Multiple Tesla owners of older Tesla Model S and Model X with the legacy infotainment screen (MCU1) are reporting that they have now got the option to request FSD Beta download for their cars.
The “Request Full Self-Driving Beta” option appears on these older Tesla Model S and Model X vehicles after receiving the software update version 2022.8.10.8.
Tesla Model S and Model X produced before March 2018 have the older graphics processing chip (GPU/APU) and the vertical screen in these cars has also become a legacy. This old graphics processor and the screen are collectively called MCU1 (Media Control Unit 1).
Because of the slower speed and limited processing ability, MCU1 displays are not able to display the new FSD Beta driving visualizations. But a Tesla infotainment system (MCU) and the Autopilot Full Self-Driving computer are two systems in a Tesla car completely independent of each other.
So, if a Tesla owner bought the Full Self-Driving package back in the day when it was only $2K, he/she is eligible for a free FSD Computer (HW3) upgrade.
After replacing the cameras and the HW3 FSD supercomputer, the MCU1 cars are fully capable of running Tesla Full Self-Driving Beta. These old vehicles will just not be able to display the graphics at all or at least will not be able to match the speed of the visualizations.
However, Tesla started offering a hardware upgrade from MCU1 to MCU2 with a newer and faster screen with a better graphics processor back in 2020. But the price Tesla set for this upgrade was a hefty $2,500 but it’s not necessary to run Full Self-Driving on an old Tesla Model S/X.
The ability to download, install, and even test Tesla’s FSD Beta semi-autonomous driving system is very exciting for older Tesla Model S/X owners who purchased the Full Self-Driving option years ago. A Tesla owner of an old 2017 Tesla Model S who bought FSD back in the day wrote on Reddit:
Yep. I actually bought FSD back when it was $2k on my 2017 Model S. But I had MCU1. The beta was then released and no MCU1 received it. I was then under the assumption MCU2 was required for FSD which if that was the case, since I paid for FSD, the MCU2 upgrade should have been given for free to me and anyone else in my situation. For several years I couldn’t get an answer until they told me this. Tesla, when the FSD Beta was originally released, didn’t want anyone without the visuals (MCU2) to have the beta probably because of the data that was being collected at the time (My guess).
u/weeooohhhh via the TeslaMotors subreddit
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