This Week in Tesla: Bountiful Software Update Released, Tesla Looks to Acquire Texas Land

Tesla Looks to Acquire Texas Land -

The latest of Tesla’s factory building craze finds its place in Texas. Tesla is currently in the process of acquiring a $5 million piece of land near Austin, Texas. The decision comes in part because of the fact that Tesla is on the verge of securing more than $60 million in incentives to build the factory. The piece of land is 2,100 acres in Travis County. Tesla will likely move very quickly on this, hoping to have a complete Model Y assembly line by the end of 2020. The site will also become where many Cybertrucks will be made in the near future.

Another hint that Tesla is becoming increasingly invested in the area is the fact that they put out an ad for Autopilot test drivers in the area. Tesla is rapidly working on improving the Autopilot system in their cars and more testing is a great way to become more involved in the Austin community and improve their technology at the same time.

Tesla Releases Bountiful New Software Update -

Backup Camera Improvements -

What will likely be the most useful of the features from the new update is the backup camera improvements. With the new update, Tesla owners can now see the live camera feed from the sides of the car, in addition to the rear. This will be helpful for parking, and really helps Tesla in the fact that for such expensive cars there should be a 360 view camera, as there are in almost all of Tesla’s competitors.

Walk Away Door Locking -

It used to be that when a Tesla owner walks away from their car with either their phone for the Model 3 & Y or the key for the Model S & X, the car would lock. A new setting in the update allows owners to make it so that when parked at home, the doors on the car will not lock when the key fob or phone is out of range.

Cabin-Facing Camera Use -

In the Tesla Models 3 & Y there is a cabin-facing camera located just above the rear view mirror. The camera was never activated until this update, the update allows owners to give Tesla permission to see what happens inside the cabin during and before an accident. Tesla could be using this to improve the safety of their cars, but could also employ the feature to help them in court. Tesla has been sued multiple times by people who have suffered accidents while supposedly on autopilot. With the use of the camera before the crash, Tesla can see if the driver was not paying attention, and save themselves in court.

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