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Tesla customers report 2024 Spring Release update rollout

Credit: Tesla

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Tesla owners are reporting that they are now receiving update 2024.14.3, which is the 2024 Spring Release. The Spring Release includes user interface V12, Audible support, hands-free trunk, and sentry mode previews, among others. It also includes a number of new features for the Cybertruck. 

Tesla previewed a number of the Spring Release’s updates in a post on X earlier this month. While Tesla did not indicate the exact release that would include the new features would be rolled out, the announcement was appreciated by electric vehicle owners nonetheless. Notable software updates, after all, are among the most unique parts of the Tesla ownership experience. 

As per Tesla software tracker Not A Tesla App, the Spring Release has started rolling out to customers. The Tesla software tracker also shared the release notes for the update, which could be found below. Interestingly enough, only AMD-based vehicles would be receiving some of the update’s new features, like the new V12 UI that’s similar to the Cybertruck.

Following are the release notes for software update 2024.14.3.

Visual Updates

User Interface v12 elevates your visual experience with the following updates:

  • Immersive full-screen vehicle controls when you’re parked
  • Large playback controls and quick access to Recents, Favorites, and Up Next in the media player
  • Expandable Autopilot driving visualizations, with a smaller map in the top right for trip guidance
  • A sleeker and more compact drive mode strip and refined driving readouts

Audible

Listen to thousands of Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts. Pick up where you left off and listen seamlessly between your device and Tesla.

Scan the QR code to log in to your Audible account, or try it out with a selection of free audiobooks and podcasts. Requires Premium Connectivity.

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Hands-Free Trunk

Open your trunk even when your hands are full. Stand still behind your trunk with Phone Key unobstructed, listen for the chimes, and the trunk will open on its own.

To enable this feature, go to your vehicle settings > Locks > Hands-Free Trunk. Ensure your phone settings allow Nearby Interactions for the Tesla app, or open the app and go to Phone Key > Upgrade. Keep people and clothing clear of moving parts.

Requires iPhone 11+ and Tesla app 4.31.0+. A future update will extend this feature to Android users.

Preview of Sentry Mode Recordings

When Sentry Mode triggers your vehicle alarm and records an event, you can immediately preview a brief clip of the recording on your phone.

Press and hold the notification to watch the recording. In your vehicle settings, you must have Safety > Dashcam turned on.

Requires a USB with sufficient memory plugged into the vehicle, Tesla app 4.31.5+ on iPhone, and Premium Connectivity. Preview videos are end-to-end encrypted and can’t be accessed by Tesla.

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Trip Progress Bar

Below the turn-by-turn list in your navigation, you’ll now see a progress bar that changes as you drive closer to your destination or next stop.

The progress bar also reflects live traffic conditions on your route if you have Online Routing turned on.

For real-time traffic and road conditions to appear on your routes, the setting at Navigation > Online Routing must be turned on. Requires Premium Connectivity.

Spotify Queue and Playback Speed

You can now sync your Spotify queue across vehicles and devices, and adjust playback speed.

Better Route Available

Navigation now shows you, at the top of your turn list, if a faster route becomes available. It will reroute unless you decline before the option expires.

To choose how often you see these suggestions, adjust the number of minutes saved.

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In your vehicle settings, go to Navigation > Online Routing > Reroute to save. To use this feature, you must have Online Routing turned on.

Wiper Controls

Scroll Wheel — When you press the wipers button to view wiper controls, you can now adjust wiper speed by moving the left scroll wheel up or down.

Wipers Button — When you have the wipers set to I, II, III, or IIII, you can press the wipers button to cycle through speeds.

Other Updates

  • When you’re parked, you can expand the browser to full screen.
  • Access Car Wash Mode more quickly in vehicle settings > Controls.
  • Rear passengers can now see the current trip details, time, and temperature at the top of the rear touchscreen, except when Entertainment apps are using the full screen.
  • You can now swipe to delete Sentry Mode recordings in the Dashcam app on your vehicle touchscreen, or at Security > Sentry Mode Alarm Previews in the Tesla app 4.32.0+.
  • When you have Valet Mode on, and your vehicle is unlocked or shifted out of Park, you’ll receive a notification on your phone.
  • The Vampire Survivors game in Arcade now has the “Space 54” and “Deeploreble” updates.
  • Arcade includes the latest game update for Polytopia “Path of the Ocean.”
  • If you have no passengers in the back seat, the rear touchscreen now turns off when you shift out of Park, to reduce unnecessary energy use.

Speed Camera Chime

To hear a chime when you’re approaching a speed camera, turn on Navigation > Speed Camera Chime in your vehicle settings.

You must have Online Routing turned on. Requires Premium Connectivity.

Average Speed Zones

When driving through an average speed zone, you now see your average speed in the zone and the distance to the end of it.

You must have Navigation > Online Routing turned on. Requires Premium Connectivity.

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Adaptive High Beams

High beams now adapt to reduce glare for other drivers and cyclists.

By detecting other road users, and selectively dimming individual pixels of the headlight, your high beams stay on more often for greater visibility at night.

To turn them on, in your vehicle settings go to Lights > Adaptive High Beams.

Beach Buggy Racing 2

Drive your own kart racer in an action-packed race to the finish. Careen through Egyptian pyramids, dragon-infested castles, pirate shipwrecks, and experimental alien bio-labs. Blast your opponents with an arsenal of fun and wacky Powerups.

When you play games, Cybertruck’s steer-by-wire system lets you turn the steering wheel without moving the tires.

To play, go to your vehicle settings > Entertainment > Arcade > Beach Buggy Racing 2.

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Cabin Overheat Protection

For hot days or parking in direct sun, Cabin Overheat Protection helps maintain the temperature you set for up to 12 hours after you park. It will turn off at 20% battery to conserve range.

In your vehicle settings, go to Safety > Cabin Overheat Protection. Never leave children or pets unattended.

Customize Scroll Wheel Functions

Do more with the left scroll button on the steering wheel. You can perform actions like raise or lower ride height, open the glovebox, or save Dashcam footage, and adjust settings like brightness and drive mode.

Press and hold the left scroll button to open the menu and choose a function. Next time, the button will perform the most recent function you chose.

To choose a function any time you use this feature, go to vehicle settings > Display > Scroll Wheel Function, and choose Ask Each Time.

Cybertruck Colorizer

Customize how your Cybertruck appears on the touchscreen and Tesla app.

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In your vehicle settings, go to ToyBox > Colorizer.

Improved Turning Circle

Your Cybertruck’s turning circle is improved by 1.6 feet, making parking and low-speed maneuvers easier. This is achieved by an increase in the turning angle of the front and rear wheels.

Front Passenger Air Vent

You can now open or close the front passenger air vent separately, with the rest of your vehicle Climate still on.

Tap the temperature to open Climate controls, touch the front passenger air wave on the touchscreen, and follow the instructions.

New Lock Sounds

You’ll hear new signature sounds from your Cybertruck when you lock and unlock.

You can enable or disable the sounds in your vehicle settings at Locks > Lock Confirmation Sound.

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Zoom

Attend video calls with Zoom using the interior cabin camera.

Open the app directly, or join meetings from your Calendar. Shift to Park to use participant video and screen sharing. If you drive, then meetings switch to audio only.

Driver has sole responsibility to consult and comply with all local regulations while using Zoom. Requires Premium Connectivity.

Security Improvements

This update includes important security fixes and improvements.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Energy

Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can now do what only Cybertruck could

Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can power your home with Powerwall 3 during outages.

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Tesla has turned its two top sellers into backup batteries for the house.

Tesla Energy announced on Tuesday that Powershare Home Backup is now available for new Model 3 and Model Y vehicles paired with a Powerwall 3, saying the car can “extend your home backup by over 2 days.” Minutes later, Tesla’s main account quoted the post with a broader pitch: “With Powerwall 3, every Tesla can now serve as your home’s backup battery.”

Until this week, the Cybertruck was the only Tesla that could send power back into a home, and that capability only began working alongside Powerwall 3 last month, after years of ambitious targets.

Tesla’s updated Powershare page says every Model 3 and Model Y ordered in the U.S. or Puerto Rico on or after October 1, 2026 can use the feature. Some, but not all, earlier cars also qualify. Owners can check on the touchscreen under Software, then Additional Vehicle Information, where a capable car shows “Powershare Support: Enabled.” As Electrek reported, bidirectional power on the two cars runs through an inverter Tesla calls PCS2 Lite, and the company has not said when that part entered production on each trim.

The home side is simpler. A house that already has a Powerwall 3 and either a Wall Connector 3 or Universal Wall Connector needs no additional equipment, and Tesla says compatibility is enabled through a software update. When the grid drops, the Powerwall and the car work together, with up to 11.52 kW of continuous power available. Tesla’s “over two days” estimate assumes a home using 30 kWh per day and a car starting at a 90 percent charge. Standard trims are rated for up to two days, while the Cybertruck adds more than three.

There are limits. Powerwall 2 and Powerwall+ support is listed as “coming soon.” Model S and Model X are not included, and Grid Support, the program that lets Cybertruck owners in Texas send power back to the grid during demand spikes for bill credits, is not available for Model 3 or Model Y.

The rollout also lines up with something Elon Musk said more than three years ago. At Tesla’s March 2023 Investor Day, Musk said, “I don’t think very many people are going to want to use bidirectional charging, unless you have a Powerwall.” Tesla has now shipped the feature for its volume cars with exactly that requirement attached.

The Powerwall pairing was the hard part on Cybertruck. Tesla told owners in December 2025 that Powershare with Powerwall had been pushed to mid 2026, and lead engineer Wes Morrill explained that two devices capable of forming a home’s grid have to negotiate which one leads during an outage, across multiple generations of hardware. With that work done for the truck, Tesla was able to extend it to the Model 3 and Model Y within a month.

Ford and GM have offered home backup from their EVs for several years, but both require a separate inverter and backup hardware. Tesla’s version leans on equipment many Powerwall 3 owners already have on the wall. Powershare for the two cars also ships as part of software update 2026.38.3, the same release that began delivering Halloween Mode on Tuesday.

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News

Tesla ships ‘spooky’ Halloween Mode with creepy and fun features

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is now starting to ship a “Halloween Mode” that is filled with some creepy and fun features; the company says, “This spooky update turns your Tesla into a haunted house on wheels.”

The update is just the latest in a series of updates that Tesla typically ships out in a seasonal fashion. The Spring and Summer Updates provided some fun novelty items while also packing some cool features that are actually useful for the ownership experience.

This one seems to be more fun-forward, and there are not any updates to the Full Self-Driving suite or overall operation of the vehicle. Instead, these novelty features are geared toward getting you in the mood for the Fall and Halloween.

New Ghost Costume on Car Avatar

Driver Visualization will now show your vehicle as a ghost, as an all-white sheet is draped over the vehicle. Pedestrians are turned into mummies or skeletons, and other vehicles are all a spooky green:

Credit: Tesla

Additionally, the Park Scene with your Tesla now displays that ghost costume draped over your vehicle in the foreground of a scary backdrop with Jack-o-Lanterns and a haunted house:

Credit: Tesla

Trick or Treat Mode

Trick or Treat Mode will enable the vehicle to play spooky sounds and flicker the lights as visitors approach. This might be a nice touch for when you’re handing out candy to kids on Halloween Night.

Other Features

Tesla is also adding a new Light Show, new Wrap Options, and a new Lock Sound with this update.

Credit: Tesla

Additionally, Photobooth has a new Halloween option:

Credit: Tesla

You will also be able to speak remotely through the app and transmit your voice to people outside, which is not a new feature, but the car will say it in a voice of its own, which is a new feature with that bullhorn-like feature.

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Investor's Corner

SpaceX reveals how its 1 Million AI satellite network will work and prevent space collisions

SpaceX reveals plans for one million Starmind AI satellites and calls out operators hiding maneuvers.

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Concept rendering of SpaceX Starmind constellation via Grok
Concept rendering of SpaceX Starmind constellation via Grok

SpaceX has put the largest satellite count it has ever published into writing, and it says that plan only works if every other operator in orbit starts sharing what it knows.

In a new Space Safety page highlighted Tuesday morning by Sawyer Merritt on X, SpaceX said it “plans to operate up to 100,000 Starlink satellites and up to 1 million Starmind AI satellites to meet the growing demand for broadband and supercompute.” Starlink has a little over 11,000 satellites in orbit today, so the target alone implies roughly a ninefold expansion of the broadband network.

Starmind is SpaceX’s orbital AI compute constellation. Elon Musk confirmed the Starmind name in June after an xAI trademark filing surfaced, and in August SpaceX said it was working with Nvidia on the compute payload. The FCC accepted the filing for up to one million satellites back in February.

FCC accepts SpaceX filing for 1 million orbital data center plan

SpaceX also released a new render of what a full Starmind constellation could look like. Alongside it, SpaceX VP Michael Nicolls explained why the satellites will not operate on their own. “We need to operate clusters of satellites in tight formation to get enough coherent compute to run AI models efficiently,” Nicolls said. “A cluster will be 10-ish satellites connected with 10 terabits or so of bandwidth between them, and interconnected to the broader constellation.”

That is the most specific detail SpaceX has given on how Starmind will be built. Instead of a million independent servers, the network would work as tightly packed groups of about 10 satellites acting as one compute unit, with Starlink’s laser links carrying results back to Earth.


Packing satellites that close together, at that scale, makes collision avoidance the central problem, and most of the Space Safety page is aimed at other operators. SpaceX said Starlink encountered collision risks with about 650 unique maneuvering third party satellites in 2026, and only about half of them shared data. Over six months, Starlink recorded roughly 164,000 more collision risks where the closest approach came within four hours of an unannounced maneuver.

Some operators keep maneuver plans private over proprietary concerns, while others cannot get government permission to share them. SpaceX called those policies “counterproductive,” saying they “largely only serve to create preventable collision risk between satellites.” Starlink is also offering a free ephemeris sharing and screening platform that returns risk results within a minute, backed by its Stargaze network of 30,000 optical sensors.

The push comes as the Starmind application draws opposition from astronomers and environmental groups. In a September filing with the FCC, SpaceX said each Starmind satellite could weigh up to 4,000 kg, nearly seven times the mass of a Starlink V2 Mini. Musk has brushed off crowding concerns before, telling viewers in June that “space is enormous” and that SpaceX already knows how to run very large constellations safely.

SpaceX’s Starmind page says its Gigasat factory in Bastrop, Texas, is designed to produce AI satellites at scale, with deployment of thousands of units starting as soon as late 2027.

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