Tesla’s spring update activates adaptive high beams that won’t blind oncoming drivers

Tesla’s vehicles may be in a sales slump, but that’s not stopping the company from regularly introducing fresh features for owners. Tesla’s spring software update includes several useful new functions in its EVs, including adaptive high beams on compatible cars and better trip planning.

The update will allow some Tesla owners to use high beams without blinding other drivers and cyclists on the road by enabling the beamforming capabilities of equipped matrix headlights. The company first started installing the hardware across its vehicles in 2022, but are just now enabling it. Tesla had also enabled the features in Europe last year, and the newly refreshed Model Y will ship with the new smart headlights.

Many automakers like Audi have already been using adaptive headlights for about a decade in Europe, but the technology only became legal in the US in 2022. Other US automakers, including Ford and its F-150 Lightning, have the necessary hardware but aren’t yet enabling all the features of adaptive lights by default.

Another very useful feature in the spring release includes “Alternative Trip Plans,” which lets Tesla owners select different EV navigation routes based on whether they want to get there faster, have the fewest stops, or want to visit highly rated restaurants, shops, and restrooms. It adds to an already comprehensive EV navigation experience that other automakers have yet to catch up to, although Tesla still does not include third party chargers in automatic routing. Additionally, you can now set navigation to avoid highways.

Tesla is also giving its Sentry secure video and Dashcam features the ability to record clips from the B-Pillar side cameras, increasing their capture abilities from six of the vehicle’s cameras instead of four. An updated Dashcam viewer on the infotainment screen includes a new grid view to make it easier to review recordings. These new dashcam features, however, only work on Tesla models with AMD-powered infotainment screens, so anyone with Intel-powered ones won’t get the new functionality. 

Other notable features in the update include sideview camera feeds on the instrument cluster for Model S and X, location based trunk height memory so your tailgate doesn’t hit your low-ceiling garage, always-on USB-C and wireless charging, and, for those who refuse to pay Tesla for premium connectivity, the ability to automatically connect to your hotspot when you start to drive.