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Tesla owner confronts enraged “Karen” who felt entitled to park at a charging space
A confrontation between a Tesla owner and a woman driving a combustion engine vehicle was caught on camera, and it resurfaces an age-old debate on whether electric vehicle parking spaces can temporarily be used by non-EVs.
The incident in question started after a woman blocked a Tesla charging station with her Hyundai and was called-out for the action.
The event took place at the Sherway Gardens retail shopping mall located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Tesla currently holds a retail space within the Sherway Gardens Mall, including charging stations that are reserved for test-drive vehicles and Tesla owners who need additional range during their time inside the mall.
The space that’s reserved for Tesla vehicles is marked with a sign that clearly states that only battery-electric cars may occupy the spot. However, the woman in question said she couldn’t see or read the sign and parked there because it was open.
She also clarified that she was there to pick up someone who was recently in a motorcycle accident and was visiting the mall to attend an appointment with the optometrist.
The video was initially shared by @DUCKIGYALSTAN, but the person in charge of the account stated they did not take the video. The unknown owner of the Tesla who took the video was attacked verbally by the woman, who said that “disgusting young people” resort to their cell phones to deal with their problems.
She also went on to state that young people have no self-respect based on anecdotal opinions about millennial’s lifestyle choices.
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In reality, the woman, who was upset and outraged by the driver’s request for her to vacate the space, was breaking the law. Her choice to park in an electric vehicle charging spot with her internal combustion engine car violates Ontario’s “Electric Vehicle Charging Act” of 2019. The law clearly states, “No person shall park a vehicle in an electric vehicle charging station that is identified by a sign that satisfies the prescribed requirements unless the vehicle is an electric vehicle and the vehicle is attached to the station’s charging equipment.”
The penalty for this offense is a fine of $125.
The act of a combustion engine car parking in an EV charging space is usually referred to as “ICEing.” It is a common practice among those who are against the electric vehicle movement. Often, ICEing is performed by the drivers of performance combustion engine vehicles or large trucks, who are vocally against clean transportation. This woman seemed to be parking somewhere that would be identified as a “prime” spot due to its location close to the front entrance of the mall.
When she was asked to leave by security guards, she continued to argue that she had done nothing wrong.
The act of ICEing is something most Tesla owners will eventually have to deal with. However, it was refreshing to see security guards take care of the issue with relatively no damage done, and the owner of the Tesla undoubtedly got a good story out of the situation.
Watch the full video below.
https://twitter.com/DUCKlGYALSTAN/status/1280606511086088195
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Tesla has started to deploy the 2026 Summer Update to owners across its fleet, and among the biggest changes are improvements to Navigation, a new startup animation for the Model 3 and Model Y, Caraoke scoring, and new capabilities for Grok.
As the update has started making its way to some cars, we can now see a few of the features operating in real-time. We will show you what some of the new features look like in this article, along with some additional details on what changed.
Not all of the new features in the 2026 Summer Update have quite made an appearance, but some of them have, so we’ll show those here:
New Animation Screen for 3/Y
Tesla is rolling out a new startup animation for Tesla Model 3 and Model Y owners. This is present in Launch Edition and Performance Model 3 and Model Y, but other trim levels do not have anything like this.
The new animation screen on Model 3/Y with the 2026 Summer Update
Apparently color will also be customizable: pic.twitter.com/wSdwggtG3S
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 27, 2026
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Owners can adjust the color associated with the startup animation to suit their preferences. It is a surprise that more automakers do not focus on this animation for their vehicles; it can be a great first impression piece and make the car immediately feel more luxurious.
Tesla has included this on more premium trims, but it is nice to see it on the Model 3 and Model Y.
Grok Improvements
Grok can now adjust more things in the car outside of the Navigation system. Now, drivers can adjust anything from climate to driving settings by simply speaking to the AI assistant in the car:
@Tesla‘s AI assistant (Grok) with its new vehicle commands in action.
Set the climate, your destination and vehicle settings all in one go! pic.twitter.com/0bBTqaAk6G
— Not a Tesla App (@NotATeslaApp) July 28, 2026
You don’t even have to push a button, either. Instead, you can just say “Hey, Grok,” if you have it enabled. That feature rolled out with the 2026 Spring Update just a few months back.
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This is a great feature, especially pertinent for the Robotaxi platform, as there will be no buttons inside the Cybercab when it eventually starts giving rides to the public. It also broadens Grok’s capabilities, which were relatively limited in terms of vehicle setting adjustments beforehand.
Tesla briefly offered one Robotaxi part in its Parts Catalog for your personal car, only to remove it just a short time after it was first noticed.
Tesla’s Robotaxi camera washer apparatus was briefly available for purchase on the company’s Online Parts Catalog. The camera washer was first noticed on Model Y Robotaxi vehicles about six months ago in Austin.
🚨 Tesla looks to have installed Camera Washers on the side repeater cameras on Robotaxis in Austin
pic.twitter.com/xemRtDtlRR— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 23, 2026
First noticed by Not a Tesla App, the Camera Washer entries appeared for the new “Juniper” Model Y under a category called “Halo,” which has also now disappeared. Interestingly, Halo probably is related to Tesla’s internal “Project Halo,” which was a project that aimed to retrofit customer-owned Model Ys into functional Robotaxis.
This hardware addition would likely be required for the vehicle to operate as a Robotaxi, as the Camera Washer seems to be a non-negotiable part of the vision-based system Tesla utilizes for self-driving efforts.
However, this part has since been removed and is no longer visible on the EPC.
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Now the true question lingers: Why would Tesla add this Camera Washer to the Model Y parts catalog? Is it planning to make it available for owners to utilize on their own cars for personal use, or will it become a prerequisite for Robotaxi operation in customer-owned cars?
While discussing the upgrade options for Hardware 3 vehicles during the Q1 Earnings Call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had said that the company could establish small, satellite shops that would upgrade cameras and self-driving computers. Perhaps this same strategy could be utilized for vehicles that want to be included in Robotaxi but do not have the correct hardware.
AI4 is currently represented as capable of unsupervised self-driving, and the same was said about HW3 at one point, only for Tesla to admit last quarter that it would, unfortunately, not be possible. Perhaps AI4 vehicles might need this camera washer as a prerequisite, just as HW3 cars will need that camera and computer upgrade.
This could be the first hint of that’s where we are headed.
Tesla has started rolling out a broader change to the ride experience for its Robotaxi fleet by silencing turn signals, but the change is certainly polarizing.
Tesla has generally made it clear that its purpose-built ride-hailing platform, Robotaxi, will cater to the rider in nearly every way possible. This includes having climate preferences, music, and other personal settings loaded up in the car as the rider enters.
But Tesla is taking it a step further by muting turn signal chimes altogether, a change that appears to be a way to make the ride more peaceful:
Tesla has finally turned off the blinker/turn signal noises in their Model Y Robotaxis.
This is a small update, but will definitely be noticeable for riders. It didn’t really make much sense to leave the turn signal sound on when it’s Unsupervised. pic.twitter.com/ITwx60PAMO
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) July 27, 2026
However, there are a handful of people who are not thrilled about this change. Turn signals are a conditioned part of the human mind for those who ride in a car regularly.
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Taking a turn without one feels strange and odd, and not hearing it click while activated could set off some alarms for riders, who might use the noise as confirmation that other drivers know of their intention to turn.
I kind of like it being on, threw me off when riding with Zoox who has had it disabled
— Dan Burkland (@DBurkland) July 27, 2026
Turn signal noises are still audible in customer cars, so if you use FSD in your personal vehicle, you will still hear the turn signal.
The move is certainly one that is unique, but not one that separates it from other ride-sharing services. In a normal car, the clicking sound confirms to the driver that the blinker is active. In a fully driverless Robotaxi, that feedback serves no purpose for passengers, other than peace of mind.
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