Survey: Maximum you would pay to upgrade from MCU1 to MCU2?

[mattbult]

p85d MCU1/AP1 here. So I would like to give Tesla and Elon an idea of what owners would be willing to pay for an MCU2 upgrade. Put me in the $2500 camp, especially considering that I am out of warranty, and my MCU is showing some serious signs (browser/manual/upgrade notes non functional, bluetooth drops after more than an hour or two and needs reboot, same with streaming and USB audio) and will probably need replacement in the next 12-18 months.

Thanks,

-m

 

[Akikiki]

Whoa... How are you going to give Tesla and Elon this idea of amount?

 

[cucubits]

I could talk myself into $2k for this but that's about the common sense limit here. Essentially I would be paying for a bit more responsiveness in the interface and some marginally useful functionality.

 

[maximizese]

I went with $3K as my maximum, but I'd be much quicker to respond if the upgrade was equal to or less than $2K. By MCU2 upgrade I'm assuming this will add LTE, higher resolution display, video streaming, a reliable web browser, and an expectation that the EMMC problems won't be an issue.

I can easily talk myself into a $2K upgrade; I paid much more for a 120MHz Pentium desktop way back in the day...and I splurged on a 15" Sony CRT monitor to boot.

 

[beatle]

When first shopping for my car, I thought I'd shell out $2k for it. I normally upgrade my phone every 1-2 years and also keep my computer relatively current. However, after using the car for 4 months, I haven't found MCU1 to really be the end of the world that people say it is. The only time I interact with it and functionality is really impacted is when I'm zooming into the map to get a better view of traffic. The map is so slow to render that I often don't get to see what the traffic is before it zooms back out automatically. This is pretty rare, however. I often pull out my phone and use Google or Waze to get a better idea of whether there's an accident up ahead anyway.

 

[Libelo]

I would rather pay $3000 (or hopefully less) for a MCU2 upgrade than paying for a (refurbished?) MCU1 replacement when my current MCU dies.

 

[Ostrichsak]

At $1,500 I'd be a buyer. Not sure it's worth much more than that though. Even at $1,500 I'd have to seriously consider as the overall upgrade to my life and day-to-day use of the car would be rather minimal.

 

[mattbult]

A guess a lot depends on how the MCU is functioning currently. If mine did what it was supposed to do, what it (mostly) did originally, I would not be willing to pay much to upgrade and get streaming video or the other features our MCU doesn't support. For me its more about knowing I will need to replace mine, and wishing I could upgrade at the same time.

 

[ucmndd]

The only way I'd reasonably spend money on an upgrade is when/if my MCU1 dies. If they've sorted an upgrade path by then and offer the choice of either a MCU1 replacement or MCU2 upgrade, I'd likely spend $500-1000 more for MCU2 if necessary.

 

[nsxpert]

if / when this upgrade becomes available, I'm betting it's going to be expensive... In the $3000-4000 range

 

[Akikiki]

You know it really does not make sense to post this price that you are betting its going to be.

So, are you hoping you are right - at all our expense ? Sounds like it.

I hope you lose your bet.

 

[Aggmeister2010]

I wouldn't pay more than $1000 for an upgrade just to get Tesla Theater and faster screen response.

And as a stock owner, I wouldn't want Tesla spending money on a low volume upgrade solution for vehicles that are at least 4 years old at this point. Rather, focus on converting those owners to new vehicles.

This would be a huge mistake for a manufacturer to get involved in - but a great thing for an independant 3rd party vendor to offer.

 

[Akikiki]

Really? What happens to the 200-250,000 '14-'18's S and X's out there? You thinking that will pull around under their own power to the junkyard and we will just uber over to pickup our new ones?

IF for no other reason, these used pre-AP and AP1 cars are great EV-starter cars for folks that are not ready to spend $80K for the safest car on the planet.

But since you are not on board for an upgrade if its more than $1,000 - please step out of the line so it can move forward (said with much love of course).

 

[Aggmeister2010]

It's a great thought, but I don't think that's a sound argument for a major manufacturer with responsibility to shareholders.

However, this is a GREAT opportunity for Aftermarket vendors (and that's how the rest of the automotive market handles issues like this). Just not something for Tesla to tackle directly. They need to be focused on making new cars and new technology.

For example, BMW had a fatal flaw in the late 90's with a valve timing system called VANOS. The system would fail over time (like MCU's do), and would cause the engine to sound like a diesel truck, reduce performance, and reduce fuel economy. BMW couldn't invest in redesigning technology in existing vehicles they already sold while still committing to their current and future objectives, so a whole aftermarket community developed around fixing and improving this system. There are whole companies still flourishing today that exist purely to upgrade BMW Vanos systems and permanently fix the problem.

I expect the same to happen with Tesla, and that is a great thing.

Things like the MCU1 memory failure and upgrade......it would be irresponsible for Tesla to focus on that, because that takes time away from development that should be focused on the Model Y, Roadster, Cyber Truck, and general new EV technology. But if Tesla opened up to letting Aftermarket Vendors resolve these issues for them, now they don't have to worry about it themselves and they're providing new ways for their community to add value and create jobs. It's a win/win.


In another thread, a few folks commented that Unplugged Performance can already do the MCU upgrade for $2200 - fairly reasonable. But it'd require Tesla to enable the software when it's all swapped....and currently, Tesla won't. THAT's the problem here, if you ask me.

 

[maximizese]

It's a great thought, but I don't think that's a sound argument for a major manufacturer with responsibility to shareholders.

However, this is a GREAT opportunity for Aftermarket vendors (and that's how the rest of the automotive market handles issues like this). Just not something for Tesla to tackle directly. They need to be focused on making new cars and new technology.

For example, BMW had a fatal flaw in the late 90's with a valve timing system called VANOS. The system would fail over time (like MCU's do), and would cause the engine to sound like a diesel truck, reduce performance, and reduce fuel economy. BMW couldn't invest in redesigning technology in existing vehicles they already sold while still committing to their current and future objectives, so a whole aftermarket community developed around fixing and improving this system. There are whole companies still flourishing today that exist purely to upgrade BMW Vanos systems and permanently fix the problem.

I expect the same to happen with Tesla, and that is a great thing.

Things like the MCU1 memory failure and upgrade......it would be irresponsible for Tesla to focus on that, because that takes time away from development that should be focused on the Model Y, Roadster, Cyber Truck, and general new EV technology. But if Tesla opened up to letting Aftermarket Vendors resolve these issues for them, now they don't have to worry about it themselves and they're providing new ways for their community to add value and create jobs. It's a win/win.


In another thread, a few folks commented that Unplugged Performance can already do the MCU upgrade for $2200 - fairly reasonable. But it'd require Tesla to enable the software when it's all swapped....and currently, Tesla won't. THAT's the problem here, if you ask me.

I'm not going to attack you position, but rather just disagree with it. The argument that "it would be irresponsible for Tesla to focus on that" seems like they have a limited capacity to doing things and that they can't walk and chew gum at the same time. I would hope a maturing start-up company would always look to improve their product no matter the vintage. I'm not too fond of your BMW VANOS analogy because I knew far too many E36/E46 owners who were left frustrated with their cars not getting proper support from the manufacturer. You're right the 3rd party community found its way to improve things but I would think the onus would be on the manufacturer, not only because they have deep pockets, but they have the design and engineering blueprints and they took the customer's money and trust.

The other issue is that Tesla has not demonstrated much willingness to work with the 3rd party community and so I don't think it's proper to give them an avenue to have it both ways insofar as letting them off the hook for a flawed design that will cripple the functionality of the car but then allow them an out to not be responsible for product support. I can somewhat understand Tesla's tight-grip approach because of all the intellectual property and technological advantages that they would want to protect, so I don't think we'll see an Aftermarket Vendor partnership brewing. However, I can see separate division of vintage Tesla support as the company expands.

 

[Aggmeister2010]

Actually I think for the most part we agree - especially your second paragraph. I get very frustrated that Tesla locks folks out of their cars to the extent that they do, because it very much limits how involved aftermarket providers can get in production of Tesla "stuff."

Is there a software license that we're signing when we buy the car that lets them retain ownership of the vehicle's software...a 'perpetual license' if you will? If not, we should be able to do what we want, right? I do totally understand their standpoint though...they sell unlocks to FSD and whatnot, and their software is their strength....so allowing other folks to do that same thing for $1000 instead of $7000 is scary.

So it seems like where we differ is that I think that while Tesla should learn from their design flaws, they should focus on applying that to NEW cars, and let the aftermarket take care of the older stuff. As someone who works in engineering development for a major manufacturer, we don't think this way:

I would think the onus would be on the manufacturer, not only because they have deep pockets, but they have the design and engineering blueprints and they took the customer's money and trust.

A manufacturer is typically always focused on the next step forward, unless there's a safety concern. Because that's what shareholders want, and that's how you stay competitive. That's the whole reason the aftermarket industry exists - to do things that manufacturers can't be bothered to do. Aftermarket gets the opportunity to focus on the weaknesses, gaps, and obsolescence in the mass-market design and improve. Which is why I think this would be the perfect opportunity for them, if Tesla would let them.

With that said, Elon does seem to be moving forward with this upgrade internally, and that's great - but I worry the reason he's doing it is to further prevent any aftermarket folks from having an argument for access to their API.

Regarding Vanos - the reason I used that example is that I had a E39 M5, and dealt with Vanos issues myself, on both banks. Definitely a pain. I went to Dr. Vanos and had it fixed. That vendor did a much better job than BMW of re-engineering the solution, because they could focus on that specific design flaw and re-engineer the *sugar* out of it.

 

[bob_p]

The MCU1 to MCU2 upgrade may be required before Tesla can install the new AP processor for vehicles with FSD activated.

Though, from a business perspective, it might be better for Tesla to offer MCU1/FSD owners an attractive offer to upgrade to a new S/X (transfer FSD/FUSC/extended warranty, plus an upgrade credit) rather than spending resources and money on upgrading vehicles that are several years old.

 

[Akikiki]

...rather than spending resources and money on upgrading vehicles that are several years old. What's your plan for the 150,000+ AP2 cars out there that will wind up traded in or sold to a new Tesla owner?

 

[mattbult]

Hmm I guess this is all moot now. Upgrade available. Infotainment Upgrade

 

[mattbult]

Hmm I guess this is all moot now. Upgrade available. Infotainment Upgrade

Shoot, why didn't I say $1500...