Tesla's New 'Tap to Park' Autopark Feature [Updated With Video] (2024)

Tesla has released the much-anticipated new Autopark feature that is expected to be based on the new neural networks that power FSD Beta v12.

Teslas have had Autopark capability for several years, although it has several shortcomings, besides not being available to any recent vehicles that do not include ultrasonic sensors (USS).

This refined version of Autopark is available as part of update 2024.2.11, although the update appears to be limited to employees at this time.

This new iteration of Autopark is expected to be a big improvement over the previous version. According to Musk, it contains “major improvements” over the previous version.

Video

Update: The first video of the new Autopark feature is now available thanks to X user Space Cat, who drives a Model Y with Enhanced Autopilot and without ultrasonic sensors. In the video below you can see the new parking visuals and how easily the vehicle detects parking spots, something the current Autopark feature struggles with.

The driver can pick from any of the highlighted spots. It’s impressive how the vehicle shifts to drive or reverse depending on what’s needed. This appears to be similar behavior to what we’ll see in FSD, according to Tesla’s Autopilot director.

Tesla made the process to initial Autopark easy with this release. The vehicle automatically displays available parking spots and defaults to one nearby. All the driver has to do is stop the vehicle and tap ‘Start’ on the screen to start Autopark. There’s no need to tap a button to have the vehicle detect parking spots or even to select a particular spot, unless you have a preference.

Tesla autopark for vision only non-USS Model Y! At long last! So far I'm pretty impressed. It's way better than the old autopark.@AndyZeGerman @28delayslater pic.twitter.com/Hi25l7T1XL

— Space Cat 🐈🚀 (@raderje) March 24, 2024

Tap a Parking Spot and Exit the Vehicle?

Musk has been talking about the new ‘Tap to Park’ feature for several months. In December 2023, Musk said "We are working on a feature where the car identifies probable viable parking spaces. You tap on one, exit the vehicle and it parks there."

The release notes in this version don't mention the ability to exit the vehicle before the vehicle starts parking, although it sounds like that's Tesla's goal for this feature. This first iteration could be Tesla's MVP (Minimal Viable Product) that they'd like to ship and they'll slowly add on features as the feature is refined.

There are several hints beyond Musk's comment that Tesla will eventually support tapping a parking spot on the screen and allow the driver to exit the vehicle while the car parks itself.

A look under the hood at Tesla's recent app update showed that Tesla is building Autopark features into the app, hinting that you may even be able to initiate Autopark directly from your phone in the future.

This is very similar to what you can already do with Summon on vehicles with USS. From your device, you can wake up the vehicle and have it drive a short distance to you. It's not far-fetched to think that Tesla has sights on being able to do this in reverse.

Available to Vehicles Without USS

Tesla has been delivering vehicles without USS, Autopark, and Smart Summon for over a year now. This updated feature is expected to have improved vision to make up for the lack of USS. A similar situation occurred with Park Assist, where vehicles without USS could no longer show distances to objects when parking.

Tesla then introduced High-Fidelity Park Assist in the holiday update and surprised everyone with what they were able to accomplish. Instead of just displaying distances to objects, Tesla created 3D models of surrounding objects and colored them based on the vehicle's proximity.

High-Fidelity Park Assist is still limited to vehicles without USS, but we know Tesla is working on adding the feature to vehicles that include ultrasonic sensors as well. It's not clear whether the new Autopark may also only be rolled out to vehicles without USS, or if it'll be available to all vehicles at the same time.

Autopark is part of Tesla’s Enhance Autopilot (EAP) suite, so only users with EAP or FSD are expected to receive the feature when it rolls out.

Improved Visuals and Selection

The image Tesla released shows an improvement in Autopark visuals. The current iteration of Autopark only shows one parking spot at once, and it's difficult to even have that come up on the screen.

This new version appears to be a drastic improvement, not only outlining a parking spot on the display but also displaying various parking spots at once - including parallel spaces.

According to the release notes, the parking spots will appear any time you're driving slowly through a parking lot, although the exact speed isn't specified.

Improved Autopark

Musk previously talked about a vast improvement in the new Autopark, which he called Tap to Park. This new Autopark is expected to be based on the same neural networks that power FSD Beta v12, which has been a drastic improvement over FSD Beta v11.4.9. We should see a much improved Autopark experience when this feature becomes available to Tesla owners.

Although the previous version of Autopark worked, it was difficult to have it detect a parking spot and display it on the screen. It often also parked very slowly, making it less almost useless if there were other vehicles around. However, the result was usually quite good, with the vehicle parking safely and well between the parking lines. We expect the two shortcomings of the current Autopark to be drastically improved in this latest revision.

Public Roll Out / Release Date

Just a few days ago, Musk revealed that Tesla would release a new version of Summon (Actually Smart Summon) and a new Autopark feature with "major improvements" next month (April).

It's surprising to see this feature added to update 2024.2.11 when Tesla is already rolling out 2024.8.4. This leads us to believe that this update may be currently in a testing phase with employees and is not yet ready to go to a public release.

When Tesla is ready to ship this feature to owners, we'll likely see it introduced in a revision to 2024.8, or even the next major update, which could be 2024.12.

Either way, it looks like we'll be getting it fairly soon, and if the new Autopark has anywhere near the improvements in Tesla's FSD Beta v12.3, then we're in for a real treat.

Like every other Tesla owner, we look forward to the latest Tesla update every month, which is hopefully filled with improvements and new features. However, the release notes only cover the biggest changes, so every month we go through an update and receive countless tips from readers that highlight all of the smaller changes Tesla has made in the latest update.

Here we’ll go through all of the undocumented changes in Tesla update 2024.2.

Unlock Car and Trunk Buttons

To make it easier to unlock the vehicle for others, Tesla has added a contextual unlock button that appears in certain situations.

If the vehicle is locked and there is someone inside the vehicle, an 'Unlock Vehicle' or ‘Unlock Trunk’ button will now appear if someone tries to open the vehicle from the outside.

Trips Menu Redesign

Tesla has redesigned the Trips menu under Controls > Trips. The new design features 'Reset' buttons directly next to the trip meter instead of all the way at the bottom.

The 'Show in Trips Card' is now aligned right on the same row, allowing all trip meters to fit on the screen without having to scroll.

Each trip meter is now easier to read at a glance as well. The details for each trip meter are now grouped in a darker gray color.

Supercharging Tips

In the Charging menu, Tesla provides various tips when Supercharging such as not taking up adjacent stalls since some Superchargers share power between neighboring stalls.

Another tip has been added for vehicles with a heat pump. Tesla states that water vapor coming out of the car while Supercharging in cold conditions is normal. Recently some owners have been confusing the steam that is emitted from the vehicle for smoke.

Supercharging Tips can be accessed by going to Controls > Charging and tapping on Supercharging Tips.

PIN to Drive

The PIN to Drive keypad that appears when you enter the car received some minor design changes.

All Apps Menu

The All Apps menu [...] will now display all apps available, even if they're docked at the bottom of the display. Previously, the menu would only display apps that weren't pinned as favorites.

Additional Vehicle Info

The Additional Vehicle Information menu under Controls > Software will now display if your vehicle is capable of 3rd-party NACS DC charging.

It sounds like not all vehicles may be capable of charging at all future 3rd party NACS DC chargers.

Software Version in App

With this update, the vehicle's software version displayed in the app will also display additional information.

Tesla recently added the software version hash to the software version at the bottom of the app, and with this update, they're also displaying the vehicle's software version number, such as v11.1 as part of the version field.

Undocumented Changes on Update 2024.8

We publish undocumented changes throughout the lifetime of a release. There have already been six undocumented changes related to Tesla’s latest software update, version 2024.8. If you haven’t seen them yet, head on over to the release notes page.

If you discover any additional undocumented changes in a Tesla update, please let us know on our contact us page.

Tesla's Safety Score 2.1 update adjusts its evaluation criteria, particularly focusing on the Late-Night Driving metric. At the same time, the broader community continues to express concerns over other aspects of the system, notably the Forward Collision Warning.

Tesla has specifically addressed the Late-Night Driving metric, shifting the impactful driving window from 10 PM - 4 AM to 11 PM - 4 AM. This change directly responds to feedback regarding how late-night driving affects Safety Scores and, consequently, insurance premiums.

Addressing Concerns Beyond the Update

DriveTeslaCanada posted the story, which became quite a topic on Reddit. While the Late-Night Driving metric adjustment has been well-received, the Tesla community remains vocal about other system aspects, particularly the Forward Collision Warning’s sensitivity. Reports of frequent false alerts highlight a potential area for further improvement. Users suggest implementing a feature for manual incident reporting, using dashcam footage as evidence, to help refine the system's accuracy. Additionally, there's a call for Tesla to leverage such data to train its neural networks, aiming to reduce false positives.

Insurance and Safety Scores: Discussions extend to the implications of the Safety Score on Tesla Insurance premiums, with drivers sharing how updates and system sensitivities affect their scores and, subsequently, their insurance costs.

Reflecting on Safety Score 2.0

The introduction of Safety Score 2.0, almost one year ago to the day, marked a significant milestone, adding new safety factors like Excessive Speeding and Unbuckled Driving to Tesla's driving assessment tool. These factors, alongside the updated Late Night Driving metric and existing metrics like Hard Braking and Aggressive Turning, leverage Tesla's vast fleet data to encourage safer driving habits.

Tesla's Safety Score, evolving through versions from 1.0 to the current 2.1, serves as a personalized driving coach. Assessing driving behavior against a set of safety factors provides drivers with actionable feedback to improve their habits. This enhances road safety and offers the potential for lower insurance premiums, aligning financial incentives with safer driving practices.

The Safety Score's utility extends beyond individual feedback; it aggregates millions of miles of driving data to inform Tesla's safety feature development. This ongoing analysis helps identify trends and patterns in driving behavior, shaping the evolution of vehicle safety features and contributing to Tesla's reputation for producing some of the safest vehicles on the road.

As Tesla continues to refine its Safety Score system, incorporating driver feedback and advancing technology, the dialogue between the company and its community is vital. The adjustments in Safety Score 2.1, especially the revised Late-Night Driving metric, reflect a positive step towards balancing safety assessments with real-world driving experiences. Meanwhile, the ongoing discussions about FCW sensitivity underscore the importance of continuous improvement and innovation in vehicle safety systems.