Tesla’s latest update lets drivers ‘fart instead of honk’

Every year during the holidays, Tesla releases an update for their car. This time they have added a feature known as Boombox. The feature allows the user of the car to use other sounds instead of the traditional honking sound. There are many sounds available such as applause, ‘tada’, goat baaing, someone speaking posh and the fart sound. You can even record your own sounds and upload it to the car and then it will play it whenever you honk. One important thing to note is that feature is available only to Tesla’s that have in-built speakers. However, these sounds are not available when you are on a move, you must be stationary and in ‘park’ to listen to these sounds. This feature was released in the firmware version 2020.48.26.

The speakers were added to the car because as per National Highway Traffic Safety Administration electric vehicles are required to generate some kind of noise to alert the pedestrians. So, every electric vehicle that is launched now comes with some kind of noise that is played to alert the pedestrians about the presence of the vehicle. Tesla introduced the speakers in their vehicles that were manufactured after September 1, 2019. The fart sounds in Tesla are not new, they have been in the vehicles for a quite some time now. Earlier, the users were able to play them in the cabin. However, now they are on the outside and the pedestrians can also hear it.

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With the Boombox feature, the Tesla owners can also play the sound of an ice cream truck. This would make your neighbours think that an ice cream truck is coming. Tesla has also introduced three new games for the owners. There is The Battle of Polytopia, Cat Quest and Solitaire. All of which can be played while the vehicle is parked. These are all parts of the Tesla Arcade which already had a few games like Atari, Pong, each Buggy Racing 2 and Mario Kart. The user can use the steering wheel and the brake pedals to control their avatar while playing the driving games while the acceleration is automatic.

Currently, Tesla is working on entering the Indian market. The EV giant is expected to hit the Indian market sometime in 2021. The Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Nitin Gadkari, has already confirmed Tesla will be entering the Indian market about which you can read more by clicking here. Most likely Tesla will first import their vehicles as a CBU or completely built unit. This would mean that Tesla will cost a significant amount of money. However, if Tesla follows the 2,500 limited car import rule, then they could price their vehicle competitively.

This is the same technique that Volkswagen and Skoda used for their T-Roc and Karoq. Tesla will be launching its most affordable vehicle in India first which is the Model 3. Tesla opened the bookings for the Model 3 in India a few years back. The booking amount was set at $ 1,000. So, people who booked the Tesla should get their Model 3s first. If launched Tesla Model 3 could be priced from Rs. 55-60 lakhs. Currently, there is not much information available about how Tesla would be working in India. We would just have to wait for the finer details that should be revealed soon.

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