After two months it was time to set up a service appointment with Tesla to take care of a few minor deficiencies. We've had our new Tesla SR+ (blue) 2021 model since mid November 2020. The experience of dealing with Tesla Service was unlike any other car dealer and I learned a thing or two in the process. Now I know how to better track problems with our new car. Again as in so many other areas, Tesla has reimagined the automobile service experience. Here's what I found out.
Instead of phoning the dealer, Tesla gets you to make a service appointment using the Tesla app on your phone. After you make contact, they ask you to list your issues using the built in private messaging system in the app. Among other things one problem with our new car is that sometimes the car's touch screen just goes black for a few minutes. This has only happened when the car is stopped but it's quite scary because nearly everything is controlled from that screen. After 2 - 4 minutes it always comes back on. But when it happens it's unnerving. To be clear: you can still drive the car when the touch screen is black, but you cannot use the entertainment system, the climate control, the mirror adjustments, and much more. You also don't get a speedometer. It's pretty strange.
In the days before the service appointment a technician sent me a message asking if I could give the exact times and circumstances when the screen went black. I was not able to tell them because these black-outs happened at random over a two month period, and I could not remember dates and times exactly. But a few days later I was slowly backing the car into the garage and suddenly the whole car stopped, the screen went black, and everything turned off. It was weird. My service appointment was not for a few days yet, so right that minute I used the app to send a message telling the Tesla technicians the exact time this happened to the minute.
In a few hours I got a message back saying, "This is the Tesla remote technician. At the time stamp you provided the vehicle shows you were in reverse and the seat belt was unbuckled, and the drivers seat occupancy sensor was fluctuating like you were lifting on and off of the seat. This can be caused by leaning too hard one way or the other. This can confuse the car making it think no one is present, and it will cause the car to shut down. Please remain in the seat with the buckle on while driving."
The amazing fact is: it's all true. I was just moving the car from the front of the house to park it in the garage and I had not bothered to put on the seatbelt for this simple task. Also, our single car garage door is pretty narrow and the Model 3 just fits with a couple inches to spare on both sides. So while backing up I was twisting around in the seat to look behind and line up the car perfectly and in so doing I did lift my bum off the seat a bit. So this totally explains why the car shut down. It thought no one was driving! The fact that the remote technician at Tesla had all this information at their fingertips is at once brilliant but also chilling. They know EVERYTHING!! They know if I have my seatbelt on, and they even know if I'm twisting around in the seat. It's kind of frightening, and it shows that Teslas and probably all cars in the future are going to know a lot about us and our driving habits. Of course Tesla promises not to use this information, but what guarantee do we have that they will keep that promise? That's another story.
In the meantime, I suppose it's a good thing overall, and in this case it helped me understand the car better. I now put my seatbelt on even to park it in the garage. What's more, whenever I have a new issue with the car I now know to write down the exact time to the minute when it happens. No car in the past ever required this, but with Teslas it's a new habit that everyone should learn. With such time stamps technicians can do amazing things. In some cases they might even be able to solve the problem without you even having to bring the car into the shop. Now that is progress. When it comes to designing cars Elon Musk once said, "No part is the best part." In the same way, no service visit is the best service visit.
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Following customer requests, Tesla has once again returned FSD Transfers for North America. This comes after some new details we received on FSD Supervised and Unsupervised at the recent Q1 2025 Earnings Call.
Vox Populi, Vox Dei … FSD Transfer is back
All countries (in NA), all S3XY + @cybertruck (excl Foundation Series & Launch Series)
This latest round of FSD transfers doesn’t have a specific time limit - so if you’re in the market for a new vehicle and were worried about transferring FSD from a HW3 vehicle - now is the best chance.
This transfer opportunity is applicable for any new vehicle purchases, including the Model S, 3, X, Y, as well as the Cybertruck. The only vehicles it doesn’t apply to are the Foundation-Series Cybertruck or a Launch-Series Model Y, which already come with FSD included.
If you’re conducting an FSD transfer, you’ll need to reach out to your Tesla delivery coordinator through the Tesla app to confirm you’re eligible and to get the process started.
Note that once you take delivery, FSD access is removed from your older vehicle, regardless if you plan to trade in your vehicle or keep it.
Canada and Mexico
For those in Canada and Mexico, there’s some good news. This opportunity is available for customers in those countries as well, however, new vehicle orders are currently paused in Canada and Mexico for unknown reasons.
Running Offers
There are also several other offers running in North America, with the country flags indicating which countries their available in:
0% Financing on new Model 3 Orders (60mo, 0.99% for 72mo) 🇺🇸
Deep Blue Metallic and Pearl White are currently free on a new Model 3 Performance 🇺🇸
Original Model Y Owners are receiving $2,000 off the purchase of a Refreshed Model Y 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇲🇽
Free Supercharging on the Model S and Model X 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇲🇽
Free Supercharging on the Foundation-Series Cybertruck 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇲🇽
Tesla’s long-awaited ambitions for a fully autonomous Robotaxi network powered by the futuristic, control-less Cybercab have finally started to take shape.
During their Q1 2025 earnings call, Tesla shared new details about its Robotaxi network, including that the network will start with new Model Ys. The Cybercab will join the network in 2026.
Robotaxi Plans
Tesla confirmed during the Earnings Call that it is on track to conduct the pilot launch of its Robotaxi network in Austin in June 2025. The first vehicles deployed for this service won’t be Cybercabs, as production for those is still in the prototyping stage.
However, Tesla did outline part of their plan for the Robotaxi network rollout. The initial aim is to begin driverless operations in Austin and then expand the service to other cities within the United States by the end of 2025. Interestingly, Tesla is also testing in California - albeit with safety drivers at this time.
Not a Tesla App
Looking further ahead, there are ambitious plans to ramp up operations to have millions of vehicles operating autonomously within the network by the end of 2026. While substantial revenue generation won’t be immediate, Tesla anticipates that the Robotaxi network will start to “meaningfully move the financial needle” in the second half of 2026.
Tesla also highlighted the current real-world benefits that FSD is already offering today—and will be able to offer to many more people in the near future.
These include reducing effort and time spent on daily commuting or transit, as well as improving mobility for customers with disabilities. Tesla plans to emphasize some of these community stories and wants to highlight the advantages and capabilities of FSD to improve people’s lives.
Robotaxi App and Robotaxi Vehicle UI
Not a Tesla App
After the call, Tesla AI also shared a video showcasing the Robotaxi interface in the Tesla app, as well as some footage that included the in-vehicle UI, at least as it currently stands.
The video shows Tesla employees using and testing Robotaxi features, although there are safety drivers in place. It looks like there is already a set of well-integrated UI mechanisms for both the front and rear screen when in Robotaxi mode.
Tesla is testing this today, and this network has already completed 1,500 trips, totaling approximately 15,000 miles. The system is being tested for vehicle allocation, mission control, and remote assistance operations.
Remote Operators
Inevitably, edge cases or unique situations will come up, and they will be difficult to handle. For these cases, where a Robotaxi vehicle gets stuck or requires assistance, Tesla will likely implement remote support.
While they didn’t completely confirm remote support operators on the Earnings Call, Tesla has previously posted positions for Teleoperator Engineers for Robotaxi, and an AI T=team member posted on LinkedIn about testing for remote assistance operations.
Scaling Up
Tesla initially intends to deploy a relatively small fleet in Austin, with its pilot beginning with about 10 to 20 vehicles on day 1. They will scale up gradually as the systems are validated and operations are refined, and the target is for anyone visiting Austin to be able to hail a robotaxi by the end of June or early July 2025.
Scaling Out
Not a Tesla App
Tesla’s confidence in scaling out stems from its generalized approach with FSD. The team believes that once FSD is thoroughly verified and capable in a few diverse North American cities, deploying it to any other North American city should be technically feasible. After all, driving regulations don’t vary much from one major city to another, except for things like no right turns on red lights.
The primary limitation with scaling out geographically is expected to be securing regulatory approvals in different regions and jurisdictions. While the principles of Tesla’s FSD are expected to apply globally, as with the China rollout, regulation will continue to be a considerable hurdle.
Cybercab
FSD Supervised ride-hailing service is live for an early set of employees in Austin & San Francisco Bay Area.
We've completed over 1.5k trips & 15k miles of driving.
This service helps us develop & validate FSD networks, the mobile app, vehicle allocation, mission control &… pic.twitter.com/pYVfhi935W
Tesla’s fully autonomous, two-seater vehicle, the Cybercab, is also being developed. While volume production for the Cybercab won’t begin until 2026, Tesla is already undergoing sample production validation. The first actual Cybercab builds are expected to be completed near the end of Q2 2025, and we’re excited to see if anything changes from the prototypes shown at We, Robot.
Tesla intends to build Cybercab at Giga Texas, and the production line is on schedule, according to Tesla. Cybercab production will not require a new building and will be built inside the existing Giga Texas factory.
Unboxed Method
Tesla's Shareholder Deck for Q1 2025 is now out, and we're 40 minutes away from the Earnings Call.
It seems Tesla won't be using the unboxed process for its more affordable model - which is a new vehicle.
The Cybercab’s production and low-cost methodology heavily rely upon Tesla’s innovative new unboxed manufacturing method. Tesla’s executive team mentioned that progress and implementation with this new manufacturing solution was going well, and it will be key to lowering the cost of production while considerably raising the level of automation.
Tesla has already achieved key milestones with this method, including successfully integrating large sub-assemblies and resolving challenges related to connecting portions of the vehicle's ceiling during the process. They have also successfully completed corrosion testing related to the new assembly method, as well as begun initial crash testing for the Cybercab.
All of that and more will eventually be incorporated into other vehicle production lines, and the Cybertruck is already benefiting from some aspects of these developments. With a final ambition of achieving a 5-second cycle time per Cybercab, Tesla has come a long way—but it still has quite a bit to go. They’ve managed to meet a 33-second cycle time for the Model Y at Giga Shanghai between two production lines, but 5 seconds per vehicle is quite ambitious.
Not a Tesla App
With all that said, between Robotaxi and Cybercab, there is a lot of interesting news coming from Tesla. We expect this to continue throughout the year as Tesla launches its network and then aims to release FSD Unsupervised to customers, with a potential price increase.
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