With Tesla update 2023.20 you'll be able to set PIN to Drive from the Tesla app
Carter
Tesla has enabled another feature in its app, but it's only available with the latest vehicle update. Thanks to the 2023.20 update, the 'PIN to Drive' feature can now be set right from the Tesla app.
This is a great addition that helps keep your vehicle safer. By having the ability to set the PIN to Drive feature remotely, you can now choose to enable it only if you lose your key fob, key card, or phone. This gives you an additional level of security, knowing no one can start your vehicle, even if they have the key.
Before this update, you could only set up 'PIN to Drive' in your Tesla car. Now, you can do it from your phone too. When you turn on this feature, you must punch in a secure four-digit PIN before you can drive.
To set it up in your car, tap 'Controls,' then 'Safety & Security,' then 'PIN to Drive.' You'll then be asked to pick your four-digit PIN. To set it up from the Tesla app, tap on 'Security & Drivers' and scroll down to 'PIN to Drive.'
Why is 'PIN to Drive' So Important?
We live in a world where tech-savvy thieves are always trying to find a way to outsmart car security systems. This is where 'PIN to Drive' comes into play. By requiring a code to start the vehicle, it adds an extra layer of protection that is difficult to circumvent. PIN to Drive has always made your vehicle safer, but it came with the inconvenience of requiring you to enter the PIN every time you went for a drive. However, by being able to set PIN to Drive directly from the Tesla app, you can now use it in those rare cases when you lose your cell phone or keys.
How to Change Your PIN
Decided to change your 'PIN to Drive'? It's super easy. Just go back to where you set it up. You'll simply want to toggle PIN to Drive off, and when you toggle it back on, it'll ask you for a new PIN code.
Forgot PIN Code
So you've forgotten your 'PIN to Drive'? No worries! You can start the vehicle directly from the Tesla app. Simply navigate to Controls and tap on 'Start' at the bottom of the screen.
You can also reset PIN to Drive by tapping the link on the vehicle's PIN entry screen and entering your Tesla account credentials.
Creating a Secure PIN
When picking your PIN, make sure it's not something easily guessable like '1234' or your birthday. You want a secure PIN but also one that you can remember. If you have a hard time remembering numbers, try a memory trick. For example, link each digit to a particular date or event in your life. Just don't make it too obvious!
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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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