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Tesla adds “Cheetah Stance” Launch Mode for acceleration boost

(Photo: Tesla Photographer/Instagram)

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Just a few days ago, Tesla updated its online configurator for the Raven Model S and Model X Performance to reflect the flagship vehicles’ improved acceleration figures. While already blazingly-quick, the Raven Model S Performance’s 0-60 mph time was reduced to 2.3 seconds, while the Raven Model X was improved to just 2.6 seconds.

It appears that existing owners of the Raven Model S and Model X Performance are set to receive the acceleration boost update as well. A recent post from Tesla owner and noted YouTube tech reviewer Marques Brownlee revealed that faster acceleration is not all that Model S owners will be receiving. More endurance for back to back full power launches are also included in the over-the-air update, on top of the vehicle’s new “Cheetah Stance” Launch Mode.

Just like other updates such as Sentry Mode, the acceleration and endurance boost to the Raven Model S and Model X Performance is a free upgrade. As per tests by veteran drag racer and longtime Tesla owner Brooks Weisblat, the Cheetah Stance Launch Mode update adds about 46 horsepower to the Model S. Such an upgrade is no joke, and the fact that it’s free makes it even better.

Following is Tesla’s message about the new Model S Performance’s acceleration and endurance boost.

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Update available—Your Model S Performance just got quicker

You asked for it. With our latest over-the-air software update to Model S Performance, we improved 0-60 acceleration to 2.3 seconds and quarter-mile time to 10.4 seconds. Go for more back-to-back runs with improved thermal endurance, and activate Launch Mode with a press of the pedals. Launch Mode’s new Cheetah Stance lowers the front axle and adjusts damping before entry for better traction and faster acceleration off the line.

You’ll automatically receive this update based on your location and vehicle configuration—you can’t request the update. Connect to Wi-Fi or a mobile hotspot to download and install quicker.

With this recent update, the Raven Model S can now give the Porsche Taycan Turbo S an even more intense battle in the quarter mile. Few legitimate drag races between the two high-performance electric cars have been done to date, though the Taycan has an advantage in higher speeds due to its two-speed gearbox. With its recent Cheetah Stance update and acceleration boost, the Raven Tesla Model S Performance becomes a much more formidable vehicle in the quarter mile. The same goes for the Model X Performance.

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What’s even more exciting is the fact that these improvements are just being rolled out to the Raven Model S and Model X Performance. Tesla has an even more formidable flagship vehicles in store in the form of the Plaid Model S and X. That vehicles will be frighteningly fast, with the Plaid Model S’ track capabilities are honed in the Nurburgring. Granted, the Plaid Model S will cost more compared to the Raven Model S Performance, but it will likely still undercut rivals such as the Taycan Turbo S, which starts at about $180,000 before options.

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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Tesla Assisted Driving expands to tenth EU country

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Tesla has expanded its Tesla Assisted Driving (TAD) suite to its tenth European country, as Latvia joined a growing list of European Union member states authorizing the company’s advanced driver assistance technology.

Tesla Europe announced this morning that the system is now approved in Latvia, with a software rollout to begin soon.

The approval and rollout follow recognition of a provisional European type approval originally granted by the Netherlands’ RDW authority on April 10.

Latvia’s Road Traffic Safety Directorate (CSDD) evaluated the Dutch documentation, coordinated with the other national authorities, and reviewed updates from Tesla. These included tightened limits on speed offsets, automatic resets of any manual speed adjustments after each trip, and stronger driver monitoring.

In Europe, the feature is marketed as Tesla Assisted Driving after a recent rule change that labeled the name “Full Self-Driving” as misleading.

Tesla starts showing how FSD will change lives in Europe

The system remains an SAE Level 2 driver assistance tool, not unsupervised autonomy. It can control speed, steering, braking, lane changes, and intersections while following a navigation route. Drivers need not keep their hands on the wheel at all times, yet they must continuously monitor the road and be prepared to intervene immediately.

The sequence of EU recognitions began with the Netherlands in April and continued through Lithuania, Estonia, Denmark, Belgium, Slovenia, Czechia, Croatia, and Slovakia. Most have relied on mutual recognition of the single Dutch provisional approval rather than independent national testing.

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These national clearances do not yet constitute bloc-wide authorization. An EU-wide decision requires a qualified majority in the Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles: at least 15 of 27 member states representing 65 percent of the EU population. Larger markets, like Germany, France, and Italy, remain under review, and a vote is expected this December.

However, for Latvian Tesla owners with compatible vehicles and software, the imminent rollout expands access to the supervised system while underscoring that attentive human oversight remains essential.

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Tesla expands Robotaxi geofence in Houston with an ode to SpaceX merger

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Tesla expanded its Robotaxi geofence in Houston, Texas, today, enlarging the service area and drawing a new rocket-shaped boundary across the city’s northwestern and central parts.

Although CEO Elon Musk said it was just a coincidence, the expansion seems to be an ode to SpaceX and its potential merger with Tesla.

The official Tesla Robotaxi account announced the change with the lines “Houston, we have liftoff” and “Bigger service area now live,” pairing them with a map overlay.

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The prior white geofence, roughly 25 square miles covering Jersey Village, Harvest Bend, and the Willowbrook corridor along U.S. 290 and State Highway 249, now sits inside a larger blue zone that stretches southeast toward Bellair and closer to central Houston.

Houston’s Robotaxi service launched on April 18, 2026, the same day as Dallas, as Tesla’s first unsupervised public expansion beyond Austin. From the start, the vehicles were Model Ys running without anyone in the front seats, booked through the dedicated Tesla Robotaxi app and open to the public inside the geofence.

Trackers measured the initial zone at about 25 square miles; by late September it had not grown substantially. Community and registry data indicated a modest local fleet of unsupervised Model Ys, while dozens to nearly 200 Cybercabs, the purpose-built, steering-wheel-free two-seaters, have been spotted staging and testing in Houston lots, though public Cybercab rides remain limited to Austin for now.

Across the broader Robotaxi program, Tesla began public Robotaxi rides in Austin in June 2025, as a small geofence and vehicles with safety monitors became available for a ride-hailing service. Later on, Tesla removed the monitors and steadily expanded the service area until it covered most of the Austin metro area.

Unsupervised Robotaxi services now run in six cities: Austin, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa. Cumulative driverless miles reported by the company have reached several million. The Cybercab entered public service in Austin in early September 2026 and has scaled rapidly there. The company has also said that Dallas is next for Cybercab rides in November, with further cities and 24/7 hours targeted by year-end, plus fleet-operator sales of the vehicle.

Waymo also operates a fully driverless service in Houston, which has been open to the public since August of this year.

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The Houston expansion continues Tesla’s pattern of starting with tightly controlled validation zones before widening coverage as real-world data accumulates, while the rocket motif on the map underscores the company’s habit of injecting visual flair into its autonomy rollout.

Riders inside the new boundary can request unsupervised Model Y trips in the Robotaxi app; exact operating hours and further Cybercab availability remain subject to app updates and company statements.

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Tesla Cybercabs take over Austin’s F1 weekend

Tesla Cybercabs swarmed Austin’s F1 Grand Prix as sightings hit a record during race weekend.

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Tesla’s driverless Cybercabs used the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in Austin as their biggest public stress test yet. On Sunday afternoon, Tesla head of AI software Ashok Elluswamy quoted a photo from X user Ben Steindl showing a long line of gold Cybercabs and Model Y Robotaxis stacked up on a road near Circuit of the Americas. “Robotaxis as far as the eye can see!” Elluswamy wrote. Steindl’s original post was more matter of fact: “@Tesla @robotaxi is busy for the Austin F1.”

The fleet also handled the trip home. The race started at 3 p.m. Central, and once it ended, Cybercab Spotter, an account that logs Cybercab sightings around Austin, posted that “People are requesting Cybercabs to get home.”

Tesla set this up days in advance without announcing it. Late on October 22, rider David Moss posted Robotaxi app screenshots showing the Austin service area wrapping around the track toward Elroy and FM 812, with ride requests open until 1 a.m. A banner in the app read “Last call is 1am · Limited to nearby dropoffs.” Austin rides ended at 11 p.m. as recently as early October, as Teslarati reported, before moving to midnight on October 17.

Not every rider got dropped at the gate. Early app searches showed spots like COTA Karting as “Service blocked,” and one rider who took a Cybercab to the track Friday said the rideshare area was less than a 20 minute walk from the front gate.

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The weekend also produced a new activity record. Cybercab Spotter counted 1,250 Cybercab sightings in Austin on Saturday, qualifying day. The previous high was 1,072 on October 16. Sightings count the same car more than once, so they measure how busy the fleet is rather than how big it is. For size, the Texas automated vehicle registry listed 463 Cybercabs at midday Sunday, up from the 300+ Tesla claimed on October 10, when Elluswamy also said Dallas is next for Cybercab.

The track was out of reach for Tesla’s main rival. Waymo runs in Austin only through Uber, and its service area stops well short of COTA. Waymo did not announce any race day service.

Tesla has not said how many rides it gave to and from the circuit, or whether the expanded zone and 1 a.m. cutoff will stay after race weekend. On the third quarter earnings call, Elluswamy said 2 a.m. service is coming “pretty soon” and that Tesla plans to run Robotaxi around the clock before the end of the year. The company is also aiming to hand the first Cybercabs to customers before 2026 ends, which would put cars like these outside Tesla’s own fleet for the first time.

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