Tesla releases big new software update with more music options, and more

Tesla has started pushing a big new software update with a few more music options, parental controls, and more.

Tesla regularly pushes out over-the-air software updates to its customer fleet.

Most of these updates don’t include significant release notes with the updates being in the backend, but every few months, Tesla releases bigger updates with additional features for customers.

Tesla owners wake up with brand new features in their electric vehicles.

Today, Tesla started to push a new 2024.26 software update with several new features (release notes via Not a Tesla App).

Youtube Music

The main new features in this 2024.26 update are new music apps. Tesla vehicles already come with native Spotify, Apple Music, Tune In, and Tidal.

Now, Tesla is adding Youtube Music.

The automaker wrote in the release notes:

Listen to over 100 million songs with YouTube Music Premium. Access your Library to see all of your liked and added songs, playlists you created and artists and podcasts you subscribed to.

Requires Premium Connectivity or an active WiFi connection.

Premium Connectivity is Tesla’s $10-a-month subscription service for all connectivity features that are more demanding for bandwidth.

Amazon Music

The other new music app introduced with this new update is Amazon Music

Tesla wrote in the release notes:

Prime members get access to over 100 million songs in shuffle mode, All-Access playlists, plus the largest catalog of top ad-free podcasts. Upgrade to Amazon Music Unlimited for full, on-demand access.

Requires Premium Connectivity or an active WiFi connection.

Parental Controls

Tesla has updated parental controls with now more capabilities so that parents letting their kids use their Tesla vehicles can’t go on crazy high-speed joy rides:

You can now enable Parental Controls with a PIN on your vehicle. Set a maximum speed limit and limit acceleration to Chill. Turn on safety features, such as Speed Limit Warning, Automatic Emergency Braking, and Forward Collision Warning. Configure Night Curfew to receive notifications through your Tesla mobile app when the vehicle is driven past curfew.

Enable Parental Controls from the vehicle or the Tesla mobile app. Navigate to Controls > Safety > Parental Controls. Follow the instructions on screen and provide a PIN. Drivers can’t disable the controls or change the settings without re-entering the PIN.

Tesla also has a similar “valet mode” feature.

Navigate to Sub-Destinations

With this update, Tesla is also improving its navigation system to include sub-destinations, like specific terminals at airport.

Tesla wrote in the release notes:

Now when you enter a navigation destination you can select a sub-destination (such as a specific terminal at the airport) to get more accurate routing details.

Weather Forecast and Air Quality

The automaker is also adding weather and air quality information to its status bar on its vehicle center displays.

Tesla wrote in the release notes:

Your vehicle status bar now shows the local weather conditions alongside the temperature. When air quality is poor, your vehicle also shows an AQI symbol and index value.

Tap the temperature on your touchscreen to see details about your local weather forecast, such as the weather condition, highs and lows of the day, and the chance of rain. Requires Premium Connectivity.

It’s another feature that’s only for Tesla owners paying the $10-a-month Premium Connectivity subscription service.

Schedule Charge and Preconditioning

With this new update, Tesla also added new ways to schedule charging and preconditioning.

The automaker wrote in the release notes:

From the redesigned menu or the Tesla mobile app, schedule charging or preconditioning for your vehicle. You can select a location, schedule a one-off, repeat specific times or days of the week, and also control when charging starts and stops.

To schedule your charge and precondition, tap Controls > Schedule.

Tesla is now starting to push this 2024.26 software update to its fleet, but it can a few weeks until it reaches all vehicles eligible to get the update.