Tesla introduced v11 last December to much fanfare. The software included many new features. It also included a redesign that changed some UI elements and relocated several key features.
As Tesla adds features over many years, a redesign can often help clean up the UI and bring a cohesive look to the software. However, some features were moved behind menus, making them more difficult to find and requiring multiple taps to turn them on.
Some features that were easily accessible before such as changing Driver Profiles, turning on seat heaters, and saving your dashcam became harder to access. Tesla has slowly been making minor adjustments to make these features more easily accessible.
Driver Profiles are now available at the top of the status bar again, although only while in Park. If you have the Dashcam icon in the launcher, you can now tap it while driving to save the last ten minutes of footage.
However, most of these changes have been relatively minor and many owners are still waiting for further improvements.
Additional Launcher Customization
2022.12 will include additional launcher options
TechAU.com.au
It looks like we may finally see some of those improvements in 2022.12.
We don't have any details yet, but it looks like one of the new features in the 2022.12 update will be additional launcher customizations.
In v11 Tesla introduced the ability to customize the bottom launcher. Unfortunately, many buttons that were previously available in the launcher were removed and could no longer be added in the new customizable version.
This included some critical vehicle functions such as wipers, seat heaters and window defrost.
With 2022.12, we're going to see some of these buttons re-introduced into the launcher. The launcher will remain customizable, so only those owners who need or want these buttons will have them show up in the launcher.
Front and rear window defrost and windshield wipers are almost certainly going to be included in this update, and it's likely that seat heaters will be added as well.
Before v11, the launcher contained icons for, Controls, Music, Apps, Driver seat heater, Climate, Passenger seat heater, front windshield defrost, rear windshield defrost, and volume.
The Tesla launcher before v11
With v11 the launcher changed to Controls, Driver climate, Customized apps, All apps, Recent apps, Passenger climate, and Volume.
On a Model 3 and Model Y, the UI lets you add up to four customized buttons. The number of recent apps will vary depending on how many apps you have customized, but you'll always have at least one.
The number of buttons in the launcher before and after v11 is almost the same. One reason why the v11 launcher appears to contain less is that Tesla split up their music app into separate apps. Instead of having a single Music app like before, we now have multiple icons for Bluetooth, FM radio, Spotify, etc.
While this makes it more convenient to jump directly to the source you want to listen to, it does require more room in the launcher, leaving less room for other buttons such as wipers and seat heaters.
Hopefully, Tesla allows for additional buttons in the launcher or finds ways to conserve space.
Some possibilities include combining some of the buttons, such as front and rear window defrosts, or only showing the passenger climate icon when there's a passenger in the seat. Tesla could also allow the removal of the volume control, move it to another location or also only display it when there is a passenger.
I wouldn't expect 2022.12 to include everything we're looking for in the launcher, as Tesla probably has further improvements they'd like to make.
However, I expect 2022.12 will include the return of many of the buttons that some of us have been missing for the last several months.
Tesla’s been on a roll with Supercharger improvements lately, from the 325kW charging update for the Cybertruck, to 500kW with V4 Superchargers coming next year. While those improvements have been limited to the Cybertruck, Tesla didn’t put all their focus on their new flagship vehicle, but looked at their more affordable vehicles as well.
LFP Battery Heating
Tesla’s Superchargers can now heat LFP Batteries - those that are in the Model 3 and Model Y Rear Wheel Drive variants. This applies to Long Range and Standard Range models, which saw a limited run. This is another update included as part of the 2024 Tesla Holiday Update - which really arrived with a lot of unannounced new features and capabilities.
The change is pretty interesting - Superchargers of the V3 and V4 variety can now pre-heat batteries for Model 3 and Model Y vehicles equipped with LFP battery packs. That means those vehicles are able to get back on the road faster when it's extremely cold. Of course, Tesla still advises you to precondition before you arrive, saving drivers time and money.
Max de Zegher, Tesla’s Director of Charging, also commented on the new feature. Essentially, Tesla is inducing an AC (alternating) ripple current through the battery to warm it up. Keep in mind that Superchargers are DC charging. That means it is possible to get a cold-soaked LFP vehicle on the road 4x faster than before, assuming that it didn’t precondition at all and that it is in the worst-case scenario (below 0ºF).
In essence, Tesla is using some engineering magic to turn the circuits inside the LFP battery into an electric heater - and powering that heater through the Supercharger. An AC ripple current is a small oscillation in the DC charging current that generates heat through electrical resistance, warming up the battery. Those ripples are a byproduct of converting AC to DC and back - so Tesla is using the onboard charger to induce those ripples to warm up the battery. Definitely an innovative technique that’s really only possible with the versatility of the NACS connector.
We’re hoping Tesla can implement this across their full lineup of vehicles, but we’ll have to wait and see how it is trialed across LFP vehicles first and if it is even possible on vehicles with 2170 or 4680 battery packs.
Tesla launched two FSD updates simultaneously on Saturday night, and what’s most interesting is that they arrived on the same software version. We’ll dig into that a little later, but for now, there’s good news for everyone. For Hardware 3 owners, FSD V12.6.1 is launching to all vehicles, including the Model 3 and Model Y. For AI4 owners, FSD V13.2.4 is launching, starting with the Cybertruck.
FSD V13.2.4
A new V13 build is now rolling out to the Cybertruck and is expected to arrive for the rest of the AI4 fleet soon. However, this build seems to be focused on bug fixes. There are no changes to the release notes for the Cybertruck with this release, and it’s unlikely to feature any changes when it arrives on other vehicles.
FSD V12.6.1 builds upon V12.6, which is the latest FSD version for HW3 vehicles. While FSD V12.6 was only released for the redesigned Model S and Model X with HW3, FSD V12.6.1 is adding support for the Model 3 and Model Y.
While this is only a bug-fix release for users coming from FSD V12.6, it includes massive improvements for anyone coming from an older FSD version. Two of the biggest changes are the new end-to-end highway stack that now utilizes FSD V12 for highway driving and a redesigned controller that allows FSD to drive “V13” smooth.
It also adds speed profiles, earlier lane changes, and more. You can read our in-depth look at all the changes in FSD V12.6.
Same Update, Multiple FSD Builds
What’s interesting about this software version is that it “includes" two FSD updates, V12.6.1 for HW3 and V13.2.4 for HW4 vehicles. While this is interesting, it’s less special when you understand what’s happening under the hood.
The vehicle’s firmware and Autopilot firmware are actually completely separate. While a vehicle downloading a firmware update may look like a singular process, it’s actually performing several functions during this period. First, it downloads the vehicle’s firmware. Upon unpacking the update, it’s instructed which Autopilot/FSD firmware should be downloaded.
While the FSD firmware is separate, the vehicle can’t download any FSD update. The FSD version is hard-coded in the vehicle’s firmware that was just downloaded. This helps Tesla keep the infotainment and Autopilot firmware tightly coupled, leading to fewer issues.
What we’re seeing here is that HW3 vehicles are being told to download one FSD version, while HW4 vehicles are being told to download a different version.
While this is the first time Tesla has had two FSD versions tied to the same vehicle software version, the process hasn’t actually changed, and what we’re seeing won’t lead to faster FSD updates or the ability to download FSD separately. What we’re seeing is the direct result of the divergence of HW3 and HW4.
While HW3/4 remained basically on the same FSD version until recently, it is now necessary to deploy different versions for the two platforms. We expect this to be the norm going forward, where HW3 will be on a much different version of FSD than HW4. While each update may not include two different FSD versions going forward, we may see it occasionally, depending on which features Autopilot is dependent on.
Thanks to Greentheonly for helping us understand what happened with this release and for the insight into Tesla’s processes.
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