Model Y (2025 and newer): Touchscreen, App & Media

The glovebox has one USB-A port with a USB flash drive fitted; Tesla recommends it for Sentry Mode and Dashcam, and it also plays audio. The center console has one USB-C port and two more sit below the rear cabin vents; these only charge devices. Tesla advises against USB hubs, which can stop devices charging or being recognized, and recommends USB 3.0-compliant cables. Two front console pads charge phones wirelessly at up to 15W.

Where equipped, the rear touchscreen gives rear passengers climate controls such as power, fan speed and air direction, plus seat controls, media, video, games, navigation and settings, including pairing up to two sets of Bluetooth headphones, brightness and screen cleaning. To lock it, we touch Controls > Display > Lock Rear Display on the front touchscreen. From the front, the rear screen remote control app in the bottom bar also controls the rear screen.

1) Stop and shift into Park. 2) Press and hold both scroll buttons on the steering wheel until the touchscreen turns black; we do not need to press the brake. 3) Wait about 30 seconds for it to restart. If it is still unresponsive after a few minutes, we power cycle the car if possible. Tesla warns to restart only when parked, because the car status, safety warnings and backup camera are not shown during the restart.

Where equipped, the built-in transceiver runs up to three devices such as garage doors or gates. 1) Park with the front bumper facing the device. 2) Touch the transceiver icon at the top of Controls and name the device. 3) Choose Standard Mode for remote-operated devices, or D-Mode for receivers with a Learn button. 4) Touch Start, follow the prompts, then Save and test. Tesla warns not to use it with doors lacking safety stop and reverse.

We insert a USB flash drive formatted as exFAT (NTFS is not supported), then touch Media Player > USB and choose a folder. On some cars built after about November 1, 2021, the center console USB ports only charge, so we use the glovebox USB port. Only flash drives are recognized; other devices, such as phones, connect over Bluetooth instead and play through the Phone source in Media Player.

We fully press the microphone button on the right side of the steering wheel, wait for the chime and speak. Examples: navigate to a place, show nearby Superchargers, call or text a contact (with a phone connected over Bluetooth), play a song, lock the doors, open the glovebox, start charging, make it warmer, turn on the wipers or show the Owner's Manual. Some commands, such as Sentry Mode and Pet Mode, work only in Park.

With Tesla app version 4.3.1 or later, we go to Security > Add Driver from the vehicle home screen and follow the steps. The added driver can use an existing Tesla Account or create one, and gets all app features except buying upgrades. To remove a driver, we use Security > Manage Drivers. For the app to reach the car at all, Controls > Safety > Allow Mobile Access must be on.

1) Sit in Model Y with the touchscreen on. 2) Unlock the phone and turn on Bluetooth. 3) Touch Controls > Bluetooth to scan. 4) Touch Connect next to the phone. 5) Check that the numbers match, then confirm on the phone and allow access to contacts, calendar and media if asked. We can pair up to ten phones, and Model Y connects to the Priority Device or the last phone used.

Yes. Model Y can join a Wi-Fi network or a mobile hotspot. We touch Controls > Wi-Fi, pick or add the network, enter the password and touch Confirm. Saved networks reconnect automatically when in range. A hotspot may involve carrier fees, and selecting Remain Connected in Drive keeps it connected while driving. Networks that need a web login are not supported. Tesla recommends staying on Wi-Fi when possible for faster software and map updates.

With Controls > Navigation > Trip Planner on, where available, Model Y adds Supercharger stops when needed to reach our destination, aiming for the least total driving and charging time. The route list shows each stop, suggested charging time and estimated energy on arrival. It preconditions the battery on the way to a Supercharger to cut charging time, warns if there is not enough energy for a round trip, and tries to reroute around Supercharger outages.

We touch Controls > Navigation and turn on the options we want. Avoid Tolls routes around tolls where possible, Avoid Highways shows a route without highways, and Avoid Ferries routes around ferries. The same menu also has Online Routing, which reroutes around heavy traffic when it saves enough time. Tesla notes that weather, buildings and other devices can affect how accurately the car's location shows on the map.

We can play with the steering wheel buttons, a Bluetooth controller or a USB controller. Bluetooth Classic controllers pair the same way as a phone, connect automatically afterwards and work with select games. Model Y connects two Bluetooth devices at once, such as two controllers or one phone and one controller. On cars built after about November 1, 2021, USB controllers go in the glovebox USB port, because the center console ports only charge.

Theater streams video services while parked, over Wi-Fi or a cellular signal with Tesla's upgraded connectivity; shifting out of Park pauses the video. Arcade has games we play with the steering wheel buttons or a controller. Toybox includes Boombox, Light Show, Light Sync, Rainbow Road, Sketchpad, TRAX, Mars, Romance, Photobooth and Halloween Mode. Options vary by region, build date and configuration. Tesla warns these features are for use only when parked.

Updates download automatically over Wi-Fi. When one is ready, a clock icon appears at the top of the touchscreen; we touch it and choose Install Now or set a time, or use Controls > Software. Model Y must be in Park; some updates take about 30 minutes or longer. Updates will not install with Keep Climate On, Pet Mode or Camp Mode on. Tesla warns not to use the car during installation, as some safety systems may not work.

1) Touch and hold any app or control in My Apps; if the area is empty, touch the App Launcher first. 2) Drag an app or control from the app tray onto My Apps in the bottom bar. Seat heaters go next to the temperature instead. When My Apps is full, adding one removes the rightmost app. To remove an app, we touch and hold it, then touch its X. Tesla advises against adjusting touchscreen settings while driving.

At select busy Supercharger sites, the waitlist is an honor-system queue. When we navigate there, Model Y joins it automatically as we approach; we can also join from the touchscreen notification or the Tesla app. Order depends on when we joined. When our turn comes, we get a notification and have 3 minutes to plug in, with an option to add 30 seconds. It needs car software 2026.14 or later and Tesla app 4.56.5 or later.

Release notes appear on the touchscreen after an update finishes, and we can open them any time in Controls > Software > Release Notes. Tesla strongly recommends reading all of them, because they may contain important safety information. In the same menu, we can set the software update preference to Standard for fewer, later releases or Advanced for earlier releases, and turn on Automatically Install Updates.