by Stephen Rivers
- Tesla’s update adds smarter navigation tools and new charging aids.
- Drivers get 3D Supercharger maps plus improved Dog Mode snapshots.
- New Toybox features include fun visuals, filters, and seasonal animations.
It’s the time of year again when Tesla drops a load of new features and festive gimmicks. For the 2025 holiday season, they include navigation, charging, and quality of life upgrades. They also add some fun software goodies that’ll simply bring a little more levity to every Tesla near you.
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Perhaps the most headline-worthy change is the introduction of Grok, the xAI-developed chatbot into the navigation system. Drivers can ask Grok to add or edit destinations entirely through voice.
Should it get the direction correctly, it’ll eliminate the need to tap buttons on screen. In addition, it’ll offer additional context about destinations, including reviews, points of interest nearby, and more.
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Tesla also introduced a new 3D Supercharger site map. Available at a small but growing list of pilot locations, it displays real-time stall availability, site layout, and nearby amenities. The feature feels like a natural step before Tesla eventually introduces finer-grained charging reservations.
Owners who regularly use Dog Mode will appreciate a new Live Activity view that takes periodic snapshots of the cabin and makes them available to the owner.
The Dashcam viewer also gets a practical bump, adding overlays for speed, steering angle, and self-driving status information that can be extremely valuable after an incident.
Smaller touches include a location-based charging limit, a chime for phones left behind, the option to toggle wireless charging pads, and automatic routing into HOV lanes based on occupancy and local rules. Of course, being a ‘holiday update,’ there are plenty of software changes meant purely for fun.
For 2025, that includes a Santa Mode refresh, new light shows, and even a photobooth mode for inside the car. Owners can also add custom wraps, license plates, and tints through the revamped Paint Shop. Rounding out the package is the SpaceX ISS Docking Simulator, a 3D mini-game modeled after real NASA interface controls.
Like most of Tesla’s seasonal releases, this one is a mixed bag. We’re looking forward to seeing how owners use them. Perhaps the next time there’s an inexplicable crash, the overlaid data will help us get to the bottom of it quicker than in the past.