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New Tesla Service Center in Pittsburgh given the green light for construction
Tesla’s mysterious plans for a Pittsburgh Service Center have been rumored for several years but nothing could be confirmed. Then about a two months ago, concrete information began appearing on the public record. In June, Marshall Township planners gave their approval for the plans to move forward and now that they have been approved by the township supervisors, it’s time to release all the known details.
If you look closely at the pictures, you may recognize a logo imprinted on the face of the main entrance: the logo of Ethan Allen Furniture.
The store was sold to a Florida-based LLC in February. That LLC retains ownership of the building and will lease it to Tesla. In accordance with legislation already passed by the state government, the company is allowed five “dealerships” statewide. The property is located north of the city between Wexford and Cranberry in Marshall Township. As early as April, Tesla was on the agenda for the Planning Commission, but then postponed their appearance.
The upper red Tesla mark is the Cranberry Township Supercharger (map). I’ve placed a red dot on the site of the former Ethan Allen. The red Tesla mark in the middle of the map is the Ross Park Mall store location where the company recently held an exclusive grand opening event. The light grey Tesla mark is likely used to denote the geographic center of our local Ranger’s service area. The two smaller dark grey marks are destination chargers in the city.
The former Ethan Allen is on Route 19 (also known as McKnight Road as it passes through the closer suburbs), a busy commercial corridor that stretches through the entirety of the northern Pittsburgh region and on up through Cranberry (where the Supercharger is). The section pictured above is the third major concentration of car dealerships along the road, between the Wexford and Warrendale exits of I-79. The former Ethan Allen is circled in red. The brighter two blue circles are existing Lexus, Volvo, Land Rover and Jaguar dealerships. The blue circle closest to the Ethan Allen is currently being developed into a Maserati dealership. Somewhere in that row there will also be a Bentley dealership.
The new service center shares a plaza with another building that houses some medical offices and a backyard playground equipment store. The terrain necessitates that customers choose between driving down a blank-walled alley or around the side of the store (which looks like it should be the front).
The lot is somewhat awkward, but it does have a commanding view over the nearby dealerships from the side-oriented main entrance. The shaded parking spaces indicate Tesla’s planned areas for inventory cars. One of the supervisors questioned if that was an adequate number, but given Teslas are built-to-order they rarely have a lot of on-hand inventory– unlike a traditional dealership.
There is a lot of additional parking along the backside of the store– but that’ll expanded even further for service loaners, deliveries and customer cars waiting to be serviced or picked up.
Having never shopped for a retail property, it’s hard to gauge how big some of the stats on the realty company’s brochure are– but the building certainly seems large enough and Tesla will have no problem filling it from wall-to-wall.
The interior of the store looked wide open for possibilities on paper, but that ignores some of the facts on the ground as you’ll see in a moment. The side-mounted lobby splits the building down the middle, with service on the backside edges and retail on the front sides where the windows are. Not much can be done along the alley-facing wall other than offices and storage, since all the restrooms and utilities are there.
Here’s the approach from Route 19 to the building. The dated beige and pink will be going away, replaced with a clean and modern palette of white and dark grey.
It’s only after you drive up to the building that realize the front door isn’t the front door. There’s no parking here and no room to add any. Tesla will also be putting some money into new exterior lighting and removing the awnings and their metal frames.
A large side-folding door will be added to the road-facing façade. It will accordion open to allow customers to drive their newly delivered cars out onto the street for the first time.
Sneaking a peek inside the glass doors, the building’s former life is still quite evident. Walls for all of the display “rooms” for the furniture litter the floor plan. They’re not substantive but it will still be a lot of debris to clear. The tiled “path” around the store will also be demolished. Floor treatments are expected to be a combination of tile and polished or painted/sealed concrete.
Rounding the corner, it becomes clear that I didn’t respect the handicapped parking lines during my scouting run last winter. There, I admit it—but I wasn’t exactly putting anyone out, so save your letters for the bro-trucks blocking Superchargers.
The main entrance shows the Ethan Allen logo engraved into the façade. All the other signage was simply painted over with what seem to be black rattle-spray cans. Tesla will be renewing the stucco and painting it in their own colors with back lit signs similar to their other locations. You’ll note in all these pictures that the current state of the parking surface is not particularly inspiring either. More expense but also more confirmation that Tesla is willing to make some major capital investments into the Pittsburgh market.
Looking inside the main doors, you can see how the lobby splits the building into two halves. Tesla’s current floor plans indicate a receptionist will guide you to the right for sales, straight ahead to a lounge area or to the left where service advisors have their desks.
Like the road-facing façade, the main façade will be gaining a large door. Located on the far left side, the door will be a large commercial sized rollup door. The door will open into a drive-through passage leading behind the service desks and customer lounge and into the work areas of the service department. According to the plans, it seems necessary that this will designated as either an entrance or exit.
The layout of the building means that the back of the store is actually the side next to the front of the store… instead of the side opposite. For Tesla this presents an interesting opportunity in their renovations in that everyone who visits will get a clear look at the work going on as cars are driven in for service. For most dealerships the service area is hidden away behind the store and often a bit grimy, but for Tesla it’s actually a selling point with typically clean and bright work areas with colorful machinery and tools. Hopefully they’ll include windows from the customer lounge area to the service area.
If you consider that the existing loading dock is level with the internal floor, you can see there is an elevation change issue for that main wall’s new vehicle access. Not sure how they’ll resolve that discrepancy but the floor plans suggest a ramp up into the service area will be necessary while the loading dock is retained for parts delivery.
The rear of the property will be getting an additional 24 parking places and extensive landscaping. The parking expansion is probably just for the ebb and flow of deliveries but could also indicate that Pittsburgh might host some of the regions CPO cars as they await reconditioning and resale. A number of other parking stalls are added here and there as the lines are revised, but there is no immediate evidence of customer HPWCs or charging slots. Chargers for service/store use are expected to be in the ten shaded spots marked in the middle of the back lot.
The presence of an easement for utilities would suggest power for part of the lot could be made readily available even though the building’s utilities are currently located on the farthest alley corner.
Completing our lap around the outside, the alley/driveway between the former Ethan Allen and the neighboring building shows an arrow straight driveway from Route 19. This will be great for trucks delivering new cars and for the Rangers (and their trailers) who will be based out of here. Tesla’s plans indicate another large rolling garage door will be added to the front half of this side. That door will access the service area directly and will probably be designated as either entrance or exit only. Exiting the parking lot on the other side provides easy access to another arrow straight road back to Route 19.
If all goes according to what appear to be Tesla’s plans, it’ll– quite literally– be an uphill battle for the some of the local dealers because Tesla will hold the high ground in Marshall Township. Construction is expected to begin almost immediately with a grand opening late this year, perhaps November.
One interesting prohibition that did come from this meeting. The supervisors are limiting the site to the sales of car and associated retail merchandise and accessories. The company is specifically forbidden from selling “other product lines” such as the Powerwall. If Tesla decides later they’d like to market those (or SolarCity panels), they’ll have to reappear in front of the board for approval.
Tesla has finally announced the features for the 2025 Holiday Update, which includes a wide variety of new inclusions that are both functional and just for fun.
The new features are plentiful, but there were a handful of things we were expecting to see based on what we know. We don’t want to sound ungrateful, because there are a lot of great new things on the way with this update.
Here’s what was included:
Grok with Navigation Commands (Beta)
Grok will now have the ability to add and edit navigation destinations, which is a drastic improvement considering Tesla owners had to use their standard voice commands for this in the past.
The utilization of Grok will likely improve the navigation experience by offering some insight into your destination, including reviews and other points of interest nearby.
It will be enabled by using Grok’s “Assistant” personality.
Tesla Photobooth
“Turn your car into a photobooth! Take selfies from inside your Tesla & give yourself a makeover with fun filters, stickers, and emojis. Share with others right from the Tesla app.”
This feature will be available within the Toybox.
Dog Mode Live Activity
When using Dog Mode to keep your four-legged friend comfortable in the car, you’ll now be able to check in on them as it will share periodic snapshots of the cabin, along with live updates on temperature, battery, and climate conditions.
Dashcam Viewer Update
Dashcam clips are awesome, but they’re void of a lot of information, which could be useful in some instances, especially if there is an accident.
Now, there will be additional details included on each Dashcam clip, like speed, steering wheel angle, and Self-Driving state.
Santa Mode
New graphics, trees, and a lock chime are now available.
Light Show Update
A new Light Show, called Jingle Rush, will be available.
Custom Wraps and License Plates in Colorizer
Colorizer will now be known as “Paint Shop” in the Toybox. You will now be able to personalize your Tesla Avatar with window tints, custom wraps, and license plates. Preloaded designs will be available, but owners will be able to use their USB Flash Drives to create one that suits their style.
Navigation Improvements
Changing the order of your destinations will be easier through a new “Favorites” tab, and Home and Work can now be set by dropping a pin.
There will also be “Suggested Destinations,” which will be determined through recent trips and habits while parked.
Supercharger Site Map
Perhaps the most significant feature of the Holiday Update, Tesla is adding a 3D view of select Tesla Superchargers by tapping “View Site Map.”
When navigating to a location with this capability, the site layout, live occupancy, and nearby amenities will be available. Drivers will also be able to choose which stall to Supercharge.
This is only available at a handful of locations currently, but it will expand to more Superchargers as it becomes more robust.
Automatic Carpool Lane Routing
Navigation will include an option to utilize carpool lanes. Your route will automatically choose the carpool lane when eligible.
Phone Left Behind Chime
If the in-car occupant detection system does not see anyone in the car and there is a phone key, or if a phone is left inside the cabin, your Tesla will chime a few seconds after the doors close.
Charge Limit Per Location
You can now save a charge limit for the current location while parked and it will be applied automatically the next time you charge there.
ISS Docking Simulator
In a SpaceX collaboration, Tesla has added this game to its in-car Arcade:
“Become an astronaut and prove your skills by docking with the International Space Station. Control & guide the rocket in this 3D docking simulator game using a set of controls based on actual interfaces used by NASA astronauts.”
Additional Improvements
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Enable or disable wireless phone charging pads in Controls > Charging (S3XY) or Controls > Outlets & Mods (Cybertruck)
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Add Spotify tracks to your queue right from the search screen & scroll through large Spotify playlists, albums, podcasts, audiobooks & your library seamlessly, without paging
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Take the vibes up another level with rainbow colors during Rave Cave. Accent lights color will change along with the beats of your music. App Launcher > Toybox > Light Sync
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Lock Sound now includes Light Cycle from Tron Mode. Toybox > Boombox > Lock Sound
What’s Missing
There are a handful of features we expected to see with the Holiday Update, but were not included.
Banish Feature
Tesla has been teasing the Banish functionality for quite a few years, but evidently, it is not quite there yet.
Banish will allow owners to get out of their vehicle at the entrance of their destination, and the car will go find a spot and park itself. Some refer to it as “Reverse Summon.”
Apple CarPlay
With all of the rumors regarding Apple CarPlay and then the evidence that Tesla was working to bring CarPlay to vehicles, we really expected it to come with the Holiday Update.
We’re not upset it’s not here, though. Tesla’s in-car UI is significantly better, at least in our opinion.
Parking Spot Selection
One of the biggest gripes about the new Arrival Features with Full Self-Driving v14 is that choosing a set parking spot is not available. This is especially frustrating for Tesla owners who rent or live in townhouse neighborhoods or apartment complexes with assigned parking.
Tesla seems to be working on this based on the release notes for v14.2, where it said future capabilities would include Parking Spot Selection.
News
Man credits Grok AI with saving his life after ER missed near-ruptured appendix
The AI flagged some of the man’s symptoms and urged him to return to the ER immediately and demand a CT scan.
A 49-year-old man has stated that xAI’s Grok ended up saving his life when the large language model identified a near-ruptured appendix that his first ER visit dismissed as acid reflux.
After being sent home from the ER, the man asked Grok to analyze his symptoms. The AI flagged some of the man’s symptoms and urged him to return immediately and demand a CT scan. The scan confirmed that something far worse than acid reflux was indeed going on.
Grok spotted what a doctor missed
In a post on Reddit, u/Tykjen noted that for 24 hours straight, he had a constant “razor-blade-level” abdominal pain that forced him into a fetal position. He had no fever or visible signs. He went to the ER, where a doctor pressed his soft belly, prescribed acid blockers, and sent him home.
The acid blockers didn’t work, and the man’s pain remained intense. He then decided to open a year-long chat he had with Grok and listed every detail that he was experiencing. The AI responded quickly. “Grok immediately flagged perforated ulcer or atypical appendicitis, told me the exact red-flag pattern I was describing, and basically said “go back right now and ask for a CT,” the man wrote in his post.
He copied Grok’s reasoning, returned to the ER, and insisted on the scan. The CT scan ultimately showed an inflamed appendix on the verge of rupture. Six hours later, the appendix was out. The man said the pain has completely vanished, and he woke up laughing under anesthesia. He was discharged the next day.
How a late-night conversation with Grok got me to demand the CT scan that saved my life from a ruptured appendix (December 2025)
byu/Tykjen ingrok
AI doctors could very well be welcomed
In the replies to his Reddit post, u/Tykjen further explained that he specifically avoided telling doctors that Grok, an AI, suggested he get a CT scan. “I did not tell them on the second visit that Grok recommended the CT scan. I had to lie. I told them my sister who’s a nurse told me to ask for the scan,” the man wrote.
One commenter noted that the use of AI in medicine will likely be welcomed, stating that “If AI could take doctors’ jobs one day, I will be happy. Doctors just don’t care anymore. It’s all a paycheck.” The Redditor replied with, “Sadly yes. That is what it felt like after the first visit. And the following night could have been my last.”
Elon Musk has been very optimistic about the potential of robots like Tesla Optimus in the medical field. Provided that they are able to achieve human-level articulation in their hands, and Tesla is able to bring down their cost through mass manufacturing, the era of AI-powered medical care could very well be closer than expected.
News
Tesla expands Model 3 lineup in Europe with most affordable variant yet
The Model 3 Standard still delivers more than 300 miles of range, potentially making it an attractive option for budget-conscious buyers.
Tesla has introduced a lower-priced Model 3 variant in Europe, expanding the lineup just two months after the vehicle’s U.S. debut. The Model 3 Standard still delivers more than 300 miles (480 km) of range, potentially making it an attractive option for budget-conscious buyers.
Tesla’s pricing strategy
The Model 3 Standard arrives as Tesla contends with declining registrations in several countries across Europe, where sales have not fully offset shifting consumer preferences. Many buyers have turned to options such as Volkswagen’s ID.3 and BYD’s Atto 3, both of which have benefited from aggressive pricing.
By removing select premium finishes and features, Tesla positioned the new Model 3 Standard as an “ultra-low cost of ownership” option of its all-electric sedan. Pricing comes in at €37,970 in Germany, NOK 330,056 in Norway, and SEK 449,990 in Sweden, depending on market. This places the Model 3 Standard well below the “premium” Model 3 trim, which starts at €45,970 in Germany.
Deliveries for the Standard model are expected to begin in the first quarter of 2026, giving Tesla an entry-level foothold in a segment that’s increasingly defined by sub-€40,000 offerings.
Tesla’s affordable vehicle push
The low-cost Model 3 follows October’s launch of a similarly positioned Model Y variant, signaling a broader shift in Tesla’s product strategy. While CEO Elon Musk has moved the company toward AI-driven initiatives such as robotaxis and humanoid robots, lower-priced vehicles remain necessary to support the company’s revenue in the near term.
Reports have indicated that Tesla previously abandoned plans for an all-new $25,000 EV, with the company opting to create cheaper versions of existing platforms instead. Analysts have flagged possible cannibalization of higher-margin models, but the move aims to counter an influx of aggressively priced entrants from China and Europe, many of which sell below $30,000. With the new Model 3 Standard, Tesla is reinforcing its volume strategy in Europe’s increasingly competitive EV landscape.
Tesla 2025 Holiday Update: Here’s what it includes, and what it’s missing
Man credits Grok AI with saving his life after ER missed near-ruptured appendix
