However, Tesla doesn't stand still for long, Tesla is now preparing its first post-holiday update. We'll take a look at one of the features expected to be included in this upcoming update.
Seat heaters can now be set to Auto, which will let the vehicle control their temperature automatically based on the cabin's interior temperature and the temperature the climate system is set to.
The car will then automatically choose the heat level of the seat, selecting from low, medium or high.
The car is also smart enough to not turn on a seat heater if there is no one in the seat.
Automated seat heaters are only for the front seats of the vehicle and users can override the system at any time. The options for heated seats range from off, low, medium, high to auto.
Automated Steering Wheel Heater
Tesla is now taking everything it has learned from its automation of its temperature-controlled seats and it's applying it to the vehicle's heated steering wheel.
Tesla begin shipping Model 3 and Model Y vehicles with heated steering wheels since early 2021 in China and late 2021. However, Model S and Model X vehicles have had heated steering wheels for several years. Whether your vehicle includes a heated steering wheel will vary depending on when and where it was manufactured.
The heated steering wheel can currently be turned on manually by navigating to the climate control screen of the vehicle, through the Tesla app, or by adding it to the launcher at the bottom of the screen.
If your vehicle is equipped with a heated steering wheel, you'll soon be able to set it to 'Auto' and let the vehicle control the desired heat of the wheel in pretty much the same way the vehicle controls heated seats, by taking the vehicle current cabin temperature and the temperature your climate system is set to.
Tesla is Adding Multiple Heat Levels
Although it makes a lot of sense for Tesla to automate the heating of the steering wheel as they do for seat heaters, there's more to this upcoming feature than just automation.
Tesla's heated steering wheel has thus far only had a single temperature setting, however, with this new feature, Tesla is also adding two temperature options to the heated steering wheel.
When setting the temperature of your heated steering wheel, you'll now be able to choose from Off, Low, High or Auto settings, instead of just the previously available 'Off' or 'On' options.
You'll of course continue to have full control of the heated steering wheel if you prefer, but many owners end up finding that the Auto setting works quite well and find themselves enjoying the comfort of the heated seats without having to even think about it.
Which Vehicles Will Be Supported
At this time we don't know which vehicles this feature is coming to yet, but we expect Tesla to add it to at least all newer models.
Winter is here, and temperatures are dropping, so one of the most common Tesla questions is about to resurface.
If you’ve landed here after frantically searching about “smoke” coming from your Tesla while Supercharging, take a deep breath—it’s completely normal.
Tesla Smoking While Charging
If you’re Supercharging in freezing weather—even with preconditioning—you might notice steam rising from your Tesla. But rest assured, your car isn’t smoking.
Your Tesla’s heat pump is hard at work warming both the cabin and battery to keep you comfortable and ensure optimal charging temperatures. Over time, condensation and ice build-up in the heat exchanger coils.
Why Does It Happen?
When you reach a Supercharger with your vehicle, the heat pump is still running hot, but without the cold air from driving to keep the heat exchanger coils cool, the ice and condensation quickly start to evaporate—creating what looks like smoke.
Since this typically happens near the front of the vehicle, where a car would traditionally have an engine, new vehicle owners can be startled by the discovery. However, rest assured that it’s just water vapor and it’s completely normal in cold weather.
In fact, this behavior can be experienced in any EV with a heat pump in cold climates. So, if you saw steam coming out of your vehicle and panicked, don’t worry—you’re not alone.
Now that you know what’s happening, go ahead and Supercharge with confidence.
Tesla made a lot of improvements in the 2024 Holiday Update, including more than 15 undocumented improvements that were included in the release. One of these was a stealthy performance improvement to the YouTube app.
Several people have mentioned they’ve seen improved performance on YouTube since this year’s Holiday Update - and there’s an interesting reason why.
YouTube Improvements
The improved YouTube performance in Tesla vehicles comes from an unexpected source—Tesla actually rolled back support for YouTube’s newer AV1 video encoding. Instead, vehicles now default to the older VP9 encoding standard.
While AV1 is highly efficient in terms of bandwidth, it requires considerably more processing power to decode and display videos. VP9, on the other hand, is less computationally demanding but uses more bandwidth to achieve the same video quality. This trade-off means smoother playback and better overall performance, even if it comes at the cost of slightly higher data usage.
Intel Inside
The VP9 video codec that the YouTube app is now using is much easier to decode, making it less taxing on the vehicle’s processor. This change is particularly beneficial for Tesla vehicles with Intel processors, which previously struggled to stream video at just 720p. When using AV1, these vehicles often experienced stuttering, sometimes forcing the YouTube app to automatically downgrade playback to 480p.
With this update, Intel-based Teslas should now be able to stream at 1080p smoothly. Streaming at 1440p is also possible, although occasional stutters still occur as the system keeps up with the decoding process.
Intel-based vehicles are the big winners with this change, but this appears to affect AMD Ryzen-based infotainment units as well, providing even smoother playback.
Chromium Web App
Tesla’s Theater apps aren’t native applications; instead, they run as chromeless web apps, leveraging the open-source browser built into Teslas known as Chromium (the open-source version of Chrome). Although this works quite well, there is a severe limitation - Chromium hardware acceleration isn’t supported on Linux, the operating system Tesla uses for their OS.
As a result, Tesla vehicles rely on software decoding instead of hardware decoding, which would otherwise handle video playback far more efficiently. A potential solution could be for Tesla to transition away from Chromium-based web apps in favor of a Mozilla Firefox-based browser, as Firefox does support hardware acceleration on Linux. This switch could also open the door to better streaming performance and the possibility of expanding Tesla’s in-car entertainment options.
However, Tesla’s choice of Chromium likely stems from Digital Rights Management (DRM) requirements for streaming services like Disney+ and Netflix, which rely on DRM-enabled playback. Firefox on Linux has had inconsistent support for DRM due to codec availability and variations in operating system versions.
We’re hopeful that Tesla will either adopt Firefox or develop a fully native application to improve video streaming, rather than continuing with the current web-based Tesla Theater. This shift could also pave the way for additional in-car applications built on Tesla’s native Linux environment—perhaps even reviving the long-rumored Tesla App Store.
Regardless, this update is a welcome improvement, particularly for YouTube, which remains one of the most widely used Theater Mode apps due to its accessibility, free content, and mix of short and long-form videos. It remains to be seen whether similar improvements are made for Netflix, Disney+, or other streaming platforms.
If you’ve noticed improved performance in Theater Mode, now you know why.
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