Tesla has just unveiled its highly anticipated 2025 Holiday Update, promising a plethora of exciting new features for Tesla owners. The company made the announcement on X, showcasing enhancements to navigation, user interface refinements, fun additions to the Toybox, enhanced safety features, and much more. While the exact release date remains unknown, it is expected that wave-one employees will receive the update for testing soon, followed by a wider rollout shortly after.
One notable absence from this year’s update is Apple CarPlay, a feature that Tesla has been working on bringing to its vehicles. Despite hopes for its inclusion in this year’s Holiday Update, it seems that Apple CarPlay will not be making an appearance just yet. However, Tesla is known for surprises, so there may still be unexpected features in store when the update is released.
The highlight of this year’s update is Grok’s new navigation commands feature, currently in beta. Users can now add, edit, and manage navigation stops using natural language commands, making trip planning easier than ever. Grok support is currently limited to AMD-equipped vehicles in Canada and the U.S.
In addition to navigation improvements, Tesla has introduced a new Toybox addition called Tesla Photobooth. This feature allows owners to take selfies using the cabin camera, apply stickers and filters, and share them directly from the Tesla app.
Another exciting addition is the Dog Mode Live Activity, which provides iPhone users with real-time updates on their vehicle’s cabin when Dog Mode is active. This includes periodic cabin snapshots, temperature readings, state-of-charge updates, and local climate information.
Tesla has also updated the Dashcam Viewer, adding overlays that display speed, steering angle, accelerator and brake pressure, and whether Autopilot or Full Self-Driving (FSD) was engaged. This enhancement aims to improve transparency and incident review for users.
For a festive touch, Tesla has revamped Santa Mode with new snowmen, trees, snow effects, and a themed lock chime. The visual update applies across the lineup, with some older Intel-based vehicles receiving simplified visuals.
Other notable updates include the ability to schedule the Jingle Rush light show, customize interior lighting, and extend the show length. Additionally, Toybox’s Paint Shop now supports custom wraps, window tints, and license plates for the vehicle icon on all models.
Tesla has also made improvements to navigation, allowing users to reorder favorites, set Home or Work locations by dropping a pin on the map, and receive suggested destinations based on their recent habits. Furthermore, certain Superchargers now include detailed 3D site maps with stall occupancy information for easier parking and charging.
Automatic HOV Lanes Routing is another new feature that enables navigation to automatically select high-occupancy vehicle lanes when eligible, based on passenger count, time, and local restrictions. The update also includes a Phone Left Behind Chime, which alerts users if their phone key is left in the cabin or on the wireless charger.
Users can now save location-specific charge limits, customize wraps and license plates, and enjoy a SpaceX ISS Docking Simulator game in their Tesla vehicles. Additional improvements include the option to enable or disable wireless phone charging pads, enhanced Spotify browsing and queue management, rainbow accent lighting during Rave Cave, and new Lock Sound options, including the popular Light Cycle chime from Tron.
As Tesla is known for surprises, there may be more features unveiled once the 2025 Holiday Update starts rolling out to customer vehicles. Stay tuned for the latest updates on this exciting release.