Firmware 7.0 - For Classic Model S

[SteveS0353]

my cruise goes up by 1 mph with light tap up, up by 5 mph with harder tap up - no stopping at multiples of 5 or speed limit. That AP feature seems arbitrary and annoying, did designer or his/her manager have OCD or an irrational love of counting by 5? That sort of thing & the thought of fighting my car as it tried to drive off the road are the very reasons I opted out of getting AP (plus I'm a cheap-@$$, have a 5 minute daily commute.)

Thanks Lucy. It's actually quite common with other brands to stop at a multiple of 5mph. My BMW M3 does that. Probably because of experience with that, and my own mild OCD, I think I prefer that algorithm. I like to set the speed at something exact (well, at least what the car thinks is a round whole number on the speedo). My classic with it's +/- changes relative to the current set point irritates me a bit, and it takes a bit of finesse with the right foot to achieve the end result I like. Interestingly, the on-board user manual in my car even describes stopping at 5mph increments, even if the car does not do that.

So, your car seems to have a mix of software modules. It's using the sensors and the instrument cluster display to show you what's going on around you as you drive, yet the classic cruise control module since you don't have AP enabled. I wonder what other subtle differences there might be. And all because we have a software controlled car that can change within the constraints of the hardware.

 

[apacheguy]

Another thing I've noticed w/ V.7 on my Classic:

Previously, if I had a tire with pressure getting low[1], I'd get a warning to the effect of "Tire Low, check pressures". This would seem to trigger at 3-5 PSI down. If it was lower than that (10+ PSI down), it would say "Tire Very low: pull over safely"

Now it seems to jump straight to the latter... only a warning when it's VERY low...

Ugh. I very much dislike when warning messages get suppressed, as you are suggesting is the case with 7.

 

[4SUPER9]

I respectfully disagree. Every single car I've ever owned has provided the driver with some sort of indication of the HVAC system's status....

While I agree with your sentiment on this issue, I would recommend avoiding terminology that references other cars. Teslas are not other cars, and that is the reason why they are so much better.

TM has done a great job at reinventing the automobile. The one thing that they should not have done, with the exception of the wonderful center screen and interfaces, is attempt to redesign the interior. The one thing that the automotive industry has nailed down (for the most part) is basic interior design: cup holders, grab bars, coat hooks, USB ports, folding seats (a Model S reference) and this certainly includes climate controls. Yes, some vehicles are better than others (I always hated the BMW interface). No matter which design one prefers, rapid access to climate control status is an absolute must. It is almost as high up on the list as window controls and door locks. Speaking of, adding the door lock feature to the center screen was long overdue. If TM was suddenly to remove hard switches for windows, there would be a revolt (at the same time, if that was to happen, my guess is that there would be members on this forum who've posted in this very thread who would probably state that it is just whiners not willing to adapt to change :wink.

 

[scaesare]

Me too. :frown:

 

[mknox]

While I agree with your sentiment on this issue, I would recommend avoiding terminology that references other cars. Teslas are not other cars, and that is the reason why they are so much better.

For sure Tesla is pushing the envelope, trying new things and such, but I believe comparisons to other cars is valid, especially when they do things that are not better than other cars. By the same token, I have and will continue to praise things which are better, but I won't be silent when I think things are made worse.

 

[Cyclone]

So, your car seems to have a mix of software modules. It's using the sensors and the instrument cluster display to show you what's going on around you as you drive, yet the classic cruise control module since you don't have AP enabled. I wonder what other subtle differences there might be. And all because we have a software controlled car that can change within the constraints of the hardware.

What likely happened is the code base for cruise was rewritten for TACC. At that time, the programmer use 5 mph stops. Since about AP, cruise doesn't need to accept inputs from the sensors, the existing code base was just reused rather than using the new code base and just never receiving inputs. This would be necessary anyways to continue supporting classics because it is likely the code would through "check sensor" errors on classics without them passing any diagnostics tests. Thus, rather than having classic cruise, AP-capable but disabled cruise, and AP-enabled cruise, Tesla just has classic and AP-enabled cruise code. Many ways they could have handled it differently, but this latter case was likely the simplest and how they decided to proceed.

 

[4SUPER9]

For sure Tesla is pushing the envelope, trying new things and such, but I believe comparisons to other cars is valid, especially when they do things that are not better than other cars. By the same token, I have and will continue to praise things which are better, but I won't be silent when I think things are made worse.

Just to clarify, you and I are definitely on the same page. My objection is solely based on what I have seen in this and some other threads. When we complain about something, I hear all sorts of excuses as to why we are wrong. Often, such excuses are formatted in such a manner as "you don't like this because it is new and are used to the old way." That is not the reason you made comparisons. It is because some car manufacturers got some stuff right. That is perfectly fine and reasonable.

I have to say, as much as I LOVE my MS, and respect the approach that TM has used to forever change the automotive industry, I am very concerned. I see what happened with Palm and the Treo. They owned the smart-phone industry. Then, they stopped innovating, or went in directions that were clearly not what the people wanted. Case in point: the Model X and the middle row seats. How much time and money did TM invest in these incredible high tech seats that, for the most part, nobody really cares about. How much time did this detract from other advances? Had TM just put in a standard interior copied (or just purchased) from another manufacturer, they not only would have saved lots of resources, but would have also made lots of people happy too.

 

[BlkCld]

Teslas are not other cars, and that is the reason why they are so much better.

Unless you have a classic and got suckered into V7 thinking it would be an improvement.

I still hate it and car remains garaged until they come to their senses. Soon to give up and sell it because it's my car. No longer theirs and I should have a choice.
It was fun while it lasted but now aggravated as could be about something I paid for was changed for the worse and made unsafe.
Like others, embarrassed to show the cartoons.
Went back to my truck. I am not going to wait much longer on hope they fix it. Such a shame they have no consideration for the 40,000 or so folks that have non autopilot cars that got them where they are by word of mouth advertising. Used to be positive now negative.
Should have been fixed by now with at least an option for reversion.

 

[trils0n]

Unless you have a classic and got suckered into V7 thinking it would be an improvement.

I still hate it and car remains garaged until they come to their senses. Soon to give up and sell it because it's my car. No longer theirs and I should have a choice.
It was fun while it lasted but now aggravated as could be about something I paid for was changed for the worse and made unsafe.
Like others, embarrassed to show the cartoons.
Went back to my truck. I am not going to wait much longer on hope they fix it. Such a shame they have no consideration for the 40,000 or so folks that have non autopilot cars that got them where they are by word of mouth advertising. Used to be positive now negative.
Should have been fixed by now with at least an option for reversion.

I'm sorry you don't like V7. What do you feel makes it unsafe?

 

[Drucifer]

I'm sorry you don't like V7. What do you feel makes it unsafe?

I'll take a stab at this.

Your battery level and gear selector isn't in the center, so it is easily obscured by the steering wheel.

Too much black and grey in the UI so it is harder to read at a glance, especially for those of us with aging eyes.

Harder to find controls on the screen, so you have to glance away from the road for a second longer to adjust things, when a second matters.

 

[BlkCld]

Thanks thats just a start to my long list.
Anyone that has read this thread would already know the enormous list of ......
Know if and what gear it is and what direction it will go because the indication is behind a steering wheel is a problem. Don't know of any car that it isn't front and center. Annoyance and hazard to turn the wheel.
0% to dim the headlight blob but then can't see the main screen. But I guess that's a plus so I don't have to see the lame changes there.
Not going to list the rest been done over and over here.
Sent to TM and just get a will forward to someplace reply.
They didn't even bother to reply to my very lengthy list.
I was hoping for results by now but guess it's their way or tough luck.
My Tesla grin is now a grimace.

 

[jacobp]

If you're serious about wanting to sell your car, let me know what you have and what you would want for the car. I might be able to take it off your hands.

 

[tomp]

I received another notification from the phone app of an available software update. I am still on 6.2. I believe this is the 4th notification I have received. Last one was around the time that .077 was released (or at least being discussed on the forums), if I recall correctly

 

[apacheguy]

The notifications don't necessarily indicate that a new version was downloaded. It could be the same downloaded firmware that is triggering multiple notices.

 

[jcaspar]

I was a resister of 7.0 because I thought we lost the power meter like the AP people. Finally upgraded and am happy I did. I like the look and feel overall. I agree the contrast could be better and would like the temp and day back on the dash (guess that is coming). The toy car is a bit silly but I have gotten used to it. With the steering wheel in the position I have it, all warning lights are visible. Overall a step forward, albeit a small one, in my opinion.

 

[OddB]

I was a resister of 7.0 because I thought we lost the power meter like the AP people. Finally upgraded and am happy I did. I like the look and feel overall. I agree the contrast could be better and would like the temp and day back on the dash (guess that is coming). The toy car is a bit silly but I have gotten used to it. With the steering wheel in the position I have it, all warning lights are visible. Overall a step forward, albeit a small one, in my opinion.

Curious. .
What is the advantage of moving the battery and gear from the centre ?

 

[jerry33]

Curious. .
What is the advantage of moving the battery and gear from the centre ?

As far as I can tell, there is no advantage. Tesla seems to have used interns (who have never driven a Model S) to design the interface.

To answer why it's less safe: 1) To look at the trip metre you have to fiddle with the main display rather than just glance down--this takes your eyes off the road for longer than is safe. 2) When it's bright out, you can't see the low contrast numbers, tick marks, or climate controls without looking at them long enough so that your eyes adjust. 3) The clock is now on the 19" display in very small font so you have to really study it to see the time (the big clock that takes up 1/3 of the display is a joke--a bad joke). One of the great things about the interface used to be that is was readable regardless of light conditions (with the exception of the small print on the Nav system for streets). Now it's just like every other car's screen--unreadable much of the time.

The designers forgot that you don't drive the car in a moderately lit office, so they made the interface to look good on a computer screen. In real life it's a big fail. While I won't sell the car, it's not nearly as good as it was a few weeks ago (I had thought that because they didn't get rid of the powermetre on the Classic cars that it would be okay to upgrade--I was wrong. What Tesla did to the car's interface is just awful.

 

[BlkCld]

As far as I can tell, there is no advantage. Tesla seems to have used interns (who have never driven a Model S) to design the interface.

To answer why it's less safe: 1) To look at the trip metre you have to fiddle with the main display rather than just glance down--this takes your eyes off the road for longer than is safe. 2) When it's bright out, you can't see the low contrast numbers, tick marks, or climate controls without looking at them long enough so that your eyes adjust. 3) The clock is now on the 19" display in very small font so you have to really study it to see the time (the big clock that takes up 1/3 of the display is a joke--a bad joke). One of the great things about the interface used to be that is was readable regardless of light conditions (with the exception of the small print on the Nav system for streets). Now it's just like every other car's screen--unreadable much of the time.

The designers forgot that you don't drive the car in a moderately lit office, so they made the interface to look good on a computer screen. In real life it's a big fail. While I won't sell the car, it's not nearly as good as it was a few weeks ago (I had thought that because they didn't get rid of the powermetre on the Classic cars that it would be okay to upgrade--I was wrong. What Tesla did to the car's interface is just awful.

+1:cursing:

 

[trils0n]

I guess we have different perceptions. The sharpness and contrast of 7.0 seems better to me. I do a lot of night driving (hundreds of miles so far on 7.0) and the 7.0 displays are darker (solid black), with less grey gradients. There was a large grey arc across the entire top of the IC in previous version of the software that "held" the status lights that was the same color, brightness and gradient as the "light blob", but 10x larger. I'm glad that is gone. Much prefer the solid black of 7.0. Better contrast, and less brightness, more space for side panels.

Never had any problems with either version of both the displays in day mode, but agree the current version is step back in contrast for the IC. Removing the clock and temp from the IC was a mistake, as it does take longer to see them on the 17inch screen, but we've seen versions of the software that fixed that issue.

 

[ecarfan]

I guess we have different perceptions. The sharpness and contrast of 7.0 seems better to me. I do a lot of night driving (hundreds of miles so far on 7.0) and the 7.0 displays are darker (solid black), with less grey gradients. There was a large grey arc across the entire top of the IC in previous version of the software that "held" the status lights that was the same color, brightness and gradient as the "light blob", but 10x larger. I'm glad that is gone. Much prefer the solid black of 7.0. Better contrast, and less brightness, more space for side panels.

My wife and I agree with your assessment. We had been driving our S for nearly 2 years when V7 was released, and we both immediately commented on the fact that the drivers display was easier to read.