Yesterday Tesla finally unveiled the long expected redesign of its flagship cars, the Model S and Model X. Fans and buyers have been wanting and waiting for a refresh for several years, but Tesla has now pulled the trigger, and it did not disappoint.
Here's everything we know about the redesign so far.
New Horizontal Center Display
Tesla has transitioned to horizontal screens for all models doing away with the previous 17" vertical screens on the Model S and Model X. Instead replacing them with 17" horizontal screens (about 2" larger diagonally than the Model 3 and Y's screens). This seems like a relatively small difference in size, but it actually results in a 28% larger screen in terms of surface area.
We also learned that the center screen will have the ability to tilt left to right, either toward the driver or passenger. We can see this being a great feature when driving alone and being able to more easily see and reach the far end of the screen, especially given that the screen will be about 1.5" wider than the Model 3's screen.
Updated Instrument Cluster Display
We know that the instrument cluster will be slightly smaller than the current one seen in these models, however it's not clear yet what the main differences will be. We can speculate that some information normally shown in the IC will be moved to the larger center screen, such as maps, reserving the IC display more for car visualizations and navigation directions.
New Rear Display
The newly introduced 8" rear display adds entertainment and more for rear passengers. This is somewhat of a catch up move to many other luxury vehicles. However, the size and location of this display is somewhat puzzling. With it being right behind the front armrest, it appears that it may feel rather low for comfortable viewing, and the display can even be obstructed completely by the legs of a middle passenger. Tesla may have had limited location options for this display as the roof of the car is mostly glass, but it seems like there could have been other considerations like behind the driver and passenger headrests. Either way, it's hard to complain about a feature that didn't exist previously. This is a great addition that we're sure many passengers will find useful.
Although Tesla shows off a game being played in the rear display, it can be speculated that there will be an entire GUI for that display, likely different from the GUI used on the front display given the smaller form factor. It's likely that rear passengers could also use this display to change music, adjust volume and turn on seat heaters.
One additional detail that hasn't been talked about much is that it appears Tesla will finally loosen the restriction of playing video only when the vehicle is in park. This means that you can take full advantage of the premium connectivity package and stream shows on Netflix and other streaming services while on road trips.
Updated Rear Armrest
The updated rear armrest now features two USB-C ports (in addition to the two USB-C ports underneath the rear display) and also has wireless charging for up to two phones.
Exterior
The exterior of the Model S and Model X has stayed relatively the same, with the exception of a more aggressive looking front bumper. We can speculate that this was more of an interior refresh and there may even be an exterior refresh down the road, although we would not expect this any time soon. Tesla likely wanted to minimize changes, while bringing these cars more up to date with the competition.
Plaid
Tesla has long teased their Plaid trim level coming soon to the Model S, with a three motors set-up and much higher performance. Yesterday they replaced their Performance line with Plaid and Plaid+. The Plaid trims are available on the Model S and Model X, while the Plaid+ version is exclusive to the Model S. Aside from replacing the wood trim interior with carbon fiber, these changes are all about performance, with the Plaid+ model reaching 0 to 60 in less than 2 seconds. Yes, that's about 30% faster than the Aerosmith Rock 'n Roller rollercoaster at Disney, which goes from 0 to 60 in about 2.8 seconds. Yes. This is insane.
More Luxury
Just about the entire interior of these cars is brand new. They now feature more luxurious materials throughout the cabin, a new glass roof, new wood trim (or carbon fiber on Plaid versions) and so much more than we likely haven't been able to see yet. The interior door handles now also more closely match the Model 3 and Model Y handles, with door pockets and a push to open button. There are many details that were added that bring an updated look and feel to these cars, while adding an additional touch of luxury.
New Steering Wheel and Lack of Stalks
This is a controversial one. Tesla has shown off a new steering wheel that they're calling a Yoke. It looks very similar to the steering wheel they showed off in the Tesla Roadster 2.0. It's much more squared off and it looks like the top portion is missing. Tesla will likely offer a more traditional steering wheel in some markets or as an option, as evidenced by additional images on their site. However, our biggest concern isn't the steering wheel itself, but the complete removal of the left and right steering wheel stalks. The left stalk, traditionally used for turn signals, has been replaced by touch-capacitive buttons to the left of the left scroll wheel. There are now three buttons used to signal left, signal right, and to control the high beams.
There are also touch-capacitive buttons to the right of the other scroll wheel, used for honking the horn, windshield wipers and microphone. The scroll wheels themselves look to also be similiar to the ones in the Model 3 and Model Y, with the ability to scroll the wheel up and down and tilt the scroll wheel left or right.
If you're wondering where the gear stalk is, well the short answer to that is that there isn't one. Tesla will attempt to automatically detect the direction you're going to move in. When you come to a complete stop, Tesla will analyze the scene with their cameras, sensors and AI and determine whether you would like to be in Reverse or Drive. It doesn't take too long to think of scenarios where this isn't going to work. For example, if you wanted to back up when maybe you've stepped over onto a crosswalk or passed the stop line at a stop sign or traffic light then we're not sure the car will pick the correct direction, given that there is no obstacle in front of the vehicle. We're sure you can think of many others. Tesla, however will also let you select the gear with an on-screen display. Our biggest worry here isn't that Tesla is determining the direction using AI, or that you'll have to use the display to manually change direction (although image a K turn!), our concern would be that Tesla gets the direction of travel MOSTLY right. This could lead to a false sense of comfort with this feature, and cause problems in the rare situation when you expect the car to go forward, but it goes backwards, or vice-versa. We hope we're wrong in this regard, as the stakes are quite high.
To wrap up this steering wheel/stalk conversation, if Tesla is going in this direction, with touch-capacitive buttons on the steering wheel, we would much prefer to see a very small screen curved around the scroll wheels. This would would give you the ability to have different colored icons to help guide you to the correct button and you could even customize them, so that if you wanted to have Drive and Reverse on the steering wheel, then you could do that. The great thing about Tesla though, is that they're not afraid to try new things and they're constantly evolving. If this doesn't work, they will be quick to adapt.
User Interface
This is an unexpected and exciting change. We don't think anyone expected a new UI for the center display, whether Tesla went with a vertical or horizontal screen, but it's clear this is completely different from what we see in previous Teslas. We have only seen limited images of the UI, but Tesla is obviously focusing on entertainment and simplicity. Part of the reason for the changes could be due to a larger display, or a display that can now tilt toward the driver, giving them the ability to easily add buttons to the right of the screen without worrying whether the driver can reach them. It's unclear whether this UI will come to existing models. There's a chance we're getting a preview of how Tesla version 11 will look.
Gaming PC
Yes, you heard that right. Tesla will essentially be including a gaming PC with all new Model S and Model X models. Tesla has stated that the graphical performance of hardware is on par with the newest PS5 and Xbox Series X consoles. Additionally, you'll be able to play some of the latest games, like The Witcher Wild Hunt and Cyberpunk 2077, on the center or rear displays.
In addition to the new hardware, Tesla will also now support wireless controllers, so that players will no longer have to plug in their controllers in order to play with a gamepad.
I believe there's a lot we don't know about this yet. There's A LOT of performance builtin here. Is this the expected MCU 3? Will it carry over to Model 3 and Model Y? Will Tesla add an App Store to buy additional games? Time will tell, but we can likely expect some of these to be true.
Sound System
Tesla has also greatly upgraded the sound system in this redesign. They now feature 22 speakers throughout the car, providing you with the best sound you've ever heard in a Tesla, which was already fantastic. Furthermore, they're also introducing the ability to use noise-canceling waves to increase cabin comfort by reducing road and wind noise. This is an exciting feature and one we'd be excited for. These cars are already very quiet, especially when compared to the Model 3 and Y.
Vents and HVAC
Taking another cue from the Model 3 and Model Y, the refreshed versions of the Model S and X will feature the same vent system as their smaller counterparts. It provides a much sleeker appearance and better distributed air throughout. You do lose the ability to manually adjust the air direction with physical buttons, but any Model 3 or Model Y owner will tell you that this isn't much of an issue and the benefits outweigh the cons.
Conclusion
Elon Musk has often said that there would not be a major redesign for the Model S and Model X, and that Tesla continously develops and makes changes throughout the year. However, we all felt a major redesign was coming eventually. We think Elon was right and Tesla does make continous changes, but there comes a point when you just can't piecemeal the new design elements together because so many of them rely on each other. This is an overdue update, but that doesn't make it any less exciting, and we're thrilled to see what else we find out about this redesign over the coming weeks and months. Deliveries are now being scheduled for March, so it won't be long now.
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Tesla has just announced the contents and features of its 2025 Spring Update. There’s a lot of new content that we expected, as well as some stuff we didn’t see coming that will be arriving in Tesla’s next major release. Awesome new features, such as Adaptive Matrix High Beams, will finally become available in North America, while others like Grok’s voice assistant aren’t quite ready yet.
So, without further ado, let’s get cracking and take a look at everything in this awesome update.
Adaptive High Beams
The headliner feature of this update is the much-awaited Adaptive High Beams for North America - specifically the United States and Canada. We’ve been waiting a little over a year since it was launched in Europe last year. Tesla faced some regulatory delays in getting this approved, but it’s finally arriving for vehicles with newer headlights.
Adaptive High Beams reduce glare for traffic ahead of you by individually dimming specific pixels on the LED matrix. The feature shipped with the refreshed Model Y first and is now arriving for all other vehicles with matrix headlights. This includes newer Model S, Model 3, Model X, and Model Y vehicles - but not the Cybertruck.
The adaptive headlights in action.
Not a Tesla App
The Cybertruck’s signature headlights are too small to fit the LED matrix, and as such, this feature won’t be supported on the Cybertruck for the time being. Hopefully, Tesla will figure something out, but given that this is a hardware limitation, we don’t expect to see much here.
You can check out our guide on how to determine whether your vehicle is equipped with Matrix Headlights. If your vehicle has the hardware, you will see an Adaptive Headlights option under Controls > Lights > Adaptive Headlights after receiving the Spring Update. This feature will be enabled by default.
Improved Blind Spot Camera for Model S / X
The new blindspot camera in the driver's instrument cluster.
Not a Tesla App
In a surprise addition, Tesla is improving support for the Blind Spot Camera on the 2021+ refreshes of their flagship vehicles. Previously, the blind spot camera on these vehicles would only appear on the primary infotainment screen, not the driver’s instrument panel, which was essentially copied over from the Model 3/Y.
Now, drivers will have the option to choose which display the blind spot camera appears on. A setting under Controls > Display > Automatic Blind Spot Camera will allow drivers to choose “Driver Screen”, so that the blind spot camera appears to the left or right side of the instrument cluster, depending on which turn signal you activate. For these vehicles with an instrument cluster directly in front of the driver, this is a much better implementation of the feature than how it was originally designed.
Dashcam Update - B Pillar Cameras
As part of a much-requested update, given the increased and misguided vandalism against Tesla vehicles, Tesla’s team has finally updated their software to record the B-pillar (upper side) cameras as part of both Dashcam and Sentry Mode.
While this means that Dashcam and Sentry Mode footage will now likely take up more room on your USB drive due to recording two additional cameras, it also means that your vehicle is much better protected. Dashcam and Sentry Mode now record from every camera except for the additional front-facing cameras and the interior camera.
Note: It looks like this feature will be limited to newer vehicles, likely those with AI4.
Improved Dashcam Viewer
The updated dashcam viewer.
Not a Tesla App
The Dashcam Viewer in the vehicle is also being improved with this update. Taking a page from the Tesla app, the app in the vehicle will now display multiple camera feeds at the same time, with users having the option to focus on an individual feed if desired.
Due to the additional cameras being recorded, Tesla is now laying out all the camera feeds along the bottom, instead of at each corner of the screen.
The new UI also reveals that there will be buttons to jump back or forward in 15-second increments, while at the top right, you’ll have a link to the next video, instead of having to go back to the list of videos.
Requirements for Dashcam and Sentry Mode Updates
Unfortunately, there is some bad news regarding compatibility with the B-pillar camera recording and this improved Dashcam Viewer. Tesla says the Dashcam updates will only apply to newer “S3XY” vehicles, but they don’t specify the exact requirement.
Based on previous Tesla posts, where they usually list if a feature requires the AMD Ryzen infotainment processor, this requirement doesn’t sound like an Intel vs AMD issue, but instead one that relies on AI4 hardware, which is responsible for processing the video feeds.
Tesla’s “S3XY” requirement also leaves out the Cybertruck, but this seems like an oversight. Given some previously leaked footage of this feature, we expect the Cybertruck to also receive this feature with the Spring Update.
We recently covered routing options on the site, and we believe a lot of people will be pleased with these additions, so if you’ve been craving improved routing options, keep reading.
There are three new routing options to check out. Users will now be able to pick from three types of routing options when choosing a destination. We originally saw these as part of the navigation source code discovered in December 2024.
Fastest: This offers the quickest path to the destination, ignoring any attempts at efficiency or stopping more often to do short charges.
Best Amenities & Fewer Stops:This routing mode minimizes your charge stops in exchange for making them longer, but also allows you to stop near highly rated restaurants, shops, and restrooms for a more relaxing trip.
Avoid Highways: This much-requested feature will enable you to keep your navigation routing away from highways unless they are absolutely required to reach your destination. Hurray for the country roads and relaxed driving.
Requirements: While we’re not sure yet which vehicles will receive these options, we expect it to arrive on all vehicles except for potentially legacy Model S/X.
Trunk Height Based on Location
Another neat and useful little feature: you will now be able to save your trunk opening height based on location rather than applying a general maximum trunk height. If you didn’t already know, you could set the maximum height your automated trunk opens, which can help prevent it from hitting a lower garage ceiling.
This feature is already available on the refreshed Model Y but is now coming to all Model Ys, all Model 3s with automated trunks, and the 2021+ Model S and Model X.
In order to set your height, manually adjust the liftgate to your preferred opening height, and then press and hold the trunk button until you hear a chime in the vehicle, indicating that the height for this location has been set.
Save Frunk Height - Cybertruck
Tesla didn’t forget about the Cybertruck either - you can now do the same with the opening height for the Cybertruck as well. You’ll have to press the exterior (below the bottom center) frunk button and hold it until you hear a chime for the Cybertruck. Pressing the in-frunk button will simply close the frunk.
Accessory Power Option Enables 12V Sockets
Tesla is finally re-enabling 12V accessory power sockets throughout its cars with a new “Accessory Power” option, enabling anyone to use the 12V power sockets in Tesla’s vehicle lineup when they’re away from their vehicle, without needing Camp Mode. This also applies to the USB ports and wireless phone chargers throughout the vehicle.
The Model Y and Model X include a 12V socket in the rear left pillar of the vehicle, alongside a 12V socket in the front of the vehicle. The Model 3 and Model S only have a 12V socket in the front of the vehicle.
You can turn this feature on by going to Controls > Charging > Keep Accessory Power On. This feature is disabled by default and is turned off once the vehicle battery drops to 20% or below. Tesla warns that this feature will use additional power, so it’s best to only use it when needed.
Comfort Drive Mode on the Cybertruck
Following the recent addition of the Comfort Mode option in the Model 3, Tesla is adding the feature to the Cybertruck as well. This feature will automatically switch the vehicle dynamics to “Comfort”, which includes a higher ride height, softer suspension and steering response, and reduction in acceleration profile to Chill Mode while FSD or TACC are active.
You can enable or disable this feature from Controls > Autopilot > Use Comfort Mode in Autopilot. This feature will be enabled by default.
Lane Departure Avoidance on the Cybertruck
Interestingly, the Cybertruck launched without several Autopilot safety and assistance features - namely, because Basic Autopilot itself is missing from the Cybertruck - only FSD and TACC are available. As part of an improvement to safety, Lane Departure Avoidance has now arrived on the Cybertruck with the Spring Update.
This will show a blue indicator on the screen if you begin or are about to begin crossing a lane marking. You will have three options, just like with other Tesla vehicles, including None, Warning, and Assistance. Assistance will provide active feedback and move the vehicle back into the lane lines, while the warning will sound an audio tone and provide visual and physical feedback (vibration) to the steering wheel.
This feature will be enabled by default with Assistance selected and can be changed from Controls > Autopilot > Lane Departure Avoidance.
Minor Updates
Tesla also lists some other smaller details that will be included as part of the 2025 Spring Update, which include these features below:
Keyboard Languages
Go to Controls > Display > Keyboards to switch languages on the touchscreen keyboard.
Media search results are filtered by sources, which provides faster access to your content.
You can now shuffle an entire Apple Music playlist that contains more than 100 songs!
You can scroll through SiriusXM favorites by tapping the left steering wheel button left or right, similar to other services.
You can now sign in to Amazon Music with an Amazon Music Free account. You still require Premium Connectivity or WiFi to stream music.
YouTube Music now shows what song will play next in the Up Next view of the media player.
If you normally connect your vehicle to your phone’s hotspot, this feature will now be enabled every time you drive instead of having you manually connect it each time.
Features We’re Hoping Come Soon
This was an awesome update, but there are always more features we’d love to see come next. Here’s our short list of features we’re still waiting and hoping for.
Everyone’s favorite question is always, When will it be released? Well, it looks like soon. We haven’t seen any vehicles, including employees, receive the Spring Update just yet. However, given that Tesla has officially announced the update, we expect it to go out to employees as soon as this weekend.
Update: Tesla has now started rolling out this update to employees. As expected, it’ll be software update 2025.14.
If no major issues are found, we could see it start rolling out to the lucky first customers in about a week, but be prepared for a slightly longer wait if Tesla needs to reduce multiple revisions of the update before rolling it out publicly.
Tesla’s factories are more than just gigantic locations to produce cars at an insanely fast rate - they’re also locations that live and thrive alongside the environment around them. At Gigafactory Berlin, Tesla planted over 1 million trees in 2024 to help offset the footprint of Giga Berlin. Tesla originally cut down less than half that amount of trees.
One of Tesla’s major goals is to electrify the planet and reduce carbon emissions - and what better way to do that than to create more green space. Tesla has some absolutely fantastic green-centric initiatives, and Giga Berlin really showed that off when they planted double the acreage of forest that they cut down to build the facility.
A rendering of the expected finished locations.
Not a Tesla App
Ecological Paradise
Giga Berlin isn’t the only place that Tesla is working to bring some green to - Giga Texas is also on the list. Tesla has shown off their official renderings and plans for the upcoming Ecological Paradise that will be build around Giga Texas.
Tesla has some absolutely staggering plans for the location, and it's far more than a simple park. With nearly 70,000 residents within 15 minutes of Giga Texas and 15,000 employees commuting into work, there is a considerable number of people to appeal to. That also comes with nearly 4 miles of riverfront - so Tesla will be making the best use of the space to benefit the local community and its employees.
A map of the planned paths, routes, and areas.
Not a Tesla App
The plans for the ecological paradise include a 2-acre riverfront rain garden, as well as 6 rainwater buffer and treatment ponds - all intended to enhance, protect, and expand the 53 acres of local wetland - for a total of 150 million gallons of reclaimed rainwater that will be recycled for landscape irrigation.
Just like green spaces, Tesla places considerable emphasis on water reuse and aims to make its factories as water-neutral as possible. This Ecological Paradise will help to offset the water usage from Giga Texas while also greening up the entire community around it - because all four of the new trailheads, as well as the riverbank, will be publicly accessible.
You can check out the entire filing for the Ecological Paradise, which includes a benefit report to the local community, at this link here. It looks like quite a bit of green space, which will go right alongside the 32,400kW of solar panels installed at Giga Texas - which is the largest single installation of panels in the world.
