All Tesla FSD Visualizations and What They Mean

By Nuno Cristovao

Updated: September 21st, 2022 as of FSD Beta 10.69.2.2

Tesla has slowly added more visualizations to the car display, showing what the car can detect and respond to in its environment. Tesla initially showed just road markings and some vehicles, but then slowly added more vehicle types, pedestrians and traffic cones.

However, with the release of FSD Beta version 9, Tesla has drastically increased the amount of objects the car can visualize and interact with.

The visualizations in the car aren't tied one-to-one with what the car is capable of detecting and using to make decisions. However, Tesla keeps visualizations and object detection closely coupled so that drivers have a good understanding of what the car can see.

Unidentified Objects

FSD Beta 10.69.2 will now display objects it can not recognize
FSD Beta 10.69.2 will now display objects it can not recognize
Not a Tesla App

As of FSD Beta 10.69.2 the vehicle visualizations will now display unidentified objects or debris. The shape of the visualization will not match the actual object, but it will be displayed as a pile of debris.

This lets the driver know the vehicle is aware of an object in its path or surroundings, but that it can not yet idenfiy what the object is.

Vector-based Lanes

Vector-based lanes
Vector-based lanes
Chazman/Twitter

As of FSD Beta 10.11, your Tesla will now display vector-based lanes. This means that the lanes are not just raster-based lines drawn in a 3D environment, but that Tesla is actually building the lane markings with vector-based graphics.

This gives Tesla additional freedom when choosing how to display the lanes on the car's display.

With this update, Tesla now fills in the lane in blue when your vehicle is changing lanes. This was something Tesla couldn't do before since the lane markings were just drawn lines.

The new vector-based graphics will scale well to any size and reduce blurring and pixelation you normally see on the display with lane markings and road edges.

Since lane markings are now vectors, hopefully, Tesla will soon apply the same process to other markings, such as the road edges.

Scalable Vehicle Models

All vehicles that Tesla displayed were pre-defined static-sized assets. However, in the 10.10.2 FSD update, we are now seeing Tesla scale individual vehicle models so that they represent the calculated size of surrounding vehicles. Contextually this could be helpful in better understanding our car's situation in the world.

Tesla now shrinks or stretches the 3D vehicle models in each dimension so that the 3D model matches the calculated dimensions for each vehicle. This is especially apparent in longer vehicles such as buses, trucks, and tractor-trailers, where the vehicle lengths are more likely to vary, but you can also see it scale other vehicle models such as very small cars.

In this example below, you'll see that Tesla is now able to accurately represent buses of different sizes. Tesla only has a model for a full length bus, but in this case, Tesla detected that the length of one of the buses is considerably shorter than the vehicle model so it chose to reduce the length of the bus to the length Autopilot had calculated. In the image below you can see how the same bus model is shown in two different sizes.

Tesla adds scalable vehicle models to the latest FSD Beta
Tesla adds scalable vehicle models to the latest FSD Beta

You can also read more details or see additional examples of Tesla dynamically scaling vehicle models.

Road Users

Vulnerable road users or VRUs as Tesla calls them are pedestrians and other users of the road that the car must be especially careful with.

Tesla already does a good job displaying some of these, but there is room for improvement here since it’s such a critical area. We hope that Tesla will add additional animals and sidewalk detection in future updates.

Pedestrians

Pedestrians are one of the few objects that feature an animation. If the pedestrian is walking, you'll see them animated on the screen.

Tesla FSD visualizations
FSD Beta visualizations start representing the real world
DirtyTesla/YouTube

Bicycles

Bicycles are visualized separately from motorcycles.

Dogs

Tesla recently added a visualization for a dog which shows up for dogs and other similarly sized animals. It's likely Tesla will add more animals in the future such as squirrels, deer and other common animals seen on roadways.

Tesla FSD visualization of a dog

Objects

Garbage/Recyling Bins

This is an object that's also displayed outside of the FSD Beta.

Traffic Cones

Traffic cones are also displayed outside of the FSD Beta and are displayed in orange. The car will display them for cones, construction barrels or sometimes mailboxes.

Speed Bumps

The car has been reacting to speed bumps for the last few betas, but they're now visualized on the screen with small arrows on them, which is a nice improvement.

Tesla visualization speed bumps
As of beta 10.4, speed bumps now appear in the visualization
Frenchie/YouTube

Poles

These poles can often be seen on the side of some highways and are displayed as short gray sticks at the edge of the road.

Tesla visualization poles
FSD Beta shows a visualization for small poles
Frenchie/YouTube

Vehicles

Tesla displays the most common vehicle types. Obviously, Tesla will need to expand this list once they expand to some other countries where other vehicle types are popular. Elon has said in the past that Tesla will visualize other Teslas specifically in the car. Recent car data shows that Tesla is already identifying whether a car is a Tesla and what model it is. This is a nice addition, but really would likely have little benefit to FSD. Tesla may provide car-to-car communication if it detects there's another Tesla nearby, which could make some situations easier, such as the right way of situations.

Another vehicle type I'd like Tesla to react better to and visualize are trailers. There are many types of trailers and they often have segments you can see through, so this may be a little tougher, but it's an important vehicle type to add.

New Vehicle Models

Vehicle models are now much more detailed
Vehicle models are now much more detailed
Not a Tesla App

FSD Beta 10.12 introduces new vehicle models for almost every vehicle type.

Some of the vehicles have been completely redesigned and are more detailed and realistic looking than the previous models.

For example, a sedan now has wheels, windows and a glass roof, instead of the previous simplistic look that resembled a Model S keyfob.

Vehicle models are now much more detailed
Vehicle models are now much more detailed
Tesla_Raj/Twitter

Tesla currently shows seven different vehicle types, which include:

  • motorcycles
  • sedans
  • minivans/SUVs
  • pickup trucks
  • small trucks
  • tractor trailers
  • buses

Own Vehicle Attributes

When Autopilot is enabled you'll see a single line that determines the path the car is going to take. This is similar to using Navigate on Autopilot on the highway, except in this case the visualization is dotted and changes color.

Creep Visualization

A new visualization was introduced in FSD Beta 10.69 that allows you to visually see how far your vehicle is expected to creep forward. Prior to this visualization it was impossible to determine how far your vehicle was going to creep, which could make the driver feel uncomfortable in busy areas.

You can now visually see until where your vehicle will creep forward
You can now visually see until where your vehicle will creep forward
Chuck Cook/YouTube

Vehicle Path

The vehicle's intended path
The vehicle's intended path
DirtyTesla/YouTube

The line in front of the vehicle denotes the path the car is planning to take. The color of the path will vary, letting you know whether the car will be accelerating or braking at the given location.

As of FSD Beta 10.8, the line is now continous and blue. The darker blue portion of the line denotes that the vehicle will accelerate until it gets to the faded blue portion of the path. The faded blue segment represents when the vehicle will stop.

This is extremely helpful as it lets you know when the vehicle is planning to stop.

Prior to FSD Beta 10.8, the vehicle's path was shown as a dotted gray and teal line. When the dot is teal it shows that the vehicle is planning to continue moving at that location.

Tesla visualization displaying teal dots and what it means
The teal path represents when the car will accelerate
DirtyTesla/YouTube

In contrast to the teal path, the gray line denotes that the vehicle will not be accelerating at that location.

Ultrasonic Sensor Arcs

If the vehicle detects an object through its ultrasonic sensors, it will display an arc on the display in the direction of the object. The arc will change color depending on the distance of the object. The colors range from gray (furthest away), to yellow and red (closer object).

Road markings

There are various markings on the ground that help aid drivers and pedestrians.

Stopping Line

When coming to a red traffic light or a stop sign, you'll see the stopping line displayed. You may see it displayed in the car even if it's not on the road itself.

Crosswalks

Crosswalks have been displayed in FSD Betas for a while, but recently their visualization has been changed to a solid gray area inside of a pair of parallel lines. I'd like to see a texture added on top of these to include the often used crossing stripes on crosswalks.

Tesla displaying crosswalks

Arrows on Road

Arrows on the road which are often used to display which direction you can go in the given lane are displayed in the visualization.

Tesla visualization displaying road arrows

Images on the Road

Tesla FSD railroad crossing
Tesla FSD railroad crossing

Certain roads may contain images directly on the pavement to indicate a special use case. The car can correctly identify bicycle lanes, railroad crossings and handicap parking spots.

Tesla FSD can identify handicap parking spots
Tesla FSD can identify handicap parking spots

Words on the Road

Sometimes words are painted directly on the road. The car will only display a small subset of words that are seen while driving. You may see Stop and some others, but it's important to note that the car is not able to decipher each letter on the road and put together a word. The text shown in visualizations is predetermined.

Road Chevrons

You may occasionally see chevrons displayed in your lane. This visualization is not mimicking a real world object, but is instead used to let you know the car is slowing down because your lane is moving much faster than adjacent lanes.

Object Colors and Attributes

Sometimes you may see an object in the visualization change color. There are various visualization that change color to represent a special meaning.

Red Pedestrian

Similar to when a vehicle turns red, you may see a pedestrian flash red if your car is approaching a pedestrian too quickly.

Tesla warning you about a pedestrian
Tesla warning you about a pedestrian

Red Stopping Line

You'll sometimes see a stopping line turn red if you're approaching a stop sign or red light.

Blue Vehicle

If a vehicle turns blue in the visualization it means that this vehicle is in or will be in the direct path that your vehicle is planning to take. It will return to it's normal shade of gray once it passes.

Tesla visualization displaying blue cars and what it means

Red Vehicle

A vehicle will turn red when immediate action is required, such as in a Forward Collision Warning. The car has deemed that its rate of speed is too high based on the distance and speed of the vehicle in front of you.

Dark Gray Vehicle

A vehicle will turn a darker shade of gray if it's considered a lead vehicle. Your car uses a lead vehicle to help determine what to do. If your car is headed in the same direction as the lead vehicle it will follow it and use the lead vehicle to help determine the path your car should take.

A dark gray vehicle represents a lead vehicle
A dark gray vehicle represents a lead vehicle
DirtyTesla/YouTube

Brake lights

Brake lights are now displayed on other vehicles. This helps give the car another cue of when to slow down instead of basing it on the distance of the vehicle alone.

Elon has already said that Tesla will be expanding this beyond just brake lights and we'll see the car detect and react to turn signals, hazards, hand gestures and more.

The brake lights visualization has been improved
The brake lights visualization has been improved
@FrenchieEAP/Twitter

Traffic control

Traffic Lights

Tesla FSD displays traffic lights with arrows
Tesla FSD displays traffic lights with arrows

Traffic lights are displayed in collections of three and will display solid or flashing colors. The car will also display red, yellow or green arrows. You may see traffic lights displayed in other areas that use flashing lights such as "slow" signs or railroad crossings.

The visualization in the car is currently only capable of displaying the traditional three traffic lights, so regardless of how many lights there are in the object your car is detecting, it'll always display a 3-light traffic light.

Tesla visualization traffic lights

Speed Limit Signs

The car will detect and display various speed limit signs. It's not able to detect arbitrary signs, such as 23 MPH, but it will display predetermined speed limit signs.

Stop Signs

Stop signs are also displayed in red. As Tesla continues to develop FSD, I'd love to see Tesla augment real world data with map data. If the car is at an intersection that it knows there are stop signs in all directions, that's useful data when deciding when to go. It would also be a useful aid when someone is not in Autopilot, warning drivers that the crossing street does not stop.

Lines & Curbs

The car will display major lane markings and display them based on the road width and curvature. The car determines the road edges using only vision and it does not rely on map data to determine where roads are located or configured.

Single/Double Yellow Lines

Tesla visualization red lines showing a curb

The car will display continuous yellow lines and display them in yellow on the display.

Continuous/Dashed White Lines

Continuous white lines are also very accurately displayed

Red Lines

Red lines in the visualization determine the road edge and determine the driveable area for the vehicle. The red line may be at the same location as a yellow or white line if there is no space before the curb. You may also often see a large gap between a white or yellow line and the red line, which can be due to an emergency lane or large space before the curb.

Future Visualizations

Tesla continues to add more objects that the car is able to detect, react to and visualize in every update.

The latest update added speed bumps and improved sidewalks. The car can already detect emergency vehicles, but they're not displayed on the screen yet, but we know they're coming as models have already been found in recent Tesla firmware.

Teslas will soon be able to identify various emergency vehicles, including motocycles. They will also display sirens on the vehicles.

Tesla has come a long way in a short period of time with how many objects they're able to detect, but obviously when you compare the environment the car sees to the real world, there is still a lot missing.

In the short-term we'll likely see a bunch more objects visualized. We'll likely see other common objects added, especially if they appear on the road, such as trailers and gates.

In the future, I think we'll see Tesla display a rich, fuller 3D environment that will display static objects that the car will want to avoid in case of an accident, such as buildings, walls, trees, sidewalks and more.

Have a visualization we missed? Let us know and we'll add it.

Tesla’s Q2 2025 Earnings Call: What to Expect and Top Questions

By Karan Singh
Not a Tesla App

Another quarter has passed, and that means it’s time to submit questions and vote for Tesla’s Q2 2025 Earnings Call. While Q1 was a tough quarter for the company, Q2 saw some recovery in sales, although there’s still some work to be done.

However, there’s always a lot to be excited about during Tesla’s Q&A session, where we usually learn a lot about future software improvements and upcoming vehicles. We may hear more about FSD Unsupervised, Robotaxi, or the more affordable vehicle, or its upcoming larger 6-seater Model Y, the Model Y L. Tesla also mentioned a potential FSD price hike back in the Q1 2025 Earnings Call, so that could be something that is brought up as well.

Tesla’s Q2 So Far

Tesla has already released their Q2 2025 Production and Delivery numbers, which were up from Q1 of this year, but still down compared to Q2 last year.

Production

Deliveries

Model 3/Y

396,835

373,728

Model S, X, and Cybertruck

13,409

10,394

Total

410,244

384,122

How to Submit & Vote

Tesla lets shareholders submit a question that will be voted on and may be answered during the Q&A session. To submit your own question or vote on an already submitted question, you’ll need to be a verified shareholder. You can go to Say’s platform and link your brokerage accounts.

Once it is verified, you’ll be able to log in and vote your shares on your own question, or on someone else’s question.

Here’s the link to get started on Say’s Tesla Q&A. You must submit your questions and votes by July 23rd, 2025, at 4:00 PM EDT.

Top Questions So Far

Unsurprisingly, people have already been submitting questions, and here are the top ones so far. 

  1. Can you give us some insight how robotaxis have been performing so far and what rate you expect to expand in terms of vehicles, geofence, cities, and supervisors?

  2. What are the key technical and regulatory hurdles still remaining for unsupervised FSD to be available for personal use? Timeline?

  3. What specific factory tasks is Optimus currently performing, and what is the expected timeline for scaling production to enable external sales? How does Tesla envision Optimus contributing to revenue in the next 2–3 years?

  4. Can you provide an update on the development and production timeline for Tesla’s more affordable models? How will these models balance cost reduction with profitability, and what impact do you expect on demand in the current economic climate?

  5. Are there any news for HW3 users getting retrofits or upgrades? Will they get HW4 or some future version of HW5?

  6. When do you anticipate customer vehicles to receive unsupervised FSD?

And here are some other ones we found interesting:

  • Have any meaningful Optimus milestones changed for this year or next and will thousands of Optimus be performing tasks in Tesla factories by year end?

  • Are front bumper cameras going to be necessary for unsupervised full self driving? If so, what is the companies plan to retrofit vehicles that do not have them?

  • Will there be a new AI day to explain the advancements the Autopilot, Optimus, and Dojo/chip teams have made over the past several years. We still do not know much about the HW4.

Earnings Call Details

Tesla will hold its earnings call on Wednesday, July 23rd, at 4:00 PM EDT. It's still early for an access link, but we’ll make sure we have a link up on the site before the earnings call that day.

If you do miss the earnings call, no worries. We will provide a full recap following the call, and we’ll also do some in-depth dives into what was said and what we know.

First Look at Tesla’s 2025.26 Update [Photos + Videos]

By Karan Singh
DirtyTesla

Tesla’s Summer Update, 2025.26, has finally launched, bringing with it a batch of interesting new features for some, and a bunch of quality-of-life improvements for everyone else.

Grok AI Assistant

The star of the Summer Update is Grok, xAI’s conversational AI assistant, which has now landed in Tesla vehicles. For now, it's available in any Tesla that has an AMD processor and is potentially coming to Intel-based vehicles in the near future. The feature is also only available in the U.S., but it’s expected to expand to other regions — hopefully soon.

Grok is in its first iteration as an in-vehicle assistant, and for now, cannot control the vehicle, which means that Tesla’s voice command system is still intact. However, there is a lot it can do already. Grok is activated by pressing and holding the voice button (right scroll wheel on older vehicles), while a short press of the button is still reserved for voice commands. Grok will support a wake word in the future, letting you activate it without pressing a button.

Grok Options

Once Grok is open, which can also be done by tapping the Grok app icon, users can tailor the AI personality according to their preferences by selecting a persona and voice of their choice.

There are also several other settings for Grok under the settings button. You can enable NSFW mode, Kids Mode, or disable access to your vehicle’s location.

Grok has contextual awareness of your vehicle location, which means it can provide relevant answers to questions like “Where should I go for dinner?”

Logging In Not Required

Grok is free with Premium Connectivity, or if you’re using your phone’s hotspot feature or connected to WiFi, so anyone can try it for free. In fact, you don’t even need to log in to start using Grok. However, logging in adds some additional features.

If you’d like to log in, you can do so by scanning the QR code in the vehicle, which will provide chat management and transcripts, SuperGrok access (if you pay for a subscription), and better privacy control.

Light Sync

Tesla has added a new Light Sync feature that pulses the vehicle’s ambient lighting in sync with the music being played. This option is turned on under Toybox > Light Sync. There are also a few options, including the ability to match the ambient light colors to the album’s artwork, instead of using your selected color.

In addition, in Park you can enable Rave Cave when parked, which cranks up the ambient lighting brightness to the maximum.

Dashcam App Update

The Dashcam app now allows you to adjust playback speeds, just like the older Dashcam Viewer, which is still used on Intel-based vehicles.

In addition to adjusting playback speed, you can now adjust the video view so that it’s displayed without being obstructed by the buttons at the top (video below). The difference is small, but could be useful if you’re trying to see something slightly out of view or that’s hidden behind the top Dashcam buttons.

While the Cybertruck has also received the updated Dashcam Viewer with this update, it does not have the new B-pillar camera recordings like other HW4 cars.

Sentry Mode Glow

Sentry Mode is getting one of the best uses of the vehicle’s ambient lighting that we’ve seen so far. The ambient lighting will now slowly pulse red while Sentry Mode is activated to grab someone’s attention, instead of just relying on the vehicle’s display.

While you can disable Sentry Mode sounds, we’d love to see an even more stealthy Sentry Mode that also disables the ambient lighting and screen, allowing the vehicle to record without anyone being aware.

Since the ambient lighting is being used in this case to make people more aware of a feature, Tesla could also use it in other modes, such as Dog Mode.

There are a lot of potential uses for ambient lighting. Tesla can make it glow while the vehicle is charging, with the brightness potentially related to the vehicle's charge level.

Supercharger Site Info at Arrival

When you navigate to a Supercharger, new icons in the charger list will indicate locations that require valet service or pay-to-park access.

Upon arrival at the location, a notification will appear on your screen, displaying important details such as access codes, parking restrictions, level/floor information for parking garages, and restroom availability. This information will also be available on the site card in the navigation.

Equalizer Presets

max_bracco/X

Tesla has moved the audio settings from the music player, directly into the vehicle settings — making them much easier to find. In addition to creating a new “Audio” section in settings, you can now create and save equalizer presets.

Each preset can have a name, custom EQ settings, and a setting for immersive audio.

max_bracco/X

Onboarding Guide

Not a Tesla App

Tesla has introduced a new Onboarding Guide for new owners. The guide covers driver settings, touchscreen use, steering wheel and seat setup, and how to control key portions of the vehicle, including lights, wipers, and Autopilot features.

The Onboarding Guide is automatically initiated when a new owner accepts delivery of a Tesla, or can be manually initiated at any time by going to Controls > Service > Onboarding Guide.

This appears to only be available for the new Model 3 and new Model Y.

Rollout

Update 2025.26

FSD Supervised 12.6.4 & 13.2.9
Installed on 1.5% of fleet
58 Installs today
Last updated: Jul 18, 11:45 pm UTC

In typical Tesla fashion, this 2025.26 update is rolling out gradually in small waves initially. Three waves have already gone out, so all signs are looking good for it going into a wide release soon.

Latest Tesla Update

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Take a look at features that Elon Musk has said will be coming soon.

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Latest Tesla Update

Confirmed by Elon

Take a look at features that Elon Musk has said will be coming soon.

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