As Christmas is approaching, Tesla (TSLA) shared the features and improvements it’s bringing in this year’s Holiday Season software update.
Holiday Updates are a tradition set by the automaker. Every year, before the Christmas holidays, Tesla releases a bundle of new features and also brings significant improvements to the existing ones. To cherish the holidays, Tesla mostly focuses on the infotainment features in this anticipated yearly feature.
In the 2025 Holiday Update (2025.44.25.1), Tesla is bringing some interesting new fun and useful stuff that will keep its customers engaged through the end-of-year holidays (release notes below).
The firmware version given to the 2025 Holiday Update by the tech & AI-based automaker is 2025.44.25.1. This is a subversion point release of the main 2025.44 branch that was released late last month with limited features.
As of this writing, Tesla hasn’t started the wide rollout of the 2025.44.25.1 Holiday Update.
In the Holiday Season spirit, as we can see in the screenshot above, Tesla has reimagined the car’s on-screen visualization into a Santa Claus sled, Christmas trees, and the reindeer. Interestingly, if you look closely, Tesla’s Santa Claus is the company’s Optimus humanoid robot.
This new visualization can be activated using the Santa Mode (refer to release notes below). There have been similar Santa Mode Tesla vehicle renderings in the past, but this year, Tesla has featured Optimus as the legendary and jolly Santa Claus.
Another fun feature added in the 2025 Holiday Update is that you can customize the on-screen avatar of your vehicle with several new colors and patterns. This option also allows you to customize your license plate shown on the screen.
Grok AI assistant in Tesla vehicles is also improved in this year’s Holiday Update (2025.44.25.1). Now, Grok can issue navigation commands and provide audio information to the driver about the route and the destination.
Tesla has also improved the Dog Mode feature in the 2025 Holiday Update. Tesla owners with an iPhone can now view the live activity of their dog left behind in their vehicle. Dog Mode also keeps a comfortable temperature for the pet inside the car.
The Dashcam Viewer improvement introduced in the previous 2025.44 update has now been distributed across the entire lineup and globally in the 2025.44.25.1 Holiday Update.
Talking about useful features, Tesla has now updated the Supercharger view to 3D in the 2025 Holiday Update. This bird’s-eye view lets a Tesla vehicle user see the occupied and empty Supercharger in advance before arriving at the charging site.
Other features include Phone Left Behind Warning, Charge Limit per Location, SpaceX ISS Docking Simulator, Light Show update, and more (see release notes below).
Tesla Holiday Update (2025.44.25.1) Official Release Notes
Grok with Navigation Commands (Beta)
Grok can now add & edit navigation destinations, becoming your personal guide.
To use Navigation Command, set Grok’s personality to Assistant
Tesla Photobooth
Turn your car into a photobooth! Take selfies from inside your Tesla & give yourself a makeover with fun filters, stickers, and emojis. Share with others right from the Tesla app.
Go to Toybox > Photobooth
Dog Mode Live Activity
When Dog Mode is active, you’ll see a Live Activity on your iPhone featuring periodic snapshots of your vehicle’s cabin along with live updates on temperature, battery & climate conditions.
Dashcam Viewer Update
Dashcam clips now include additional details such as speed, steering wheel angle & self-driving state.
Santa Mode
Santa Mode now adds festive snowmen, trees, a lock chime & snow effects for a 3D visual treat.
To enable Santa Mode, go to Toybox > Santa
Light Show Update
New Light Show – Jingle Rush.
Play instantly or schedule it up to 10 minutes in advance, either on a single vehicle or synced with friends. You can also control interior lighting, add display color effects & create longer custom shows.
Custom Wraps and License Plates
Personalize your Tesla avatar with window tints, custom wraps & license plates. Use one of many preloaded designs or create and upload your own using a USB flash drive to make your vehicle unique.
To play with this feature, go to Toybox > Paint Shop
SpaceX ISS Docking Simulator
Become an astronaut and prove your skills by docking with the International Space Station. Control & guide the spacecraft in this 3D docking simulator game using a set of controls based on actual interfaces used by NASA astronauts.
To play, go to Arcade > SpaceX ISS Docking Simulator
Navigation Improvements
Reorder your navigation favorites & set Home or Work by dropping a pin anywhere on the map.
You can also view suggested destinations based on your recent trips and habits while parked.
Supercharger Site Map
You can now see a 3D view of select Tesla Superchargers by tapping “View Site Map”. When navigating to a pilot location, the site layout and live occupancy (Available / Occupied / Down) will be displayed upon arrival.
Automatic HOV Lanes Routing
Navigation now includes an option to use high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) carpool lanes. Your route will automatically select the carpool lane when eligible, based on time, location, passenger count & road restrictions.
To enable, go to Controls > Navigation > Use HOV Lanes
Phone Left Behind Chime
Your vehicle will chime a few seconds after the doors close if a phone key is inside the cabin or a phone is left on the wireless charger and no occupants are detected. Phone key detection requires UWB-supported devices.
To enable this feature, go to Controls > Locks > Phone Left Behind Chime
Charge Limit per Location
You can now save a charge limit for your current location while parked & it will be applied automatically next time you charge there.
Got to Controls > Charging
Other improvements
- Enable or disable wireless phone charging pads in Controls > Charging (S3XY) or Controls > Outlets & Mods (Cybertruck)
- Add Spotify tracks to your queue right from the search screen & scroll through large Spotify playlists, albums, podcasts, audiobooks & your library seamlessly, without paging
- Take the vibes up another level with rainbow colors during Rave Cave. Accent lights color will change along with the beats of your music. App Launcher > Toybox > Light Sync
- Lock Sound now includes Light Cycle from Tron Mode. Toybox > Boombox > Lock Sound
*Feature availability subject to vehicle hardware & region
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Related Tesla Software Updates News
- Tesla rolls out the 2025 Holiday Update (2025.44.25.1), new features and release notes
- Tesla update 2025.44 goes wide with Radio Traffic Announcements, dashcam tweaks, preps for Holiday Update (Release Notes)
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