Tesla recently pushed the 2023.38.8 software update, suggesting that front seat heating and wiper heating will soon become paid subscription functions.
In recent years, automakers have introduced the concept of subscription services, enabling or disabling various features through software to generate additional revenue, but users clearly don’t like paying for things they already have in their vehicles.
Tesla has previously charged extra for heated rear seats in its entry-level models, and while owners have the feature installed from the factory in their cars, they will need to pay $300 to activate it. Previously, heated front seats and heated wipers were standard features on Tesla vehicles, but that seems to have changed now.
According to blogger @greentheonly, a 2023.38.8 software update indicates that heated front seats and heated wipers will soon become paid features on new cars. It’s unclear whether this is for all base 2024 models or just those sold in select markets.
Tesla may choose to remove the above features as standard from its cheapest models in order to further lower the starting price, so that it can obtain government subsidies in some countries, and owners can pay the corresponding fee after delivery to activate the missing features.
In addition to this change, @greentheonly also discovered that the cruising range of the Model Y rear-wheel drive version is limited to 260 miles by software, which means that the battery pack capacity is no different from that of the long-range version. The cruising range is only limited by software, possibly to comply with New IRA tax credit conditions effective next year.
