New wind warning and icons in Tesla software hint at upcoming features

By Alex Jones
New icons
New icons
NATA

Based on a recent Tweet by @greentheonly regarding update 2022.16, it appears Tesla has been adding visual icons and code to support some additional features in 2022.16 and upcoming releases.

Notably, a new icon has appeared in the firmware that indicates ‘wind on the route’. This new icon in 2022.16 will let you know when there is wind that could affect your vehicle's energy usage.

Update 2022.16.0.3

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Last updated: Nov 21, 1:26 pm UTC

One of the more helpful features buried in the code (but unreleased) is an icon/notice of a congested Supercharger when the car is actively routing to one.

This notification may allow for drivers to reroute to a less congested Supercharger.

In addition, it may indicate how long of a projected wait there may be for that Supercharger station.

You are now advised when there is wind on route
You are now advised when there is wind on route
EveryElectron/Twitter

Tesla only knows how many vehicles are currently charging, but it can possibly also estimate the wait time for a Supercharger based on how many Teslas are nearby with a low state of charge.

This feature would be a small penance for Tesla’s recent choice to open up the Supercharger network to other car brands (possibly causing more instances of Supercharger congestion).

Tesla plans to solve Supercharger congestion by tripling the size of their network in the next few years.

With over 30,000 Superchargers (3,500 stations) reported at the end of 2021, Tesla undoubtedly operates the largest and most successful fast-charging networks.

In fact, Tesla now plans to add CCS (Combined Charging System) plugs to US-based Superchargers in order to make them even more compatible with other EV manufacturers.

In the near future Tesla drivers may not only have a heads up that their intended Supercharge station is congested, by possibly be offered other Supercharger options that could reduce their total travel time.

Tesla Improves Trip Planner - Arrival State of Charge Coming

By Karan Singh
DBurkland/X

Tesla recently added the ability to report Supercharger issues - such as insufficient lighting, accessibility, cleanliness, and other things that can’t be automatically monitored. In response to the post on the official X Supercharger Community, Max de Zegher, Director of Charging, North America, confirmed that one of the most wish-listed features - Arrival State of Charge, is coming soon.

The feature is now possible thanks to what Wes Morrill, Cybertruck’s lead engineering, points out is a huge rewrite of Tesla’s Trip Planner, which not only makes it much more accurate but will now allow users to choose their arrival charge percentage.

More Accurate Trip Planner

When you navigate to a destination, your Tesla will automatically calculate when, where, and how much you need to charge. While the process seems straightforward, Tesla deserves a lot of credit for creating a simple user experience because a lot goes into accurately determining this information.

Tesla has to calculate many moving pieces in order to accurately predict when and where you should stop. First, it needs to consider your driving efficiency and wind direction, terrain elevation, traffic, vehicle speed, and ambient temperature. It also needs to predict the best Superchargers to stop at, taking into account congestion and charger speed.

Now, according to Wes’ post this morning, Tesla has made backend improvements to the Trip Planner, thanks to a rewrite by several engineers, that bring even more accurate predictions to Trip Planner.

It sounds like these changes are mostly server-side, so thanks to their OTA connection, more accurate predictions should be available to all vehicles—no vehicle update is required.

Arrival State of Charge

Along with Tesla’s improvements to Trip Planner, Wes also stated that these improvements allow for a popular feature request — the ability to select your desired charge level at arrival.

Up until now, Tesla’s Trip Planner tried to get you to your destination as quickly as possible, which usually meant arriving with a low state of charge.

While this was fine if you have a charger at your destination, it’s not great if you don’t, or it could be even worse if there are no chargers nearby.

Max de Zegher said on X that he has heard the requests for a selectable arrival state of charge. Wes later clarified this by saying that these improvements to Tesla’s Trip Planner now allow for additional features to be added, such as “desired arrival charge.”

When Does it Arrive?

Given that Max de Zegher’s comments came last night and Wes Morrill commented this morning, this feature request likely won’t arrive with the upcoming Holiday Update. Tesla actually hinted at such a feature being added in their last app update, so it does seem like they’ve already planned for it.

Although ‘Arrival State of Charge’ was on our wishlist for the Holiday Update, it looks like it may arrive soon after the holidays.

Tesla Adds Performance & Visualization Improvements to Autopark With Update 2024.44.3

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

As Tesla update 2024.44.3 continues to roll out, we’re seeing more features in this update. While the update doesn’t include many new feature, it either improves existing features or rolls out a feature to new regions. Actually Smart Summon is rolling out to Europe, although with more strict restrictions. AutoPark is also rolling out to the UK and several other countries for the first time, and we’re now seeing improvements to Autopark arriving in North America and Europe.

As Tesla’s 2024.44.3 update continues to roll out, more features in the update are being revealed. While this update doesn’t introduce many entirely new features, it does refine existing features or expand the reach of others.

Notably, Actually Smart Summon is now rolling out in Europe, albeit with stricter regulations. Vision-based AutoPark is debuting in the UK and several other countries, while North America and Europe are receiving updates that further improve Autopark’s functionality.

Improvements to Autopark

As part of the same update, Tesla is making a batch of improvements to Autopark in Europe and North America. In the release notes, Tesla states that Autopark is receiving performance and visualization improvements. Unfortunately, Tesla doesn’t go into more detail here, but it sounds like these improvements could be the faster and more accurate Autopark enhancements Ashok Elluswamy talked about earlier this year.

Those improvements are expected to make Autopark more reliable, let it pick spots faster, move faster into them, and also shift between forward and reverse faster. The improvements would also let the vehicle park in tighter spots than before, with more accurate vision.

We’ll have to wait and see how this improved Autopark compares to the current version.

Your vehicle's Autopark performance and visualizatons have been improved.

Autopark in the UK and Other Countries

Countries in Europe that previously didn’t have access to Vision-Based Autopark, including the UK, will now have access to the new Autopark for the first time with update 2024.44.3 and later. This includes countries such as the UK, Ireland and Malaysia.

While these countries are receiving Autopark, it’s not clear whether it includes the Autopark improvements that other regions are receiving. The release notes don’t include the Autopark Improvements section in these countries, but that could be due to Tesla simplifying the release notes for these countries that are receiving Autopark for the first time.

With Autopark finally introduced in these regions, it’ll be the first time vehicles without ultrasonic sensors are capable of Autopark. Vision-Based Autopark is far more reliable, faster, and easier to use in more situations than the older USS-based solution.

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