and most safety features such as Automatic Emergency Braking and Obstacle-Aware Acceleration will still be available, but they will now only use Tesla’s camera-based system.

A camera-based system makes sense and is the long-term vision for Tesla, who has doubled down on vision several times. Other manufacturers have relied on LiDAR and other more expensive systems.

Teslas only have radar facing forward, so although it’s the most crucial direction, if Tesla plans to solve FSD then they will need to solve vision so that they can accurately determine objects and distance in all directions. Merging data from multiple sensors is often difficult, so Tesla is breaking free from their reliance on radar and focusing on the future, which is their pure vision AI.

With vision, Tesla will now be able to detect objects the same way in all directions instead of preference or “higher degree” of confidence in a certain direction, such as forward where the radar used to be.

Although Tesla’s vision system is the future, it looks like Tesla isn’t quite there yet and will have some ground to make up before it catches up to radar in all regards.

Some FSD features are currently disabled or limited for cars without radar. Summon is not currently available and the UI states that “Smart Summon will be enabled in a future software release.” Autopilot will also have some short-term limitations such as increased follow distance, a maximum Autopilot speed of 75 MPH (120 KM/H), and it will require auto high beams to be turned on while on Autopilot.

The safety feature of “Emergency Lane Departure Avoidance,” has also been turned off for the time being while Tesla continues to develop their vision AI.

It looks like removing radar from their most popular cars will also save Tesla millions of dollars per year as the radar is estimated to cost more than $500 USD. Safety always comes first, but if Tesla can maintain the same reliability with vision then this is a very good thing.

There’s no doubt that vision is the future, but the question is, did Tesla move too fast and remove radar too early? The very short-term answer appears to be yes, based on the missing features and limitations alone, but we will find out in the coming months whether it was the right decision.

If you already have a Model 3 or Model Y with radar then it will continue to function as it did before. It will continue to use and rely on radar data and all features will be available. Once Tesla advances their vision system even further and is able to make all features available there may be a time when their vision system surpasses the reliability of radar and our cars will no longer use it as well.

Tesla to Allow Drivers to Display License Plates in Vehicle Visualization

October 30, 2024

By Karan Singh

Rendering of what Tesla's license plate feature could look like

Not a Tesla App

Tesla update 2024.38 has started rolling out to several regions and vehicles. Thanks to Tesla hacker Greentheonly, we have a behind-the-scenes look at some new features coming to Teslas.

License Plate Display

According to Greentheonly, it looks like Tesla may soon let you display your actual license plate in the vehicle’s visualization on the screen. In our article, The Most Request Tesla Features, several readers suggested displaying the vehicle’s license plate in the visualization instead of a blank, white plate.

It looks like Tesla will be doing just that, at least in China. Green found references that appear to conclude that you’ll be able to display your vehicle’s plate on screen. This will likely be user input, so you could have it say anything you’d like, and it doesn’t have to be your actual license plate.

For many owners, who may find it difficult to remember their license plate, this could serve a practical purpose in addition to adding to the visualization's realism.

While Green was only able to say it’ll be available in China, we expect this is due to China’s software development team working on it and that it’ll eventually be released worldwide.

We’ve seen several features originally released in China and later applied to everyone. Some of these include the Air Quality Index display, the trip meter that displays traffic along your route, and even the ability to change your vehicle’s color.

While code for this feature was found in update 2024.38, we may not be turned on in China yet. We suspect this feature may be a strong candidate for Tesla’s upcoming holiday update.

FSD Hardware Version Display

As part of the 2024.38 update, Tesla has now made it easy to determine whether your vehicle includes Hardware 3 or Hardware 4. You can now simply navigate to Controls > Software and tap Additional Vehicle Information. In addition to other hardware information about your vehicle, your Autopilot hardware version will now be listed as well.

You can see whether your vehicle has HW2.5, HW3, or AI4. This in-car display is useful, but if you don’t have access to the vehicle, you can always use our guide on how to determine the hardware version of a Tesla.

New Battery Health Test & Service Mode Improvements

Green found some additional things as well. There’s a new and improved Battery Health Test. The new test will show you how your car scores compared to similar vehicles in the Tesla fleet.

In addition, maintenance records can now be permanently stored “in the car.” It doesn’t appear that this feature is activated yet, but it’s likely in active development with some parts leaking out in the 2024.38 update.

Tesla has included various Service Mode improvements and new visualizations in this update.

Leaked Images of the Tesla Model Y Juniper Refresh

October 30, 2024

By Karan Singh

Mr Li on X

It’s been a while since we saw the last batch of leaked images of the Model Y Juniper refresh. That inspiring photo, alongside other images, set the blood of many concept artists on fire. We saw a ton of awesome concepts of Project Juniper, and now there are even more leaked images.

Mr Li on X came across some covered-up Project Juniper vehicles recently and he managed to get various shots of the vehicle.

Juniper Images

This front image reveals what looks like two rows of lights, possibly confirming the front light bar for the Model Y refresh — similar to the one on the Cybercab.

The rear side has a lot of lights on it!

Mr Li on X

The rear side shows a ton of brake lights, but it’s not clear why. While it looks like the Model Y refresh will also feature a rear light bar similar to the Cybertruck, there isn’t strong evidence of that in this photo.

Mr Li on X

There's an obvious set of lights at the bottom, so it looks like the Model Y refresh will be similar to the new Model 3 where the bottom lights can operate as brake lights when the one-piece tail lights and trunk are up.

Mr Li on X

In the last photo, we see that the overall form factor of the refreshed Model Y will remain unchanged, and Tesla is focusing the changes on the front and rear ends of the vehicle, much like the Model 3 refresh. However, in this one shot, we can also see what appears to be red light leaking out of the rear camera cover opening, possibly due to the rear light bar.

The Model Y is not only Tesla’s best-selling vehicle but also the world’s best-selling car in 2023. This year, it’s expected to be the best-selling vehicle in the United States and again in the world, so this refresh will be huge for Tesla.

We expect most of the interior to remain the same as the Model 3 refresh, which saw substantial improvements in quality, noise reduction, and performance. Check out our wishlist of more things we hope to see in the Model Y refresh.

Dominic’s Concept

Dominic's Concept, in all its glory.

@DominicBRNKMN on X

@DominicBRNKMN made another fantastic set of concepts based on these new images. Given he had the most accurate Model 3 Highland concept before the official launch, we’re pretty sure his latest work be close here as well.

@DominicBRNKMN

We’re super excited to see the eventual reveal of Project Juniper, which is expected in the first half of 2025. However, expect to see a few more leaks before production kicks off at Giga Shanghai.