Tesla upgraded my car to 2020.4.1 while in service without authorization

[rnortman]

My car was in service yesterday for things unrelated to software updates, and while it was there they installed 2020.4.1. I have had them stage (i.e., download) updates while in service before, but never before have they actually installed an update. I thought it was against their policy, probably so that they can claim you consented to whatever bugs and misfeatures the new version brings when you hit the upgrade button. They can no longer claim that in my case.

Has anybody ever seen this before?

 

[jimcneilly]

Yes they did this with mine when I took it in for a warranty issue. I didn't mind though I tend to keep it on the latest release anyway.

 

[DontBetAgtsEln]

That's their job. Why would they need your permission for that? The first thing they do when you bring your car in is verify if you're eligible for an update and if so they will push it to you. That's the best place to have an update in case there's an issue they can fix it right then and there.

And why would you not want your car to be updated?

 

[rnortman]

That's their job. Why would they need your permission for that? The first thing they do when you bring your car in is verify if you're eligible for an update and if so they will push it to you. That's the best place to have an update in case there's an issue they can fix it right then and there.

And why would you not want your car to be updated?

This has not been their policy in all the time I've had the car up until now. And I've been very unlucky to have my car in for warranty service many times.

I don't want my car updated because updates are often buggy when they first come out. Also they sneak in mis-features like Fleet Speed without telling you and then refuse to roll back. Also, for those of us with MCU1 cars, every new software release makes the screen laggier, less responsive, and less stable (more crashes and reboots).

 

[rnortman]

And why would you not want your car to be updated?

Also, many people prefer the V8 user interface to V9 or V10 and have kept their cars intentionally on that version.

 

[linux-works]

updates are 'all or nothing'; meaning, you can't pick to keep the UI back but bring security and bug-fixes in.

(that's my main beef with android; they broke the clean linux model and messed it all up. its a total dogs breakfast, now, but that's for another thread)

with tesla's updates, there will be safety fixes, security fixes and functionality added and maybe removed. this is the good and the evil of OTA.

if you delay updates, by choice, then suppose one of the updates had a safety fix that you refused. what happens if something goes wrong because that fix was not installed (via ota) in your car?

I can see tesla's POV and I think all car vendors will have an all or nothing style update stream.

it sure would be nice to be able to get just security updates. or just fixes, but freeze the UI. asking that is asking the company to be a true software company, and while tesla is so very VERY software based, they are not really a software company; they are a product company and that product contains a boatload of software, but they are selling a product and an experience and they are not selling YOU the software, they are selling you the car and they 'maintain' the car remotely, via OTA.

I would prefer to be able to freeze and refuse things. not everyone loves forced updates, but with tesla, its ONLY a forced update model. you can delay, but that does not really fix the problem.

 

[widodh]

This has not been their policy in all the time I've had the car up until now. And I've been very unlucky to have my car in for warranty service many times.

I don't want my car updated because updates are often buggy when they first come out. Also they sneak in mis-features like Fleet Speed without telling you and then refuse to roll back. Also, for those of us with MCU1 cars, every new software release makes the screen laggier, less responsive, and less stable (more crashes and reboots).

Since 2013 I've had this happen multiple times. My car would go in for service and they would update it to the latest version.

Nothing new here if you ask me.

 

[Ludalicious]

Allot of the recals are due to safety concerns. Its their job to ensure the customers are safe at the end of the day. If that includes an update via software thats what will happen.

 

[rnortman]

Allot of the recals are due to safety concerns. Its their job to ensure the customers are safe at the end of the day. If that includes an update via software thats what will happen.

If there is a safety issue with a software version they should issue a recall notice. Without a recall notice there should be no forced update. And in the past, there has been no forced update -- I know there are people on the forums here still running V8.

I did not intend to start a thread about whether or not Tesla should be allowed to force updates. I intended to ask about what their policy is when vehicles are in for service and an update happens to be available. It seems this might vary between service centers; until yesterday my service center had never installed an update while the vehicle was in service; they only staged/downloaded the updates and left it to me to install it.

If anybody else can confirm that I'm not completely insane and that they have also typically seen their service centers stage but not install updates, that would make me feel a bit better.

 

[fmm]

my family has a BMW, Jeep Wrangler, and I drive the Tesla - every dealer upgrades the software of every car we have when it’s in for service. maybe you could have noted to the service team if you didn’t want it updated as it’s a pretty standard practice across all brands.

 

[VT_EE]

my family has a BMW, Jeep Wrangler, and I drive the Tesla - every dealer upgrades the software of every car we have when it’s in for service. maybe you could have noted to the service team if you didn’t want it updated as it’s a pretty standard practice across all brands.

This is true. I’ve had Mazda do the same.

 

[Need]

I have actually heard it the other way. For the people who somehow could not get an update, they would try to get the car into service so they could get an update. Getting the car serviced = auto update to the latest firmware. Wasn't it the case? And I have also read that people who liked their older firmware refused to get the car into service for the very same reason.

 

[rnortman]

my family has a BMW, Jeep Wrangler, and I drive the Tesla - every dealer upgrades the software of every car we have when it’s in for service. maybe you could have noted to the service team if you didn’t want it updated as it’s a pretty standard practice across all brands.

Other manufacturers do not introduce new unannounced features with software updates. They only fix bugs and they don't introduce serious regressions in major vehicle features, such as Fleet Speed. We can argue all day about which you prefer but no thank you that's not what I'm here for. If they are going to fundamentally change the vehicle you purchased with a software update in a way that wasn't disclosed when you purchased the vehicle, you need to be able to refuse the update if you don't want that change.

None of this is on topic. I intended to start a thread about what Tesla's policy actually is right now and if that is a change from what it was before. Previously I had never heard of Tesla installing updates while in service.

 

[rnortman]

I have actually heard it the other way. For the people who somehow could not get an update, they would try to get the car into service so they could get an update. Getting the car serviced = auto update to the latest firmware. Wasn't it the case? And I have also read that people who liked their older firmware refused to get the car into service for the very same reason.

It used to be that taking it in for service was a way to get the update staged to your car. Which is to say, downloaded and ready to install. They would never actually install it; you had to do that when you got the car home.

This is no longer true from what I understand. Taking your car in for service does not make it more likely to get an update, unless the service personnel think an update fixes some problem with your car and they stage it for that reason.

 

[fmm]

Other manufacturers do not introduce new unannounced features with software updates. They only fix bugs and they don't introduce serious regressions in major vehicle features, such as Fleet Speed. We can argue all day about which you prefer but no thank you that's not what I'm here for. If they are going to fundamentally change the vehicle you purchased with a software update in a way that wasn't disclosed when you purchased the vehicle, you need to be able to refuse the update if you don't want that change.

None of this is on topic. I intended to start a thread about what Tesla's policy actually is right now and if that is a change from what it was before. Previously I had never heard of Tesla installing updates while in service.

If you've never heard of it I'd suggest that you read some threads on this forum as it has been a common practice to schedule your car in for maintenance to get the next software upgrade. There has been no change in policy whatsoever.

further, I don't disagree with you that you should be able to opt out. But you didn't opt out - all you likely needed to do was ask the service center not to upgrade you. with no instructions from you at all they did what they would normally do, and every other manufacturer does - upgrade you to the latest software.

 

[rnortman]

I you've never heard of it I'd suggest that you read some threads on this forum as it has been a common practice to schedule your car in for maintenance to get the next software upgrade.

Please see my comment on this just a couple of comments up. (a) It used to be that they staged but did not install updates when you took your car in for service (or even just got on wifi at the dealership, and also (b) this has not been true for a year at least, according to the experts on this forum; taking the car in for service does not automatically mean you get the latest version, unless your car is already flagged and just waiting to get on wifi (any wifi) to download it.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

You would have to tell them explicitly that you don't want the software update.
There are people on here who've stuck with older versions.

 

[Ludalicious]

my family has a BMW, Jeep Wrangler, and I drive the Tesla - every dealer upgrades the software of every car we have when it’s in for service. maybe you could have noted to the service team if you didn’t want it updated as it’s a pretty standard practice across all brands.

Exactly. I had a custom tune in my JEEP due to a supercharger. I requested no firmware update due to the tune. They would not work on the vehicle at all unless the update was installed. The update was due to a couple people not putting the vehicle in park and a few people got run over due to the software.

Sometimes its a safety issue and needs to he updated just like when a couple Teslas caught on fire. An update was sent to the fleet.

 

[chillaban]

What kind of service did you get done? Some procedures require going through a software update in order to flash the firmware onto the peripheral -- charge ports, etc. That's usually why they would apply an update rather than just staging it. It's not like they enjoy wasting time at the service center either.

 

[Kacey Green]

My car was in service yesterday for things unrelated to software updates, and while it was there they installed 2020.4.1. I have had them stage (i.e., download) updates while in service before, but never before have they actually installed an update. I thought it was against their policy, probably so that they can claim you consented to whatever bugs and misfeatures the new version brings when you hit the upgrade button. They can no longer claim that in my case.

Has anybody ever seen this before?

I have had them update my car three times, all on my last visit, though I was getting the FSD retrofit so that makes sense, also maybe technically once when the Accessory Alarm was installed but it didn't complete and I did it when the mobile tech re-staged it. Other than that they've never hit the update button for me.