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Do Not Understand Tesla Rationale for Why There is No Sirius/XM in Model 3 or Y
- Thread starter kc1953
- Start date
NCAviator
Member
Sirus and XM are OLD technology. With improved and available cellular service around the majority of the country, satellite receivers are not needed. Yes, all OEMs integrated Sirus/XM in their infotainment systems in the 2000s. With most moving to Apple Car Play or Android Auto which do not have the service in their UI most will not continue to offer it.
Sirus and XM are loosing subscribers. They will have to adapt to survive. They most likely will offer a streaming APP. They already do on most smart phones. I would expect Tesla to offer their APP if Sirus and XM offer them a financial deal like Spotify did. Money talks. I would not be in favor of Tesla adding a satellite receiver for XM. I would support a Starlink data solution over the current AT&T LTE receiver. Time will tell.
I am pretty sure Sirus and XM know that they'll have to move over to LTE/Wifi. After all isn't why the acquired Pandora last year? I think some peeps will still bemoaned about Satellite Radio if/when they finally make the switch over to WIFI/Cellular because they grew up with it or they find it "convenient". Personally, I haven't used Sirus and XM since 2009 and I have not missed Satellite Radio at all.
roblab
Active Member
Maybe the reason they don't supply all these different radio options is because not everyone has to have the radio on all the time. My daughter does, but I can't stand the noise. Why have everyone pay for something not everyone uses? Isn't that why gas taxes pay for roads, and not the general population?
Hey, if you want Sirius, buy it yourself.
Hey, if you want Sirius, buy it yourself.
Slacker is a much better option IMO. We have an Audi with Sirius and I hate it. Slacker stations are more targeted to what you want to listen to and the ability to skip songs on Slacker so you can customize what you are hearing beats Sirius old technology. Plus, to price of Sirius is not worth it.
Can't speak to the other services, but Apple Music allows you to download an unlimited amount of content to your library on the phone. The only limitation is the storage capacity of your phone. That's why I always get the largest capacity iPhone available.
![angus[Y]oung](/tmc/data/avatars/l/141/141264.jpg?1620160343){kind=avatar}
angus[Y]oung
Active Member
@Tgibson ...unless what you want to listen to is the Howard Stern Show. (I'm not a Slacker user so I don't know, does it have content other than music like sports, talk radio, comedy, etc? If not, then add those to the "unless what you want to listen to" list.)
PackMan730
Member
angus[Y]oung
Active Member
@Terminator857 do all your friends and family drive Model 3s or Model Ys? LOL. Seriously though, it's been standard equipment and integrated into the infotainment system on most models from most manufacturers for well over a decade and there is definitely a subscriber base out there (north of 30m subs, at least that's what they say routinely on the HS show). I think the "built-in" nature and free starter sub included on new vehicle purchases probably made quite a few fans.
Terminator857
Active Member
30M subscribers out of a billion cars? How much is that from their internet streaming service?
With SiriusXM versus Spotify, etc. it comes down to whether you want your listening programmed or to program your listening experience. I've owned several vehicles that came with a complimentary Sirius radio subscription but never subscribed after the trial period. Over time SiriusXM listening options have improved, i.e. some SiriusXM receivers now provide a replay feature. I've also had numerous rental vehicles that had SiriusXM. Now that I am able to use Apple Carplay for navigation and listening to my iTune library in a rental vehicle I no longer use SiriusXM radio. (It's great not having change the channel whenever America, Horse With No Name, starts playing. I really hate that song.)
Mixman
Member
Love Sirius XM. For me that is one of the the things I will miss the most going from my Lexus to the Y. I have or have subscribed to more streaming subs than most....Amazon Music, Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, but I listen to Sirius the most. It allows you to listen to a many genres of music from Pitbull radio to Ozzy Boneyard and everything else with well known artists and DJ's and learn about brand new music also.
The biggest problem with Sirius is after their free trial they hit you with a massive subscription rate, but if you do your research you can get a substantially lower rate by haggling with them. I pay like $7 month, which is cheaper than any streaming subscription service and all without commercials. Also, when you do the streaming services that hits your phones data rates. Many do not have unlimited data.
I realize Sirius isn't for many people but the people I know with it do like it, from Howard Stern lovers to sports lovers to music lovers. Choices are not bad for anyone and it doesn't hurt anyone to have choices.
The biggest problem with Sirius is after their free trial they hit you with a massive subscription rate, but if you do your research you can get a substantially lower rate by haggling with them. I pay like $7 month, which is cheaper than any streaming subscription service and all without commercials. Also, when you do the streaming services that hits your phones data rates. Many do not have unlimited data.
I realize Sirius isn't for many people but the people I know with it do like it, from Howard Stern lovers to sports lovers to music lovers. Choices are not bad for anyone and it doesn't hurt anyone to have choices.
Spidey616
Member
Early Teslas had XM in them. That being said we live in a world where there is more app and phone support. My old car, that had an XM receiver, I still used the Sirius app over Bluetooth as it was better quality audio. Not sure about iOS but with Google Assistant I've been able say 'Hey Google play Mad Dog Sports Radio on Sirius XM' and its switched just fine on my phone. So that's a decent work around.
Ideal for me would be Tesla implementing an App Store where different services could put an app out that would work natively in a Tesla. Then you could get Apple Music or Sirius XM without needing your phone and bluetooth. I wager that's very unlikely to happen, but I can dream right?
Ideal for me would be Tesla implementing an App Store where different services could put an app out that would work natively in a Tesla. Then you could get Apple Music or Sirius XM without needing your phone and bluetooth. I wager that's very unlikely to happen, but I can dream right?
I have to say that I use primarily both Spotify and XM. I moved all of my music collection to Spotify (well, not moved but recreated) while sitting at home in 2020 - including 200-odd 'mix tapes' from the '70's and '80's (each in to their own playlist), several hundred albums and several hundred CD's and I think there were maybe 2 songs they didn't have. And I have some eclectic tastes in music... 
I mostly listen to my 5,000+ song 'main playlist'. But I break it up with XM - hard to get by without Margaritaville when on vacation at the beach. I have no issue streaming from my phone app, and it was nice to 'downgrade' and save about $10/month by going streaming-only. Yeah, it was nice to have it integrated in my old Mazda CX-5, but whatever. It's easy enough via phone. I also listen to my son's band's radio station on Pandora. That's all the options I really need.
I mostly listen to my 5,000+ song 'main playlist'. But I break it up with XM - hard to get by without Margaritaville when on vacation at the beach. I have no issue streaming from my phone app, and it was nice to 'downgrade' and save about $10/month by going streaming-only. Yeah, it was nice to have it integrated in my old Mazda CX-5, but whatever. It's easy enough via phone. I also listen to my son's band's radio station on Pandora. That's all the options I really need.
iamnid
Active Member
Unless something has changed, in every new car I ever had that came with an XM trial, the sound quality was ABYSSMAL. Has this improved? It always felt like I was listening to a very low bitrate stream whenever I listened to XM.
I completely understand that. And after test driving a MY LR this week, and using xm through iphone/bluetooth using Alexa voice commands it was workable, and we pulled trigger and ordered MY LR, Red, black interior, 20” induction wheels. My wife loves fast cars ( we have an Audi SQ5 and a Mercedes c43 AMG cabriolet) and the acceleration of the Y really put a smile on our face. We drop 1 of the xm subscriptions, use the phone app in the car, and do premium spotify so we can have the fully integrated streaming music experience.
I've used XM for 15 years. I understand it doesn't appeal to everyone, but I like it. I do stream it from my phone however I don't have unlimited data so I get to the point I have to stop streaming. I would be happy if Tesla just included an Aux input so I could take my portable unit. The streaming from the phone works pretty well so I can get by for most of the month. If I took a trip out of cell tower range it would likely be in my ICE vehicle.
After further consideration, my wife and I want a music and radio/news solution that is integrated with the MY media system to be able to operate things through the steering wheel button or touch screen. To that effect we will: 1) drop one of our xm subscriptions 2) drop apple music and switch to spotify premium 3) subscribe to tune in premium (hate the massive number of commercials you have to endure when switching channels on free tune in).
Of course we will have to always have premium connectivity and pay for it after first year.
Owning a Tesla seems like going to an expensive restaurant where everything is ala cart.
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