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Tesla Misses Q1 Goal, Clarifies Model 3 Supercharger Status

Tesla continued to experience a shortage of critical parts for the Model X in Q1, leading to lower than expected production. It says it has remedied the situation and promises it will not happen again when Model 3 production begins.

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Tesla Model X Signature Series

Amidst all the euphoria surrounding the reveal of the Model 3, Tesla announced on Monday that its deliveries in Q1 fell short of its projections. Elon Musk told analysts during the Q4 earnings call in February the company expected to deliver 80,000 to 90,000 cars in 2016 with 16,000 coming from the first quarter, however the company missed its mark and delivered 14,860 vehicles instead.

Citing Model X supplier issues, the Tesla delivered 2,400 units in Q1, far fewer than the company expected. “The Q1 delivery count was impacted by severe Model X supplier parts shortages in January and February that lasted much longer than initially expected,” the company reported in a statement. “Once these issues were resolved, production and delivery rates improved dramatically.” In fact, weekly production of the Model X jumped to 750 cars in the last two weeks of March, but those cars were not able to be delivered in time to count in the Q1 totals.

Black-Model-X-Falcon-Doors-Open-Side

Elon Musk describes the Tesla Model X as the “best car ever” admitting that Tesla may have over engineered the vehicle.

 

The statement from the company went on to say, “Tesla’s hubris in adding far too much new technology to the Model X in version 1, insufficient supplier capability validation, and Tesla not having broad enough internal capability to manufacture the parts in-house” were to blame for the low number of cars manufactured. “The parts in question were only half a dozen out of more than 8,000 unique parts. Nonetheless missing even one part means a car cannot be delivered. Tesla is addressing all three root causes to ensure that these mistakes aren’t repeated with the Model 3 launch.”

Model 3 Supercharger Access

The company also responded to an inquiry yesterday from Reddit user NewCow, who posted, “Hey all, since there was some confusion about the wording changes on the 3 site, I reached out to my press contact at Tesla to clarify if Supercharging was standard or not.”

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He says he got this official response from the company. “All Model 3 will have the capability for Supercharging. We haven’t specified (and aren’t right now) whether supercharging will be free.” NewCow adds, “So the hardware is standard, but still undecided if it will be enabled standard.” That has led to speculation that Supercharger access will be an extra cost option for Model 3 buyers as it was originally for early Model S 60 customers.

 

One final note. Elon has tweeted that the first Model 3 cars will be delivered to those who live closest to the factory. “Reason initial cars are delivered close to factory is to have rapid turnaround on early issues.” In other words, the first cars will serve as beta testers. Any post production quality issues can be addressed as soon as possible and changes made as required to the production process before full production begins. This may be one time when you don’t want to have the first car off the line.

 

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Tesla makes big change to encourage Full Self-Driving purchases

Tesla Full Self-Driving was recently proven to be about ten times safer than a human driver in terms of accident frequency.

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Credit: Whole Mars Blog | X

Tesla has made a big change to its Online Design Studio, hoping to encourage car buyers to purchase Full Self-Driving with their vehicles.

Now, when you look at ordering a car on Tesla’s website, the portion of the page that formerly showed a render of Full Self-Driving capabilities has been replaced by a compilation of the suite’s performance in a variety of challenging scenarios.

It’s a great way to show off FSD’s impressive ability to work through road conditions that can even stump human drivers.

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The move is much better than what the page previously illustrated. Now, people can see the true capabilities of the FSD suite and what it could do to change their perspective on how vehicles can be. Instead of a vessel of transportation, FSD turns cars into a semi-autonomous mode of travel.

Tesla Full Self-Driving is statistically very safe, logging about ten times the number of miles between accidents as human drivers, based on recent data the company released.

Tesla Q2 2025 vehicle safety report proves FSD makes driving almost 10X safer

It is available for purchase in two different ways: an outright purchase for $8,000 or in a monthly subscription for $99. This enables the software to essentially do a vast majority of the legwork of driving. Drivers must keep their eyes on the road and be prepared to take over if an intervention is needed.

However, FSD has been proven to be a very accurate and safe way to travel. Tesla recently released a video of a drive from the Bay Area to Los Angeles, a nearly seven-hour trip, under FSD without a single intervention ever needed:

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Tesla flexes its most impressive and longest Full Self-Driving demo yet

From a personal perspective, Tesla Full Self-Driving is a great way to travel because it truly takes a lot of the stress out of driving. In the past, I’ve used it during weekend Demo Drives to navigate around my town to see if it could handle some of the tougher traffic in my area. It became such an amazing and convenient alternative that when I went back to my car, I truly missed the advantage of having it.

I took a Tesla Model Y weekend-long Demo Drive – Here’s what I learned

However, I am picking up my Tesla Model Y this coming weekend and will enjoy it for the free three months before subscribing to the monthly program.

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Tesla offers new feature to save battery and reduce phantom drain

While in Low Power Mode, your vehicle continues to use energy for standby functions, screen activity, and Tesla app interactions. In cold weather, available energy may drop more quickly.”

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is offering a new feature to help owners save battery and reduce phantom drain, an issue that some have complained of with their cars.

While Teslas are some of the most efficient EVs on the market, they utilize energy and battery life when they’re parked to keep certain features, like Sentry Mode, Summon Standby, and others, active in preparation for potential events that occur.

Keeping these features ready to perform utilizes energy, and if your car is parked at an airport where it could be sitting stagnant for a few days, the battery percentage could start to dwindle pretty significantly.

Because of this, Tesla is rolling out a new feature called “Low Power Mode,” which will automatically disable a handful of settings to combat battery dwindling and phantom battery drain.

Tesla writes in the release notes for the feature:

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“When Low Power Mode is enabled, your vehicle will conserve energy by automatically disabling the following features:

    • Sentry Mode
    • Summon Standby
    • Outlets
    • Keep Accessory Power On
    • Keep Climate On and Camp Mode
    • Scheduled Preconditioning
    • Cabin Overheat Protection

While charging with Low Power Mode enabled:

    • Sentry Mode and accessory power will remain available
    • Keep Climate On and Camp Mode are only available when Supercharging

While in Low Power Mode, your vehicle continues to use energy for standby functions, screen activity, and Tesla app interactions. In cold weather, available energy may drop more quickly.”

This feature seemed to be a reaction to a past issue that an owner had as their Cybertruck continued to utilize energy even though the pickup was parked at an airport and the owner was in Japan. The Cybertruck had utilized a lot of energy to keep standby functions active, which left the owner in an interesting spot when they returned.

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CEO Elon Musk stepped in, and it seems this feature might have been a reaction to that situation. This is an ideal thing to use if you’re looking to conserve your battery’s state of charge.

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Tesla is bringing back something it took from the Model 3…for a price

“Modify your Model 3 by replacing the turn signal buttons on your steering wheel with turn signal stalks. This modification is included in the purchase price and is installed by a Tesla Service Center.”

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is bringing back the Model 3’s turn signal stalk in China after removing the part with the refresh of the all-electric sedan early last year.

However, it is going to cost you.

In 2024, Tesla launched the Model 3 “Highland,” a refreshed version of the vehicle that included several large-scale changes. One of the most noticeable was the lack of a turn signal stalk, something the company chose to remove and instead implement turn signal buttons on the steering wheel.

The buttons were met with mixed reviews, as some drivers complained that it was too difficult to get used to them. Others had no problem with the change, noting that it was slightly more convenient for them or that they enjoyed the minimalistic look.

Now, Tesla is offering Model 3 owners in China the opportunity to replace the stalk for a price of ¥ 2,499, or about $350:

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“Modify your Model 3 by replacing the turn signal buttons on your steering wheel with turn signal stalks. This modification is included in the purchase price and is installed by a Tesla Service Center.”

Tesla notes on its website that the service is available for Model 3 vehicles without stalks manufactured after February 7, 2025. Any car without a stalk that was manufactured before that date will have the service available to them in the future.

Installation can be performed at a Service Center or by the owner. However, Tesla notes that it is not responsible for any damages resulting from self-installation and recommends that the part be put in by an employee.

The cockpit of the Tesla lineup has been under intense scrutiny by the company in recent years. After a few changes to things like the stalk, steering wheel shape, and others, Tesla has usually given drivers the chance to have things reverted back to their preferences if they want.

They did this for the Model S and Model X a few years ago after implementing the yoke steering wheel.

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Tesla Steering Wheel Retrofits have started, and it’s easy to get rid of your yoke

The stalk was not supposed to be removed from the Model 3 and Model Y, but Tesla chose to do so with the refresh last year.

It seems the minimalization of the cockpit, overall, is a move that prepares drivers for autonomy, as eventually, Teslas will be void of pedals, steering wheels, and any other apparatus that are used to control the car.

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