Tesla Music Streaming Services And Apps (Spotify, TIDAL, Slacker, TuneIn And More) |

While Teslas are filled with a plethora of industry-leading features, new owners are often surprised by the incredible quality of the Tesla audio system and its audio features.

In fact, it is believed that Tesla’s sound systems are on-par with premium Bang and Olufsen systems ($12,000 optional sound system in vehicles like the Audi A8). Elon Musk even admitted in a tweet that they used former Bang and Olufsen engineers to design the audio systems found in the Model 3 and Model Y.

Tesla continues to refine the audio experience for Tesla owners, as indicated by the release of the new subwoofer equalizer settings as of update 2021.44.25.

With this incredible audio experience standard across all models, it should come as no surprise that music streaming is a priority for Tesla.

Part of the selling points of Tesla’s Premium Connectivity is the seamless music streaming abilities offered by Tesla.

With a Premium Connectivity plan, drivers can easily stream audio without the use of cellphone pairing solutions or Bluetooth streaming.

If a Tesla driver chooses not to purchase the Tesla Premium Connectivity Plan, they can stream audio via Bluetooth from their cellphone.

Audiophiles would point out that the act of streaming via Bluetooth degrades the quality of the music to compress the data stream for wireless transmission. A physical connection with a USB cable connected to a cellphone is not currently supported by Tesla.

In addition, drivers can use their cellphone as a hotspot, allowing the vehicle to stream audio such as Spotify using their device's data connection.

When using your device as a hotspot, you'll have access to almost all of Tesla's features included in Premium Connectivity. These include audio and video streaming services like Spotify and Netflix (accounts with these services are still required), Caraoke and more.

The only options it doesn't include are live traffic visualizations and satellite-view maps.

Like many modern vehicle manufacturers, Tesla has focused on developing an infotainment ecosystem that relies on streaming services to deliver music and podcast streams to the driver via Wi-Fi and cellular connections.

Many of these services are premium services not routinely found in standard car software. Currently, Tesla offers a direct stream from Slacker, Spotify, TIDAL, and TuneIn. This is in addition to FM radio and SiriusXM for the Model S and Model X.

While branded as a Tesla streaming service, Tesla has partnered with Slacker Radio to provide a free Slacker Plus account (ad-free) to Tesla Premium Connectivity customers. In the US, this music service shows up in the vehicle simply as "Streaming."

This account mirrors the features of a Slacker Premium account, enabling drivers to search for songs using voice commands, create and stream playlists, and enjoy curated streaming stations for their enjoyment. Spotify

Arguably the most well-known of the streaming options, Spotify has built a reputation for exclusive high-quality podcasts and playlist management that makes them one of the most popular streaming services in the world (current market share of 31% of the global streaming market). While not known for its audio playback quality, Spotify’s streaming service offers an industry-leading catalog of material that is popular with Tesla drivers.

Although Spotify offers the ability to stream songs with a higher bit rate (HQ), it is currently not available in Teslas.

Tidal’s ad-free music streaming service is billed as a premium lossless music stream (indicating a higher quality audio experience when compared to other Tesla streaming partners).

Tesla users with a TIDAL HiFi subscription can stream audio files at 1411 Kbps using a lossless codec that doesn’t sacrifice quality for streaming bandwidth speeds.

However, users have noted that streaming these lossless files over an LTE connection can cause frequent buffering issues due to the large file sizes.

TIDAL does offer the ability to download songs via Wi-Fi to prevent buffering issues.

A lesser-known subscription-based streaming product, TuneIn offers Tesla drivers ad-free streaming of music, news networks (CNBC, CNN, FOX News Radio, and MSNBC), and live play-by-play sports with no blackouts from the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL.

There is a free tier for TuneIn users interested in listening to their curated playlists and sports radio products.

You can simply navigate to TuneIn and start listening; no need to create an account.

Popular for its large selection of curated music stations, talk radio catalog, and sports streaming, SiriusXM is a leading subscription and semi-ad-supported streaming solution for the U.S. and Canadian markets.

SiriusXM is only available in the Model S and Model X using a satellite receiver which is not available in the Model 3 or Model Y.

While there have been rumors of an internet-based SiriusXM streaming solution for other models, that solution has yet to appear in the Model 3 and Model Y.

Tesla Caraoke is Tesla’s version of the popular karaoke format. The free service (requires Premium Connectivity or Wi-Fi) allows drivers to play and sing popular karaoke songs directly from their car's infotainment system.

For owners who prefer to play their own downloaded music collection, Tesla also allows you to plug in a USB drive and play MP3s directly from your device.

This feature can be useful if you don't subscribe to Tesla's Premium Connectivity or sometimes drive in areas with poor reception.

Your USB drive will need to be formatted using exFAT for this to work. Once the drive is plugged in you'll be able to access your music via a new USB icon available in the launcher.

Tesla will then let you view your music by artist, album, song title, or even search for your favorite songs.

Apple Music, the second most popular music streaming service in the US, remains absent from Tesla's streaming lineup.

Amazon Music, a close third-place finisher, also remains absent from Tesla’s audio streaming options. Pandora is also not yet available from Tesla’s infotainment system.

While a YouTube video app is available in the Theater section of the Tesla infotainment system (while parked), YouTube’s music streaming service, YouTube Music, is currently not supported.

It should be noted that workarounds exist for playing content from excluded streaming services like Pandora, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Youtube Music, etc. through the use of Bluetooth streaming.

Tesla's also offer traditional FM radio. The Tesla interface will automatically show you all the available stations around you so that you quickly start listening to a station without having to use a dial.

Although older Model S and Model X vehicles had the ability to listen to AM radio, that capability is no longer available in newer cars. However, TuneIn has many stations available for streaming, so your favorite AM station may also be available to stream for free on TuneIn.

Recently, Elon Musk indicated in a tweet that Tesla was considering the addition of AirPlay connectivity. While short of an Apple CarPlay integration, Apple Airplay would allow for improved audio streaming from iPhones when compared to current Bluetooth solutions.

WTTWOT! Or in plain English, Welcome To The World of Tesla! As you dip your toe in researching your much anticipated Tesla purchase online, or pull up for your first ever supercharge and strike up a conversation with the owner in the next (but one) stall, you’ll soon come across a new language: TWAs (Tesla World Acronyms). If you hadn’t stopped here, you might be scrabbling for words to keep up, but luckily you did stop here, and we’ve got you covered. You’ll be aware of some general EV (Electric Vehicle) and ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) abbreviations already, but if you want to know your SCs from your SuCs and more Tesla-specific TWAs, you’re in the right place.

Combined Charging System - a newer charging port that has become the standard in Europe and other markets

CHArge de MOve, a popular DC charging standard

AC power charging connection standard by SAE

Tesla's Mobile Connector that was previously included with vehicles. Older generations are called the Universal Mobile Connector (UMC)

Tesla's wall connector used to be called the High Power Wall Connector, but it is now just referred to as the Wall Connector

OK, so this abbreviation comes up a lot in the Tesla community. And there are three possibilities with SC, so context is everything. SC can refer to the Service Center, which you hopefully won’t need. It can also refer to a SuperCharger in the Tesla network. Finally, it is occasionally used to refer to SolarCity, a solar energy company that was acquired by Tesla in 2016.

You might see this as an abbreviation for a Supercharger that helps to differentiate it from a Service Center.

State of Charge. The percentage your battery is charged.

Pay Per Use, for charging either at Superchargers or other public chargers

Alternating Current - the electricity in your house uses alternating current

Direct Current - energy stored in batteries uses direct current

The National Electrical Code is a common standard for electrical wiring and equipment in the US

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association is the largest association of electrical equipment in the US

This common plug is often used to charge EVs and provides a maximum 50 amps of power, however EVs should only use up to 40 amps due to a constant load.

Kilowatt (1000 watts, a unit of electric power)

Kilowatt-hours on the other hand refers to how much energy has been consumed in total. It is an absolute figure, equivalent to gallons or liters of gas burned in an ICE car.

Not a Tesla-exclusive term, but an important one for EV owners. Watt-hours per mile is the EV equivalent of MPG, and tells us how much energy is being used per mile. Lower is better.

Again, an EV term rather than Tesla only, but you’ll see it used a lot in the Tesla community. It’s short for Regenerative Braking, and refers to the re-capture of kinetic energy by the battery when slowing down, or going down a steep hill. Regen is often the biggest thing new Tesla owners notice and have to adapt to. Once you do, there is no going back!

Central Processing Unit - the main chip in a computer responsible for processing data

Graphics Processing Unit - some computers contain a processor specifically made for rendering graphics

The Media Control Unit is the big touchscreen in the middle of the dashboard, and the computer that drives it. The car’s various radios, and all the entertainment and drive-related visualizations are routed through here. You may come across some numbers attached to MCU that specify the hardware version.

MCU1 refers to Tesla's first Media Control Unit hardware which was used in Model S and Model X vehicles until March 2018

This is Tesla's second general Media Control Unit hardware. It was used in Model S and Model X cars after March 2018. The Model 3 and Model Y started with MCU2 and later transitioned to MCU3 in late 2021. Vehicles with MCU1 can be upgraded to MCU2. MCU2 has the Intel Atom processor.

This is Tesla's third and latest MCU hardware. It contains AMD Ryzen's chip, making it much faster than MCU2. For the Model S and Model X it also features a dedicated GPU that will be used for high quality games that rival the PS5 and Xbox Series X. There is no official word from Tesla yet, but MCU2 does not appear to be upgradeable to MCU3.

Hardware 1 refers to Tesla's original hardware for Autopilot. It was supplied by MobileEye and was only available on the Model S and Model X.

Around October 2016 Tesla transitioned to their own hardware with version 2.0. This was also only available for the Model S and Model X.

Hardware 2.5 was available in the Model 3 and the Model S and Model X around July 2017.

Tesla eventually released hardware 3.0 in April 2019, which features much faster processors. Owners who bought the FSD package (not the subscription) and had hardware 2.5 are given a free upgrade to hardware 3.0.

The Electronic Control Unit is the hardware in a vehicle used to control various driving functions.

Embedded Multi Media Card is flash storage that is used to store certain information.

An Integrated Circuit, is a chip that is integrated onto a circuit board. This could could refer to the Instrument Cluster on a Model S or Model X.

Printed Circuit Board used in electronic systems.

Driver Assistance System, in Tesla's case this would be Autopilot

Autopilot is the term that allows Tesla's to perform some level of self-driving. All Teslas today include basic Autopilot that allows the car to use TACC (Traffic-Aware Cruise Control) and Autosteer.

Enhanced Autopilot is a package that is a subset of FSD. Tesla offered it for a number of years, but it no longer offers it.

Enhanced Autopilot included features such as TACC (Traffic-Aware Cruise Control), Autosteer, Smart Summon, Autopark, automatic lane changes and more. It does not include as much as the FSD package, which allows the car to also navigate on city streets.

Full Self-Driving. Refers to the package that currently, in beta form, allows Teslas to navigate many more streets and scenarios by itself (with an alert and engaged driver on standby). In Europe and Asia FSD is still limited, but cars with the FSD package are ready to go from a hardware perspective as soon as the regulations allow.

Traffic-Aware Cruise Control - All Teslas today compare standard with TACC.

These are the Tesla acronyms and abbreviations you’ll encounter most often. Which ones are new to you? Have you come across any others?

UI stands for User interface, also commonly referred to as GUI (graphical user interface). You'll often find this term when referring to the design of a piece of software.

UX is the User Experience of a piece of software.

OTA stands for Over-The-Air, referencing Tesla's ability to download car updates over Wi-Fi or in some cases using the vehicle's cellular data.

Daytime Running Lights are lights on your vehicle that remain on even during daylight.

The Instrument Cluster on a Model S or Model X. This term could also mean Integrated Circuit which is a chip that is integrated onto a circuit board.

A vehicle's Tire Pressure Monitoring System

The Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning system in a home or vehicle

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (for safety ratings)

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - The U.S. federal government agency that governs vehicle safety.

Formerly known as the Society of Automotive Engineers, it's a US-based association for developing standards for engineering professionals

GigaFactory - What Tesla calls their various factories, such as Giga Factory Texas

ICE refers to traditional gas and diesel-powered vehicles that contain an Internal Combustion Engine

Being ICEd refers to an EV charging spot being taken up by an ICE vehicle

Tesla's Service Advisors which are the main contact at Tesla Service

TSLA is Tesla's stock symbol but the term is often used around someone investing in Tesla as well

TSLAQ is pronounced "Tesla Q" and refers to individuals who publicly criticize Tesla and may be short-selling (the opposite of buying stock when profits are earned when the stock goes down) Tesla stock

FUD stands for Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt and is sometimes used when someone is spreading misinformation to cast fear

This is referring to the battery chemistry in the car’s high voltage pack, specifically the chemical symbols for Lithium (L), Iron (F) and Phosphate (P is actually for Phosphorus on its own, but PO₄³⁻ doesn’t have the same ring to it). Tesla started shifting some of its shorter-range cars (the SR MYs and M3s) to LFP in 2021, away from battery chemistry involving Nickel and Cobalt.

Even if you’re not a chemist, it’s still worth knowing which battery chemistry you have. It is recommended to keep LFP battery charge limit at 100%, unlike the previous Li-ion batteries that are stressed out if charged fully too often.

Staying with the high voltage battery, 4680 refers to the newer battery technology that is being phased in at Giga Berlin, Giga Texas and Giga Shanghai. These batteries offer efficiency, range and cost improvements over the previous, smaller batteries. The numbers come from the dimensions of each individual cell: 46 x 80mm.

Standard Range. For example, a M3SR refers to the Model 3 Standard Range model.

The Standard Range Plus variant has a larger battery than the Standard Range and some additional features.

Mid Range vehicle which was available for the Model 3 (discontinued)

Long Range model which includes a larger battery than other variants. For example, a M3LR refers to the Model 3 Long Range model.

Performance model. This could refer to the performance model of any Tesla vehicle.

The performance variant of the Model 3 dual motor

Performance Model 3. This term was used when Tesla offered the Model 3 with and without the additional performance hardware such as larger wheels and disc brakes and a spoiler. This model is commonly referred to as the P3D.

The performance Model 3 without all the features in the P3D+

The same as P3D

Simply referring to the Tesla Model Y

DM refers to a Dual Motor vehicle

All Wheel Drive - In a Tesla, this means that at least two motors are powering the vehicle. Some cars contain two rear motors and a single front motor, while all Model 3s and Model Ys will contain a single front and rear motor.

RWD refers to the car being a rear-wheel drive vehicle. In Teslas that means that there's a single motor in the back powering the car.

Alternatively, you might see a M3RWD (Model 3 Rear Wheel Drive).

Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (ICE/EV combo)

Right-hand drive, as used in Australia, England and Japan

Neural Network refers to AI and is a subset of Machine Learning (ML) that Tesla uses to develop Autopilot

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) is probing Tesla for its “phantom braking” issue, which has raised numerous concerns amongst drivers. The agency is requesting the automaker respond by June 20.

The NHTSA has received 758 reports on the phantom braking issue, according to Reuters. A report from the NHTSA back in February stated, “complainants report that the rapid deceleration can occur without warning, at random, and often repeatedly in a single drive cycle.”

“Phantom braking” is when Autopilot is engaged and the vehicle slows down suddenly. The issue is particularly concerning on freeways where there may be little to no time for other drivers to react safely. It has raised concern for the drivers because it’s unpredictable.

The issue has become worse since May 2021 when Tesla started producing some vehicles without radar. Vehicles without radar or those that have transitioned to Tesla Vision rely solely on cameras for Autosteer and TACC.

The phantom braking issues have been around for several years. The issues started when Teslas were having accidents with tractor trailers crossing in front of them. Additionally, it happens more frequently at underpasses or when there are shadows on the road, which can be mistaken for the side of a truck.

This probe into Tesla’s Autopilot system comes after numerous complaints from Tesla owners, and Tesla dismissing the complaints.

According to Reuters, a Model Y owner reported to the NHTSA that the vehicle slowed down from 80mph to 69mph in less than a second.

“The car braked hard and decelerated from 80 mph to 69 mph in less than a second,” the owner wrote. “The braking was so violent, my head snapped forward and I almost lost control of the car.”

In May 2021, Elon Musk stated that removing the radar sensor would solve the “phantom braking” issue.

We anticipate Tesla will respond and explain what the cause of the issue is. Depending on the NHTSA’s ideal solution, Tesla may need to take the phantom braking issue more seriously and focus on fixing or minimizing the sudden braking through an OTA update.

This could potentially be done by using the data that Tesla has already gathered from its fleet, identifying when and where phantom braking happens most frequently, and then allowing the software to dictate whether it should use the brakes.

Personally, I have noticed my Model 3 braking for road signs that flash orange above the interstate. For example, a sign may have orange flashing lights to indicate that ice may be on the bridge. I’ve also noticed this when traffic lights are controlling the flow into an interstate from the on ramp in California. These instances, however, are more predictable and not as abrupt or sudden.

A new feature recently discovered in Tesla’s 2022.16 update hints that vehicles may use brakes when regenerative braking is limited or unavailable. This will help maintain a consistent experience when driving, especially since the feature is so highly used across Tesla drivers.

View the release notes for the upcoming version 2022.16.1.1.

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