Tesla to Eliminate the Steering Wheel Nag in FSD v12.4; Vehicles Supported and Release Date (2024)

In a recent interaction on X, Elon Musk confirmed that the long-standing steering wheel nag, designed to ensure driver attentiveness, would be removed in FSD v12.4.

Musk initially replied to a user on X claiming that FSD v12.4 would fix the steering wheel nag. However, it wasn't clear what Musk meant by fixed until user, Farzad, created another post stating that Musk insinuated that the nag would be removed in FSD v12.4, to which Musk replied with “Yes.”

Tesla's removal of the steering wheel nag isn't surprising, as Tesla's camera-based driver monitoring system in the vehicle can in theory do a much better job monitoring the driver's attentiveness. So before NHTSA has a heart attack with Musk's comment, it's important to understand that Tesla is likely improving cabin camera monitoring in this same update to the point that the steering wheel nag becomes redundant.

How Tesla Uses the Cabin Camera

Tesla uses the cabin camera to detect whether a driver is paying attention to the road by detecting whether their eyes are open, which way their head is facing, and even whether the driver is using their phone.

Thanks to Tesla hacker Greentheonly, we know Tesla uses the vehicle’s interior camera output and AI to determine the likelihood of each scenario they're looking for. For example, Tesla runs neural networks that look at the video feed of the cabin camera and determine whether the driver is looking up at the road, lookingoff to the side, or looking down.

This Won't be the End of the Steering Wheel Nag

While Musk's statement implies the removal of the steering wheel nag,Tesla will probablyretain it as a fallback measure, at least in early iterations of the suspected improved camera-based monitoring system.

The steering wheel nag may still be used when the cabin camera can't confidently determine whether the driver is paying attention. This could be caused bysunglasses, hats, glare, or even driving at night. Newer Teslas includeinterior infraredlights that help the camera see in the dark, although not all Teslas on the road includeinfraredlights.

Will It Also Remove It For Basic Autopilot?

While Musk says Tesla will remove the steering wheel nag in FSD v12.4, the need to detect driver attentiveness isn’t unique to FSD. Tesla detects for driver attentiveness in all their Autopilot packages, including Basic Autopilot, Enhanced Autopilot, and FSD. It’s not clear whether Tesla plans to only remove the nag in FSD, but it looks like Tesla will at least start there and the feature will likely work its way down to Enhance Autopilot and Basic Autopilot as well.

Vehicles Supported

The only Teslas expected to take advantage of the “nag-less” improvements in FSD v12.4 are those with cabin cameras, which include the Model 3, Model Y, Cybertruck, and the redesigned Model S and Model X. However, the newest vehicles withinfraredlights near the cabin camera will likely benefit the most.

FSD v12.4 Release Date and Features

Elon Musk indicated that FSD v12.4 could start rolling out as early as next week. Musk doesn't usually reveal what's in each FSD update, but he did talk about what we should expect in FSD v12.4, disclosing that the update will largely focus on refining passenger comfort by addressing concerns such as abrupt acceleration and braking.

Musk went on to tease some of the improvements to expect in subsequent versions like v12.5 and v12.6, but the primary focus of v12.4 seems to be delivering a smoother and better driving experience.

In Tesla’s investor video posted yesterday on X, there was a quick sneak peek of what could be the Robotaxi’s interior.

It currently looks like it has a two-seat interior, with no steering wheel, and a large center console. The doors look similar to the picture of the Robotaxi concept that was revealed in Elon Musk’s biography in 2023. It also matches up almost exactly with the prototype Franz von Holzhausen was seen working on in a video that aired on CBS last year.

Robotaxi App

Tesla recently revealed their Robotaxi app, and officially named the Robotaxi “Cybercab”. With it, it seems like we can also expect the vehicle to take some cues from the Cybertruck. In the video on X, Tesla also showed off a brief glimpse of the Robotaxi app in action. Although nothing new is revealed in the short clip, it’s the first time the app has been seen in action.

Here is a quick sneak peek of Tesla's upcoming ride-hailing app released in their shareholder video today. pic.twitter.com/oM7MKNaOvz

— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 21, 2024

Robotaxi Announcement

The Robotaxi will be officially unveiled on August 8^th, which is just under three months ago. While Tesla previously mentioned that the Robotaxi would take a backseat to the release of its next-gen $25K USD model, we could see Tesla announce firmer timelines, features, and full previews of the interior and exterior in August.

Tesla is no longer including Steam support in any of its newer Model S and Model X vehicles, according to messages received by customers who are awaiting deliveries of the flagship vehicles.

Tesla previously introduced the Steam beta to newer versions of the Model S and Model X refreshes which had 16GB of RAM as part of the 2022 Holiday Update. This update didn’t support slightly older vehicles with only 8GB of RAM, but a retrofit was available for $2,000 USD.

Tesla No Longer Supporting Dedicated GPUs?

The Cybertruck also did not receive a dedicated graphic processing unit (GPU), with many people noting that they did not have access to Steam on their Foundation-series Cybertrucks and GreenTheOnly later confirmed the Cybertruck did not include a GPU. The Cybertruck also shipped with only 8GB of RAM, matching the Model 3 and Model Y MCU 3 versions based on AMD Ryzen chips.

This could be an indication that Tesla is phasing out the GPUs, as well as the larger RAM packages that came bundled with their top-end vehicles, likely due to cost-cutting, hardware streamlining, and optimization.

Future of Steam Support

While the AMD Ryzen RDNA-2 APUs that are built into every Tesla MCU are quite powerful and very capable of rendering 3D or 2D graphics when in mobile configurations, there has been a distinct lack of Steam support on other vehicles, due to the 8GB of RAM.

Given the removal of GPUs from the flagship vehicles, there is also a chance that the RAM on newer Model S and X vehicles will also be facing a reduction similar to the Cybertruck. The Steam Beta could very well be on its way out.

The other possible alternative would be an updated Steam Beta that supports 8GB of RAM, and does not require a powerful GPU, as people may not do too much hardcore gaming on their vehicles.

Gaming Alternatives

Some gaming applications still live on in Tesla’s Arcade Mode, including the ever-popular Cuphead, Sky Force Reload, and Vampire Survivors. We previously discussed Tesla’s lack of Google Casting and Apple Airplay, but a fantastic alternative would be providing HDMI pass-through support on the Glovebox USB-C port.

Imagine being able to connect your phone to Tesla’s displays and gaming on a much larger 19” screen (screen size comparison) as seen on the Cybertruck.

The Future of Tesla Compute

Elon Musk mentioned in the 2024 Tesla Earnings Call that the unused compute power of Tesla vehicles not being driven was equivalent to a larger computing system like Amazon’s AWS. One idea floated by Musk was to use the computers of parked vehicles to conduct inference, data processing, and other tasks – selling the compute capabilities of vehicles to external organizations, while also paying back the owner.