Tesla infotainment system upgradeable from MCU1 to MCU2

[TSLA Pilot]

Really depends on mileage one puts on a year. If it gains an additional 18 months of coverage at the cost of 2 MCUs it's questionable - IMHO.

Yes, but it covers a LOT more than two MCU's, such as door handles, half-shafts, suspension components, and even a delaminating headliner (and so much more) on a used 2013 MS we purchased from someone that had already driven it some 60k+ miles by the time we purchased it.

But it's not just about the money; life has things of greater importance, no?

Worst case scenario: you buy it and your car remains flawless for another four years post-warranty expiration and you never use it. Then Tesla gets another ~$4k to advance our chances of surviving on our one and only planet.

Sounds like one Hell of a "Win-Win" to me . . . .

Thus making this purchase a no-brainer, a must do.

Thanks!

 

[KyleDay]

Here's something for you all to laugh at during dinner tonight. Just got this email from Tesla right now after a several week old email asking about MCU2 retrofits:

"Hello Kyle,

Thank you for reaching out to Tesla. I am sorry for the delay in responding to your email.

We are not planning to offer MCU retrofits at this time.The recent software releases have increased the performance and speed of the UI on all Tesla's, especially those with the original MCU hardware.

We thank you for helping Tesla to accelerate the worlds transition to sustainable energy."

I wish the UI was indeed faster on original MCU hardware.

 

[brkaus]

Yes, but it covers a LOT more than two MCU's, such as door handles, half-shafts, suspension components, and even a delaminating headliner (and so much more) on a used 2013 MS we purchased from someone that had already driven it some 60k+ miles by the time we purchased it.

But it's not just about the money; life has things of greater importance, no?

Worst case scenario: you buy it and your car remains flawless for another four years post-warranty expiration and you never use it. Then Tesla gets another ~$4k to advance our chances of surviving on our one and only planet.

Sounds like one Hell of a "Win-Win" to me . . . .

Thus making this purchase a no-brainer, a must do.

Thanks!

Handles can be fixed for $20 DIY. Half shafts are $1200.

I am worried about headlights.

The DC2DC converter or AC is another concern.

If I wanted to donate to a cause, I’d probably just buy a new car.

But $5k buys me two years. That’s 6-10% of the cars value. I’ve had the car 2 years and only had the yellow ring on the display.

 

[houstonian]

We are not planning to offer MCU retrofits at this time. The recent software releases have increased the performance and speed of the UI on all Tesla's, especially those with the original MCU hardware.

Dissapointing.

I think I too will write in, screenshot of Elon's tweet attached, and ask for the status of the MCU1 > MCU2 upgrade.

****

Dear Tesla,

On March 12, 2019 the following question was put to Elon Musk on Twitter "Will there be an upgrade option for the newer MCU as well?" to which Mr. Musk replied "yes", again on March 12, 2019 (screenshot attached). I was pleased to hear this as even with the recent software releases my first generation MCU struggles to provide a user experience which is equal to the driving experience of my Model S. I look forward to seeing the details of the upgrade path Mr. Musk promised and hope to be able to take advantage of it soon!

 

[ucmndd]

Dissapointing.

I think I too will write in, screenshot of Elon's tweet attached, and ask for the status of the MCU1 > MCU2 upgrade.

****

Dear Tesla,

On March 12, 2019 the following question was put to Elon Musk on Twitter "Will there be an upgrade option for the newer MCU as well?" to which Mr. Musk replied "yes", again on March 12, 2019 (screenshot attached). I was pleased to hear this as even with the recent software releases my first generation MCU struggles to provide a user experience which is equal to the driving experience of my Model S. I look forward to seeing the details of the upgrade path Mr. Musk promised and hope to be able to take advantage of it soon!

Dear Houstonian,

Thank you for contacting Tesla. We have published the details of our MCU upgrade program here:

Design Your Model S | Tesla

All Tesla MCU1 customers are eligible to upgrade to MCU2 with the purchase of a new vehicle, now with even more range!

Thank you for helping us accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.

Sincerely,
Tesla

 

[EspenU]

I have a yellow border around my screen and am waiting to have it replaced. So I sent a a mail to my service center asking if my MCU1 would be replaced with an MCU2, and if not, if I could pay the difference to have it upgraded.
The answer I got was that it's not possible to upgrade to MCU2 due to different components that then don't communicate with each other in the right way..

 

[Lasttoy]

But, I dont see my antique using any new options I dont have, ie, AP, FSD, etc. Why would I upgrade??
As for speed? In what? At 100mph it updates map fast.
I will need a new MCU , my touch screen fluid is about an 1/8 inch now. There used ones on eBay for 1k. I'll have to chg it eventually.

 

[BigD0g]

I have a yellow border around my screen and am waiting to have it replaced. So I sent a a mail to my service center asking if my MCU1 would be replaced with an MCU2, and if not, if I could pay the difference to have it upgraded.
The answer I got was that it's not possible to upgrade to MCU2 due to different components that then don't communicate with each other in the right way..

Few things, yellow border just requires a screen replacement they don’t even remove the mcu to do it.

Second, they are lying MCU2 can be retrofitted to MCU1 assuming you replace the IC at the same time all the wiring will just work, and doesn’t even require a new harness.

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

If MCU2 isn't compatible with the older cars then why can't they just increase the processing power of the new MCU1s they are still making?

 

[Krash]

If MCU2 isn't compatible with the older cars then why can't they just increase the processing power of the new MCU1s they are still making?

I think the MCU1 is a 32 bit Tegra 3 ARM. I don't think there are any pin compatible CPU upgrade options. Although I am surprised that they didn't experiment with higher density soldered ram and SSDs.

 

[bmah]

If MCU2 isn't compatible with the older cars then why can't they just increase the processing power of the new MCU1s they are still

I think the MCU1 is a 32 bit Tegra 2 ARM. I don't think there are any pin compatible CPU upgrade options. Although I am surprised that they didn't experiment with higher density soldered ram and SSDs.

I'm guessing they don't want to spend already-scarce engineering resources designing, building, and testing a new design, to say nothing of the manufacturing changes, deployment logistics, etc. Yeah it's "just" a CPU change or a memory change or whatever but any engineering department would need to go through those steps.

(Speaking as one who's made appliance-type systems from so-called "commodity" computer parts.)

Bruce.

 

[chillaban]

I'm guessing they don't want to spend already-scarce engineering resources designing, building, and testing a new design, to say nothing of the manufacturing changes, deployment logistics, etc. Yeah it's "just" a CPU change or a memory change or whatever but any engineering department would need to go through those steps.

(Speaking as one who's made appliance-type systems from so-called "commodity" computer parts.)

Bruce.

If they’re going to spend the effort to improve MCU1 hardware they might as well just make a MCU2 retrofit. Otherwise it’s like souping up a 1995 Honda Accord by adding 10HP to it.

 

[bmah]

If they’re going to spend the effort to improve MCU1 hardware they might as well just make a MCU2 retrofit. Otherwise it’s like souping up a 1995 Honda Accord by adding 10HP to it.

Can't you just do that by slapping a couple decals on the side? I thought every sticker adds 5HP. Sorry for off-topic, I couldn't resist.

You're probably right about the retrofit, but as I wrote upthread I would be prepared for the possibility that such a retrofit would only be offered for AP2.5 cars because that's a hardware combination (MCU2+AP2.5) that's already been tested and successfully deployed (as opposed to say MCU2+AP1).

Bruce.

 

[Naonak]

AP1 is the "**** you" model from Tesla. They made all sorts of promises for it that never materialized. They then made the same promises for AP2, which turned out to be (unsurprisingly) impossible as well... enter AP2.5, and soon AP3. However, they promise an upgrade path to AP2 people, but AP1 people are left out in the cold on all fronts.

They don't give a *sugar* about AP1, so why would they bother with engineering and testing for AP1 cars?

The least they could have done is give a HUGE discount to those AP1 people willing to trade in for AP2.5/AP3... but we get... nothing.

 

[Kant.Ing]

Rich Rebuilds talked about the differences in MCU 1 v MCU 2 here.

(Start 8:32 or 10:55)

Phil's narration is superb. Tesla engineer should look at the video starting 8:41 and fix the time bomb (unnecessary logging) in the next firmware.

 

[chillaban]

Can't you just do that by slapping a couple decals on the side? I thought every sticker adds 5HP. Sorry for off-topic, I couldn't resist.

You're probably right about the retrofit, but as I wrote upthread I would be prepared for the possibility that such a retrofit would only be offered for AP2.5 cars because that's a hardware combination (MCU2+AP2.5) that's already been tested and successfully deployed (as opposed to say MCU2+AP1).

Bruce.

Yeah I’m a skeptic but a hopeful one when it comes to the retrofit too. Certainly they have no motivation to increase the amount of work they have to do unless it turns out to be necessary. I would also wager a guess that maybe FSD features place too much nav system demand on MCU1 and that might cause FSD retrofits to involve MCU2 too. But even that is a stretch and I would expect Tesla to do everything they can to avoid that.

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

Phil's narration is superb. Tesla engineer should look at the video starting 8:41 and fix the time bomb (unnecessary logging) in the next firmware.

I was thinking of starting a whole new thread on this topic, in the hopes of getting Tesla's attention regarding this issue. At least they could respond if it's unnecessary or not.

 

[Trebek1762]

Yeah I’m a skeptic but a hopeful one when it comes to the retrofit too. Certainly they have no motivation to increase the amount of work they have to do unless it turns out to be necessary. I would also wager a guess that maybe FSD features place too much nav system demand on MCU1 and that might cause FSD retrofits to involve MCU2 too. But even that is a stretch and I would expect Tesla to do everything they can to avoid that.

I would argue with the current state of V9 that it IS necessary. I just got out of my car from a 15 minute drive. No less than 2-3 skips / stutters per song, and when I got to my final destination...BOOM, MCU crash. this is on a 2018 S75D on 19.12.1.1.

Optimized my arse...

 

[Alset4S]

I would argue with the current state of V9 that it IS necessary. I just got out of my car from a 15 minute drive. No less than 2-3 skips / stutters per song, and when I got to my final destination...BOOM, MCU crash. this is on a 2018 S75D on 19.12.1.1.

Optimized my arse...

Same except 2016. I have not had any of those issues. Makes me wonder if it's some component not functioning as it should.

 

[ucmndd]

I would argue with the current state of V9 that it IS necessary. I just got out of my car from a 15 minute drive. No less than 2-3 skips / stutters per song, and when I got to my final destination...BOOM, MCU crash. this is on a 2018 S75D on 19.12.1.1.

Optimized my arse...

As I’ve said before, MCU2 has all the same problems, just faster.