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What does 'Software Update' actually mean in the Tesla app?

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I'm a new owner of a MY and getting to grips with the interface. The car arrived without Apple Music (or parking sensors ... that's another issue!) so I'm assuming we're a software update or two behind. The car is parked with a good WiFi connection. I have set the software download option to 'Advanced'. The touchscreen says we're all caught up with software updates, yet the mobile app shows this, with the download wheel spinning:

IMG_1682.jpg


The clear impression is software - the latest release? - is being downloaded, either to the phone, the cloud, or the car itself. Clicking on that area in the app takes me to the Release Notes only, and this 'page' in the app:

IMG_1683.jpg


Again, it implies that this download is going somewhere, yet the MY's touchscreen doesn't recognise it. I want to have the latest software running, and be in line for the Tesla Vision release so we get something like USS parking sensors on the car. So to my questions!

1. What does 'Software Update' mean in the app?
2. Should I see something different when clicking on that part of the app - something like 'Start downloading to car'?
3. How can I force my MY to start downloading this latest release?

Any help and guidance would be gratefully received!
 
1. What does 'Software Update' mean in the app?
2. Should I see something different when clicking on that part of the app - something like 'Start downloading to car'?
3. How can I force my MY to start downloading this latest release?
1 "Software Update" is the title of the information. The information is the version of software and that it is downloading.
2 the word "downloading" let's you know downloading is in progress.
3 there is no forcing. When an update is available for your car it will download.
 
1 "Software Update" is the title of the information. The information is the version of software and that it is downloading.
2 the word "downloading" let's you know downloading is in progress.
3 there is no forcing. When an update is available for your car it will download.
Thanks. When I go to the car though the touchscreen says there is no download in progress, even with a good WiFi connection. So where is the software being downloaded to? :confused:
 
In the app, when you tap where it tells you an update is available, it will say the download begins in 2 minutes and a countdown for that 2 minutes begins with a message that you can cancel before it completes. Once the download begins, it will indicate the % of completion it is at. You won't be able to use the car until it completes so make sure you don't start it until you won't need to use the car for 30+ minutes or so. In the car, when an update is available, there will be a yellow circle with a down arrow in it along the top of the screen. If you tap on that, it will begin the same process.
 
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In the app, when you tap where it tells you an update is available, it will say the download begins in 2 minutes and a countdown for that 2 minutes begins with a message that you can cancel before it completes. Once the download begins, it will indicate the % of completion it is at. You won't be able to use the car until it completes so make sure you don't start it until you won't need to use the car for 30+ minutes or so. In the car, when an update is available, there will be a yellow circle with a down arrow in it along the top of the screen. If you tap on that, it will begin the same process.
Thanks. All I'm seeing in the app is the image I posted above. The wheel is spinning, implying software is being downloaded somewhere. I don't see anything saying an update is available, just that something is downloading the latest release. I don't see a timing advisory or a countdown, or a % completion. The car says it is up to date. It's all a mystery!
 
Thanks for that. I'm going to try updating the app to see if that changes anything!
That's a good step to update the app. Update 2023.2.12 took about 50min to download. You can also do a search on TMC for the specific version number you want info on. Like this one: 2023.2.12
App updated and no change. App still saying there's a software update available (2023.2.12) and has that spinning wheel indicating it's downloading something, nothing pops up when I click it. Car is saying it's up to date and it isn't downloading anything:

IMG_1684.jpeg


And last software update was 2022.40.400:

IMG_1685.jpeg


Alas no further forward!
 
It may take several weeks for a new car to get an update. Until the update is pushed to the car from Tesla there is no way to trigger it and it will say the car is up to date when you check.

Not sure about the app notification though. The app should only mirror what is happening in the car. It’s not downloaded to the phone.
 
It may take several weeks for a new car to get an update. Until the update is pushed to the car from Tesla there is no way to trigger it and it will say the car is up to date when you check.

Not sure about the app notification though. The app should only mirror what is happening in the car. It’s not downloaded to the phone.
Thank you. Several weeks is crazy! You'd think Tesla would want customers to have the best experience as soon as they've bought their cars.

Wonder if anyone else has experienced this wait?
 
Have you tried using the shut down button (I think in service menu) or forced reboot (by holding down both scroll wheels until it reboots)?

Make absolutely sure it’s not actively installing the update before doing a forced reboot though.
 
Thank you. Several weeks is crazy! You'd think Tesla would want customers to have the best experience as soon as they've bought their cars.

Wonder if anyone else has experienced this wait?
Welcome!

We all wait. No one understands why some people get software updates before others. We know that Tesla staggers their releases over several weeks or longer. You can set your software update preference to "Advanced" to get updates a little sooner. Fretting about it does no good. Just treat it like a fun little surprise when it does happen. I imagine that when you get a new car, you are in the queue to get the next update just like everyone else.

As others have said, when Tesla talks about a software update they are always talking about the software in the car. The app gets updated by the OS on your phone/tablet, not by Tesla directly. On Android you can update your app sooner by downloading an APK file and using an APK installing app to install it.

Tesla has been updating the car software regularly for many years. Using software that's a few months old for a few weeks is really not a big deal. Around Christmas time they usually add some fun bells and whistles that sometimes get mixed/bad reviews.
 
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In the app, when you tap where it tells you an update is available, it will say the download begins in 2 minutes and a countdown for that 2 minutes begins with a message that you can cancel before it completes. Once the download begins, it will indicate the % of completion it is at. You won't be able to use the car until it completes so make sure you don't start it until you won't need to use the car for 30+ minutes or so. In the car, when an update is available, there will be a yellow circle with a down arrow in it along the top of the screen. If you tap on that, it will begin the same process.
To be clear, you can drive the car after the DOWNLOAD begins. It will pause and it will continue when you return home. When the download is complete it will prompt you to install the update It is when the INSTALLATION runs that you do not have use of the car.
 
This is not complicated. Don't worry about the phone app. Just leave everything alone. The update will appear on the screen in the car and on the phone app when the download is done. It will then ask you to initiate the installation. You can start the installation in either the phone app or on the car screen; your choice, and it will tell you to wait until it is finished; very simple.
 
This is not complicated. Don't worry about the phone app. Just leave everything alone. The update will appear on the screen in the car and on the phone app when the download is done. It will then ask you to initiate the installation. You can start the installation in either the phone app or on the car screen; your choice, and it will tell you to wait until it is finished; very simple.
Thanks, so just to be clear, when the app says there’s a software update available and I see the wheel spinning indicating a software download has started, no download has in fact started. It’s just Tesla’s ultra confusing way of saying that a new release will eventually be downloaded to the car.
 
Welcome!

We all wait. No one understands why some people get software updates before others. We know that Tesla staggers their releases over several weeks or longer. You can set your software update preference to "Advanced" to get updates a little sooner. Fretting about it does no good. Just treat it like a fun little surprise when it does happen. I imagine that when you get a new car, you are in the queue to get the next update just like everyone else.

As others have said, when Tesla talks about a software update they are always talking about the software in the car. The app gets updated by the OS on your phone/tablet, not by Tesla directly. On Android you can update your app sooner by downloading an APK file and using an APK installing app to install it.

Tesla has been updating the car software regularly for many years. Using software that's a few months old for a few weeks is really not a big deal. Around Christmas time they usually add some fun bells and whistles that sometimes get mixed/bad reviews.
Thanks. You’d think Tesla would deliver new cars with the latest software installed so new owners get the best customer experience from the start. Instead we’re given an app which suggests an update is downloading when it’s clearly not.