Tesla FSD Hardware 4.0 Revealed: More Cameras, New Placements

By Nuno Cristovao
Tesla's FSD hardware 4.0 is uncovered
Tesla's FSD hardware 4.0 is uncovered
@GreenTheOnly/Twitter

News and rumors have been heating up about Tesla's upcoming FSD hardware 4.0. Now, thanks to @GreenTheOnly, we have our first look at Tesla's latest FSD hardware, version 4.0.

The new hardware will not only include a faster computer and higher resolution cameras but it will include HD radar, additional cameras and new camera placements.

Cameras

It's been rumored for a while now that Tesla will use upgraded camera sensors with increased resolution. We reported last year that these new cameras are also expected to have LED flicker mitigration that will aid in reading digital signs. 

Tesla's current cameras produce 1.2 megapixels, and while we don't know for a fact what the updated resolution will be, numerous rumors have pointed at them having 5 megapixel sensors.

One of our sources says that while the increased resolution will be useful in certain scenarios, it won't be 'critical' because the higher resolution also comes with some downsides, such as more noise and will require additional processing power.

However, we expect that it will be useful in certain scenarios and Tesla may even be selective about when the increased resolution is used. The new cameras will also provide a better picture and will benefit non-FSD features such as Sentry Mode.

However, the increased resolution of the new cameras is only a small part of the upcoming camera changes.

Camera Placement

Tesla's hardware 4.0 features 12 camera connectors
Tesla's hardware 4.0 features 12 camera connectors
@GreenTheOnly/Twitter

Tesla's hardware 4.0 has 12 camera connectors on board, with one being labeled spare. All current Teslas feature nine cameras in total. Three of them are forward-facing cameras and located underneath the windshield, two are on the fenders, two on the B-pillars, one in the rear and one for the cabin camera.

A leak last month revealed that Tesla plans to reduce the number of front-facing cameras to two, down from three. This is likely due to the higher-resolution cameras, making the third telephoto lens unnecessary.

That means there may be up to three additional cameras in hardware 4.0, or possibly four if you count the spare. According to Green, these three cameras appear to be destined for the vehicle's front bumper, although it's not clear in which direction they'll be aimed.

There have been various documented issues where Tesla has a blindspot when the vehicle is coming out of a secondary road that is obstructed by buildings or other objects. Having a camera that could look to the sides near the front of the vehicle would solve these situations, by giving it better than human vision since they'd be placed near the front of the vehicle.

FSD struggles with obstructed views like these
FSD struggles with obstructed views like these
Cyber Owners/YouTube

According to the camera port names, it appears that Tesla may also be repositioning some of its cameras. The B-pillar cameras, which look forward, may be moved onto the vehicle's fenders to presumably help provide a better view as well.

Another leak last month revealed that Tesla is added a heater element to cameras in the B-pillar of the vehicle, which will help with fog build-up underneath the glass. 

Processing Power

Hardware 4.0 was previously rumored to be about 2-4x faster than hardware 3.0. Some of this power will undoubtedly go toward processing the new camera feeds and additional pixels the new cameras are providing. However, the additional power is crucial given that hardware 3.0 is nearing its processing limit.

Green provided the specs from the new hardware's chips, revealing it contains 20 cores, up from 12, and it maxes out at 2.35 GHz. Green also talked about the number of TRIP cores increasing from two to three and maxing out at 2.2 GHz.

While the number of cores and its frequency don't reveal how powerful this new hardware may be, Green says that the new hardware has 'a lot less improvement than many hoped for.'

It's not clear how much faster hardware 4.0 will be compared to hardware 3, but it sounds like the improvement may be toward the lower limit of the 2-4x speed bump we were expecting.

The hardware specs provided are per node, with the board having two nodes, which are expected to be used for redundancy.

Redundancy

Tesla's FSD hardware 4.0 is uncovered
Tesla's FSD hardware 4.0 is uncovered
@GreenTheOnly/Twitter

When Tesla introduced hardware 3.0, they also built it for redundancy in case of emergencies. Each board was built with two identical nodes. Both nodes could compute the same data and compare the outputs, letting the vehicle know if there was an issue. If one node failed, the vehicle could also continue driving itself long enough to pull over safely.

However, as Tesla's processing requirements increased, redundancy was removed on hardware 3.0 so that Tesla could leverage the processing power of both nodes.

With hardware 4.0, Tesla has once again added redundancy into their hardware, not only in terms of chips and processing but power redundancy as well.

Retrofits

During Tesla's earnings call last month, Elon talked a little bit about hardware 4.0, saying that it would not be economically feasible to perform retrofits.

However, given this look at Tesla's latest FSD hardware, it all but confirms that Tesla has no plans to offer any sort of retrofit.

Hardware 4.0 is also much more than just a faster computer. The power draw is much higher on hardware 4.0 than on hardware 3. The form factor is also completely different and will not fit in a previous model without modifications.

Tesla's previous FSD hardware upgrades were either camera upgrades or a computer upgrade, both of which were easily swappable. However, the hardware 4.0 suite now includes additional cameras, new camera placements, a new computer form factor, and an HD radar, making a retrofit unrealistic in every way.

There may be hobbyists that will dedicate their time and money to retrofitting their vehicles, but that's as far as we expect retrofits to go. The time and money Tesla would spend on retrofitting a vehicle would not make 'economical sense.'

Radar

Tesla's hardware 4.0 package augments vision with an HD radar.

Tesla started removing radar from their vehicles in 2021 with the Model 3 and Model Y. They later removed radar from their Model S and Model X vehicles as well in favor of a vision-only system.

However, with hardware 4.0, Tesla is reintroduced radar with a high-definition radar named Phoenix. HD radar is a step up from traditional radar, letting Tesla more accurately create an image with radar alone.

The inclusion of an HD radar isn't a surprise, as Elon Musk has previously said vision with high-res radar would be better than pure vision.

With hardware 4.0 Tesla is also going the extra distance with protecting its sensors. Not only will some of the cameras contain heaters to prevent weather-related issues, but Tesla will include a heater for the radar as well.

The radar heater will prevent snow and ice from accumulating on the front of the vehicle and blocking the radar signals.

Power Consumption

Since hardware 4's chips are more powerful it isn't a big surprise that they also require additional power. 

According to Green, hardware 3 consumed about 100 watts max, which is about the same as hardware 2.5. Hardware 3 was created with the same power restrictions as hardware 2.5 since it needed to be easily retrofitted.

However, since hardware 4.0 isn't going to be retrofitted, it didn't come with the same design restrictions. We don't know what hardware 4's max processing power is based on the information disclosed, but it will apparently idle at 80 watts, which is about double the idle power of hardware 3.

Which Models Will Have Hardware 4.0

Green believes that Tesla is producing Model S and Model X vehicles with hardware 4.0 now. However, Tesla is hanging on to them and they're not being delivered yet.

Tesla has their upcoming March 1st event titled Investor Day, where they may reveal hardware 4.0 to everyone. Possibly with a surprise announcement that all current vehicles contain hardware 4.0.

It's not clear whether the Model 3 and Model Y are currently being manufactured with the new hardware, the Model 3 and Y lines in China are currently paused for retooling which could be related to hardware 4.

Musk Confirms Robotaxi on Track for June, More Cities Coming, Customer-owned Cars in 2026

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Tesla signaled its intention to launch its first Robotaxi network in Austin, Texas, with company-owned and operated vehicles, back in January. This network will be Tesla’s first foray into truly autonomous vehicles - ones that aren’t being directly supervised by a driver. Later in February, Tesla’s executive team confirmed that the plans were on track for the launch of the Austin network both on X and during several interviews that they participated in.

At the end of February, we also found out that Tesla has applied for a Supervised Robotaxi license in California, where the network will also launch, but with safety drivers in place.

This is an ambitious plan, but FSD has really come a long way in the past year. FSD V12 was a massive step forward from V11, and V13 has made the experience smoother and safer than ever before. FSD V14 is expected to be another big step up with auto-regressive transformers and audio input.

Still on Track

Now, Elon has tripled down on the fact that Tesla will be launching their first autonomous robotaxi network in Austin - just two months away at this point. It seems that Tesla is fully set to launch their first fully unsupervised self-driving vehicles that will carry paying passengers in June.

Additional Cities

The best part is that Elon also confirmed that they’re targeting robotaxi networks launching in many cities within the United States by the end of this year. However, remember that this will be a Tesla-run network at first - Tesla owners won’t be able to add their vehicles to the Robotaxi fleet right away.

Adding Customer Vehicles

It will take some time before Tesla meets their strict internal safety requirements before it lets customers add their own vehicles to the network. Tesla’s executive team mentioned that they intend to let owners add their own vehicles to the fleet sometime in 2026. This happens to be the same time frame that Tesla plans to launch the Robotaxi across the United States, Mexico, and Canada — something that could only be done with customer-owned cars.

That final step will be bold—and it may come with complications, especially given that autonomous vehicle approval spans municipal, state or provincial, and even federal levels. There are plenty of regulatory hurdles ahead, but this is undoubtedly shaping up to be one of the most exciting times for Tesla.

Launch Event

With the Robotaxi network launching and Unsupervised FSD just around the corner, there’s a lot to get excited about. Tesla is expected to host a launch event at Gigafactory Texas in Austin to mark the debut of its first Robotaxi network. The company previously hinted that referral code users could receive invites—offering a rare chance to score an early ride in a Robotaxi outside the Hollywood studio lot.

Tesla Mule Model 3 Spotted With Front Bumper Camera

By Karan Singh
Ready_Medium_6693 on Reddit

Tesla’s engineering mule vehicles—used to test autonomy for future platforms—have resurfaced after an extended absence. The last time we saw them was back in July, when Tesla was gearing up for its initial We, Robot event. Since then, sightings have been scarce.

These vehicles typically signal that Tesla is testing new camera placements or validating FSD ground-truth data. This time, however, they appear to be outfitted exclusively with the updated camera hardware seen on the Cybercab.

New Sightings

The mules have now been spotted in Boston, Massachusetts, and Concord, New Hampshire—their first known appearances this far east. This suggests Tesla is actively collecting data to evaluate and optimize FSD performance in new regions. Thanks to Reddit user Ready_Medium_6693 for catching the one in Concord.

Elon Musk recently mentioned that Tesla plans to expand Robotaxi networks beyond the initial Texas and California launches. So while these sightings aren’t entirely unexpected, the speed of their arrival is. It suggests Tesla is confident in its ability to train FSD for local traffic rules and driving behaviors to the point it no longer needs a driver.

Bumper Cameras

The vehicle that’s been spotted in Boston is the usual Tesla engineering Model 3… except with one unique twist. It includes a front bumper camera. Shout out to @Dylan02939106 for catching the bumper camera in these photos.

The Refreshed Model 3 Mule with a Bumper Camera!
The Refreshed Model 3 Mule with a Bumper Camera!
@Dylan02939106 on X

We previously released an opinion piece regarding whether the front bumper camera would be required for Unsupervised FSD. In our eyes, Tesla will require a bumper camera for Unsupervised FSD - if only to improve direct visibility in the bumper area of the vehicle. This is key for low-speed maneuvering in crowded areas like parking lots and garages, as well as for key features like Actually Smart Summon. 

It isn’t surprising that Tesla is continuing to evaluate vehicles with a bumper camera - the Cybertruck, Cybercab, and Refreshed Model Y all have them now - and the rest of the lineup, including the flagship Model S and X, as well as the refreshed Model 3 - were supposed to eventually receive them as well.

With the Model S and Model X set for refreshes this year—and the front bumper camera on this Model 3 looking well-integrated rather than a temporary setup—it seems likely that front bumper cameras will soon become standard across Tesla’s entire lineup.

The Robotaxi Mule in Boston
The Robotaxi Mule in Boston
@Dylan02939106 on X

In fact, Tesla’s newest iteration of the FSD computer has a slot for the Bumper Camera on all AI4/HW4 vehicles, so a future retrofit could even be possible.

These are some pretty exciting times - we may see Robotaxi networks actually deploy in time for Tesla’s lofty goal of “sometime in 2026” for cities throughout North America. Once many American cities begin to accept their deployment, it will be easier to seek homologation in Mexico and Canada, enabling deployment throughout the continent.

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