You will soon have the ability to choose from multiple routes when navigating to a destination (map has been edited to hide certain information)
Not a Tesla App
Tesla has arguably the best navigation maps available in a vehicle. The maps are displayed on a large, beautiful screen and they're fast and fluid, especially on the latest hardware (MCU 3).
Tesla also makes it quick and easy to set a destination by either using the on-screen keyboard, recent destinations, or sharing a destination from your Tesla app.
Tesla's mapping solution is custom-made that not only takes traffic into account but also your vehicle's state of charge.
However, one feature that has been popular in navigation apps over the past few years that has remained absent in Teslas is the ability to choose from multiple routes.
The preferred route to a destination can sometimes be a personal preference. Some drivers may prefer traveling on the highway, while others could prefer taking back roads.
According to our source, Tesla is now bringing alternate routes to their navigation system. Tesla is introducing 'Alternate Routes,' in the U.S. in update 2022.28.1.
The feature will display up to three routes after you add a destination. The total travel time for each route will be displayed allowing you to pick your preferred route.
In addition to the total travel time, Tesla will also display traffic information if you subscribe to Premium Connectivity. The traffic information visualization will be displayed in a similar method to the 'Traffic Along Route' feature, where the route is highlighted in different colors depending on the traffic density for that section of the route.
Tesla's Traffic Along Route feature
Alternate routes won't always appear upon choosing a destination. In situations where there are no known alternate routes or the alternate route is too similar to the primary route, Tesla will simply show the primary route and start navigating.
Tesla's release notes for the feature state:
View up to three routes when navigating to a destination. Quickly compare the total travel time and traffic information for each route.
Note: Traffic information is only displayed with Premium Connectivity.
Although Alternate Routes is expected to become available to everyone in supported regions, this isn't the first time we're seeing this feature in Tesla's navigation system.
In update 2022.12 Tesla added alternate routes in Japan, and it was previously available in China.
We can't confirm whether the alternate routes feature will be available in additional regions outside of the U.S. in 2022.28.
Tesla has been working on alternate routes for some time now. Tesla hacker @greentheonly was able to get alternate routes working on his vehicle earlier this year, while other owners claim to have seen the feature occasionally appear on their screen. Tesla may have been testing this feature for a while now.
Tesla has recently been making improvements to its in-vehicle navigation. In 2022.24 Tesla added 'Traffic Along Route,' a feature that lets you more easily see the traffic visualization along your route, which is normally a blue line.
Another navigation feature that has recently been added in 2022.16 is the ability to reroute to a less busy Supercharger. If the Supercharger you selected becomes too congested, the navigation system will now reroute you to another Supercharger location that's within range.
The addition of alternate routes in the U.S. is expected to be available in Tesla update 2022.28, but as with anything else in testing, it's subject to change.
Last night, Tesla released software update 2024.45.25.15, which includes FSD V12.6.1. This update adds support for all HW3 vehicles, including the Model 3 and Model Y. We’re excited to see the continued support for HW3 owners.
FSD V12.6.1
V12.6.1 is now going wide, according to Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s VP of AI. This update is going to the Model 3 and Model Y for the first time - as only the Model S and Model X were included in FSD V12.6.
V12.6 is a big step forward for HW3 - it includes End-to-End on Highway, Improved City Streets Behavior, and Smoother and More Accurate Tracking - all contributing towards a better, smoother, and more comfortable build of FSD. You can read our comparison between FSD V12.6 and V13.2.2 here.
In short, FSD V12.6 performs considerably closer to V13 than V12.5.4.2 - which is a massive improvement. It performs as well as the Cybertruck version of FSD V13, which is still missing a few features when compared to other HW4 vehicles, but it’s a great sign for HW3. A lot of the improvements can be pointed to in the improvements to lane selection and decision-making - the vehicle tends to hesitate far less on V12.6, meaning the ride is a lot smoother. Many early V12.6 testers mentioned that it felt more like V13-mini than anything else.
Legacy Model S & X
We haven’t seen this update hit any legacy Model S and Model X vehicles just yet. We’re not sure whether Ashok’s statement of “generally” applies here - but it should. If you do get the update, please let us know.
Legacy Model S and Model X vehicles are still on an older FSD build and potentially won’t see another FSD update for a little while longer. While they do have the same FSD hardware as other vehicles, there are enough hardware differences that require a build specifically for these vehicles.
FSD V12.6.1 is going out now to the redesigned Model S and X with HW3 and all Model 3 and Model Y vehicles with HW3. The initial wave went out last night, and we expect to see more later today or tomorrow. If this release ends up going “wide,” we should see much larger waves go out next week.
Tesla has issued a recall for some vehicles due to issues linked to a revision of the Hardware 4 (HW4) computer that was introduced this past November. This recall affects all vehicles with the revised hardware except for the Cybertruck, as it uses a slightly modified version of the HW4 system.
Many vehicle owners have reported a complete failure of their Autopilot computer, which not only leaves the vehicle without FSD and Autopilot but also disables many of the active safety features that make a Tesla what it is.
Let’s take a look at this recall - because the recall is partially physical and partially a software recall.
HW4 Failure
Tesla has identified the failure and flagged it to the U.S. NHTSA (but not Transport Canada or Euro NCAP at the time of publishing) as a recall.
Tesla mentions that the vehicle’s FSD computer circuit board may short circuit, resulting in the loss of the rearview camera image. The recall itself is focused on the rearview camera - as not having a functional rearview camera breaks a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard. However, it does impact more than just the rearview camera.
As previously mentioned, users have experienced the full loss of Autopilot and FSD on these vehicles, as well as reduced traction control and removal of safety features such as automatic emergency braking, collision avoidance assist, and forward collision warnings.
While the vehicle remains driveable, it is not necessarily a good idea to drive the vehicle with many of these features, especially with the reduced traction control noted by many people. We’ve already noted that while Tesla has been sending tow trucks to pick up some vehicles, it is also prompting owners to drive the vehicle to their service center in some cases.
Remedy
Unlike most of Tesla’s recalls, this one isn’t entirely an OTA recall, owing to the fact that people have already experienced circuit board shorts and are already waiting for replacements.
The software portion of the recall has already been mostly completed for any vehicles with Tesla software update 2024.45.25.3 or greater. However, a significant portion of the tracked fleet remains on update 2024.44.25.2 (approximately 20%), so we recommend updating your HW4 vehicle whenever you receive the notification.
On the hardware side, Tesla is immediately identifying and replacing hardware that has had circuit board failure. Tesla is also reaching out to customers who have expressed intermittent issues with Autopilot features, active safety features, or vehicle cameras that don't display correctly. If you have experienced any of these issues in a late 2024 vehicle, we recommend submitting a service ticket with Tesla to ensure that your vehicle isn’t affected by this recall.
