News
Tesla’s Santa Monica Supercharger imagined in new renders, but where’s the 50’s diner?
Tesla’s massive Supercharger facility in Santa Monica, California, has been visualized in new renders, giving plenty of indication of what is to come to what is arguably the automaker’s most highly-anticipated charging facility to date. While the new graphics give a look into the future with V3 charging stalls giving Teslas additional range, the photos also show the restroom facility that will be available to those who will utilize the 62-stall facility in the heart of Los Angeles’ beach town, the rumors of a restaurant and movie screen seem lofty, especially as real estate for the lofty design seems to be minimal, and the new renders didn’t include any visualizations of the planned 50’s diner.
Tesla’s 62-stall V3 Supercharger in Santa Monica
Since early 2021, Teslarati has been closely following the situation in Santa Monica. Initially, there was a lot of speculation of what was to come after a 2018 announcement from Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who said that a drive-in movie theater with a roller rink was coming to Santa Monica, giving Tesla owners one of the most unique Supercharging experiences yet. The project finally took off after Tesla gained preliminary approval to build 62 of its fastest EV chargers across two vacant lots, located at 1401 and 1421-1425 Santa Monica Boulevard.
The lot was at one time home to Steve Taub Porsche-Audi, but this dealership closed down. For a couple of years, the lots were used to sell seasonal items like Christmas trees and Pumpkins for Halloween. That is until Tesla submitted their 2018 plans for a restaurant and drive-in movie theater. However, it would not be until 2021 that Tesla finally started making some progress with the site.
Elon Musk confirms major Tesla Santa Monica Supercharger: 50’s-style diner, drive-in movie clips
After preliminary plans were approved and put into place, Tesla had a full-scale blueprint of what the facility would look like. Ultimately, the 62-stalls would be complemented with a restroom facility, Cybertruck-designed spots, and solar canopies that would provide the V3 chargers with power. The additional energy would be stored in a Tesla Megapack, just like many of its other large-scale commercial projects that require energy storage.
The project took a short-term detour as Santa Monica City Council members decided that the site could be more beneficially utilized as housing. This was a short-lived derailment of the Tesla project, and Santa Monica’s council members chose to let Tesla have their project.
The new renders: 1401 Santa Monica Boulevard
The new renders obtained by Teslarati via the GPD Group, the developer responsible for the project, show plenty of before and after angles of what will eventually be known as the Santa Monica Supercharger.
- Credit: GPD Group
- What 1401 Santa Monica Blvd. will look like after Tesla finishes the Santa Monica Supercharger project. (Credit: GPD Group)
- Credit: GPD Group
- Credit: GPD Group
- Credit: GPD Group
- Credit: GPD Group
- Credit: GPD Group
- Tesla’s full-service bathroom accomodations for 1401 Santa Monica Blvd. (Credit: GPD Group)
The renders above are for the first lot, located at 1401 Santa Monica Boulevard. This lot will be home to 36 of the 62 V3 chargers. Along with the chargers, the indoor restroom facility will be located on this lot. The GPD Group renders show that the company will transition an already-standing building on the lot into the restroom building. The solar canopies will also be installed on this lot, as it is the location of a majority of the Supercharging stalls.
The new renders: 1421-1425 Santa Monica Boulevard
The remaining 26 V3 Superchargers will be located on the lot at 1421-1425 Santa Monica Boulevard. The spaces in this lot are of varying widths and lengths, hinting toward Cybertruck-specific charging stalls as the automaker prepares for production of the all-electric pickup later this year.
- Credit: GPD Group
- Credit: GPD Group
Where’s the restaurant?
Now, unfortunately, there are no renders, images, or even hints that Tesla’s 50’s-style diner will even be at this location. Based on the images and previously published blueprints of the plans for the 62-stall Supercharger facility on Santa Monica Blvd., there isn’t much space for one, either. However, there are plenty of indications that Tesla has not included this in any plans, blueprints, or images as of yet. In fact, there is a strong possibility that the company will be submitting these soon, as there is a six-month revision period that Tesla can utilize that will expire in early September, according to documents.
Tesla is officially planning to enter the restaurant business
The documents that the Santa Monica City Council has released seem to suggest that there will be a restaurant on the premises, however. According to the subheading “Construction Plan Requirements,” Tesla will be required to oblige by sanitation and food safety requirements if it ultimately decides to build a restaurant at the facility, of course. It looks like it will be a relatively intimate space, as the documents state that there will likely be less than 50 seats on the interior of the restaurant. This makes sense, however, as there are only 62 stalls, to begin with, drivers and passengers will likely want to eat their food in their own car, and the planned 100 greatest movie clips of all-time that Musk has hinted toward will likely be projected on an outdoor screen or displayed through each vehicle’s individual center screen.
What’s going on at the site as of July 13?
Currently, several things are going on at the two vacant lots. First, the project will be subjected to a “Pending Design Review” next Monday, July 19th, at 7 PM PST. There are opportunities for members of the public to livestream or dial into the event. It is unknown what the call will actually provide, but it appears that the final steps could be finalized before construction can begin.
Additionally, Tesla has been transporting prefabricated Superchargers to the lots. Based on images sent in by a Teslarati reader, we can see that Tesla is bringing these prefab Superchargers to the area for what is likely to be temporary measures.
- Credit: Brain Deming
- Credit: Brain Deming
- Credit: Brain Deming
Tesla previously used prefabricated Superchargers at a site in Beaver, Utah. However, these Superchargers were not permanent, and they were utilized to likely charge vehicles that had arrived on site for unknown reasons. As you can see, they are identical to the Superchargers seen here.
For now, the Santa Monica Supercharger project remains in the hands of the City Council Members. However, next week, there should be more answers, as the call will likely allow Tesla to move forward with this highly-anticipated project.
Investor's Corner
SpaceX IPO is coming, CEO Elon Musk confirms
However, it appears Musk is ready for SpaceX to go public, as Ars Technica Senior Space Editor Eric Berger wrote an op-ed that indicated he thought SpaceX would go public soon. Musk replied, basically confirming it.
Elon Musk confirmed through a post on X that a SpaceX initial public offering (IPO) is on the way after hinting at it several times earlier this year.
It also comes one day after Bloomberg reported that SpaceX was aiming for a valuation of $1.5 trillion, adding that it wanted to raise $30 billion.
Musk has been transparent for most of the year that he wanted to try to figure out a way to get Tesla shareholders to invest in SpaceX, giving them access to the stock.
He has also recognized the issues of having a public stock, like litigation exposure, quarterly reporting pressures, and other inconveniences.
However, it appears Musk is ready for SpaceX to go public, as Ars Technica Senior Space Editor Eric Berger wrote an op-ed that indicated he thought SpaceX would go public soon.
Musk replied, basically confirming it:
As usual, Eric is accurate
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2025
Berger believes the IPO would help support the need for $30 billion or more in capital needed to fund AI integration projects, such as space-based data centers and lunar satellite factories. Musk confirmed recently that SpaceX “will be doing” data centers in orbit.
AI appears to be a “key part” of SpaceX getting to Musk, Berger also wrote. When writing about whether or not Optimus is a viable project and product for the company, he says that none of that matters. Musk thinks it is, and that’s all that matters.
It seems like Musk has certainly mulled something this big for a very long time, and the idea of taking SpaceX public is not just likely; it is necessary for the company to get to Mars.
The details of when SpaceX will finally hit that public status are not known. Many of the reports that came out over the past few days indicate it would happen in 2026, so sooner rather than later.
But there are a lot of things on Musk’s plate early next year, especially with Cybercab production, the potential launch of Unsupervised Full Self-Driving, and the Roadster unveiling, all planned for Q1.
News
Tesla adds 15th automaker to Supercharger access in 2025
Tesla has added the 15th automaker to the growing list of companies whose EVs can utilize the Supercharger Network this year, as BMW is the latest company to gain access to the largest charging infrastructure in the world.
BMW became the 15th company in 2025 to gain Tesla Supercharger access, after the company confirmed to its EV owners that they could use any of the more than 25,000 Supercharging stalls in North America.
Welcome @BMW owners.
Download the Tesla app to charge → https://t.co/vnu0NHA7Ab
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) December 10, 2025
Newer BMW all-electric cars, like the i4, i5, i7, and iX, are able to utilize Tesla’s V3 and V4 Superchargers. These are the exact model years, via the BMW Blog:
- i4: 2022-2026 model years
- i5: 2024-2025 model years
- 2026 i5 (eDrive40 and xDrive40) after software update in Spring 2026
- i7: 2023-2026 model years
- iX: 2022-2025 model years
- 2026 iX (all versions) after software update in Spring 2026
With the expansion of the companies that gained access in 2025 to the Tesla Supercharger Network, a vast majority of non-Tesla EVs are able to use the charging stalls to gain range in their cars.
So far in 2025, Tesla has enabled Supercharger access to:
- Audi
- BMW
- Genesis
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Jaguar Land Rover
- Kia
- Lucid
- Mercedes-Benz
- Nissan
- Polestar
- Subaru
- Toyota
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
Drivers with BMW EVs who wish to charge at Tesla Superchargers must use an NACS-to-CCS1 adapter. In Q2 2026, BMW plans to release its official adapter, but there are third-party options available in the meantime.
They will also have to use the Tesla App to enable Supercharging access to determine rates and availability. It is a relatively seamless process.
News
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
Tesla has added a new feature that will be great for crowded parking lots, congested parking garages, or other confusing times when you cannot seem to pinpoint where your car went.
Tesla has added a new Vehicle Locator feature to the Tesla App with App Update v4.51.5.
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
While there are several new features, which we will reveal later in this article, perhaps one of the coolest is that of the Vehicle Locator, which will now point you in the direction of your car using a directional arrow on the home screen. This is similar to what Apple uses to find devices:
Interesting. The location arrow in the Tesla app now points to your car when you’re nearby. pic.twitter.com/b0yjmwwzxN
— Whole Mars Catalog (@wholemars) December 7, 2025
In real time, the arrow gives an accurate depiction of which direction you should walk in to find your car. This seems extremely helpful in large parking lots or unfamiliar shopping centers.
Getting to your car after a sporting event is an event all in itself; this feature will undoubtedly help with it:
The nice little touch that Tesla have put in the app – continuous tracking of your vehicle location relative to you.
There’s people reporting dizziness testing this.
To those I say… try spinning your phone instead. 😉 pic.twitter.com/BAYmJ3mzzD
— Some UK Tesla Guy (UnSupervised…) (@SomeUKTeslaGuy) December 8, 2025
Tesla’s previous app versions revealed the address at which you could locate your car, which was great if you parked on the street in a city setting. It was also possible to use the map within the app to locate your car.
However, this new feature gives a more definitive location for your car and helps with the navigation to it, instead of potentially walking randomly.
It also reveals the distance you are from your car, which is a big plus.
Along with this new addition, Tesla added Photobooth features, Dog Mode Live Activity, Custom Wraps and Tints for Colorizer, and Dashcam Clip details.
🚨 Tesla App v4.51.5 looks to be preparing for the Holiday Update pic.twitter.com/ztts8poV82
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 8, 2025
All in all, this App update was pretty robust.












