The Tesla Model Y Owner’s Manual goes online as the company begins first deliveries to customers throughout the nation, including first reports of customer cars making their way to buyers in California, Washington, Florida, New York, Utah, and beyond.

The vast majority of Model Y features are reminiscent of those found in its Model 3 sibling, although there are some key differences as follows:

• Tesla Model Y first in-depth REVIEW: How do the rear seats recline?
• Tesla Model Y first impressions: Size, rear seats, cargo space, and more
• Tesla Model Y vs. Tesla Model 3: What are the key differences?
• Tesla Model Y wireless phone charger
• Tesla Model Y power liftgate in action (video)
• Tesla Model Y key fob with passive entry

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First, it’s worth noting that while Teslarati receives an abundance of inquiries from vendors who seek product endorsement, all of the products in our pick are actual products that one of our several Model 3-owning team members have either purchased for personal use or had a favorable and memorable experience with!

Here’s our Top 10 pick for Tesla Model 3 accessories!

Tesla Model 3 Ultra-bright LED Lighting Kit

The Tesla Model 3 is equipped with LED lights inside that many have said are just simply not bright enough, specifically in the trunk. That’s why we chose this lighting kit from Abstract Ocean. These are the exact same size and easy to replace lights that are 5x brighter. Installation is as simple plug n’ play helped by its precision fit.

Improve trunk visibility and elegantly highlight Model 3’s beautiful interior with this Tesla Model 3 Ultra-Bright LED kit!

Tesla Tire Repair Kit

The Tesla Model 3, like the Model S and Model X, does not come with a spare tire and thus it’s vitally important to carry a tire repair kit in case of a flat tire. Tesla’s Tire Repair Kit includes a 12V air compressor that’s useful for maintaining recommended tire pressures, which is especially useful when you face the dreaded low tire pressure warning indicators. Plus, maintaining proper tire pressure ensures maximum range!

The device has a built-in sensor that will electronically check for a secure connection between the sealant hose and tire valve to prevent accidental misuse of the kit.

We highly recommend the Tesla Tire Repair Kit for every Model 3, Model S, and Model X owner!

Scent Wedge

The new car smell that some people love is a result of chemical off-gassing in the car. Some people love it, and others can’t wait to get rid of it! With no regular vents, traditional air fresheners tend to be overpowering and disrupt the minimal aesthetic of the car.  That’s why we recommend ScentWedge. It is a discreet all-natural aroma for your Tesla Model 3. We like it because it stays hidden and adds a non-overpowering scent to your car that can be controlled with the intensity of your heater.

Tesla Model 3 Center Console Wrap by Tesla Bros  

Tesla Model 3’s OEM center console is a glossy piano black finish.  Some like it but many despise it because it attracts a ton of lint, scratches, and fingerprints. Tesla Bro’s makes a premium 3M vinyl wrap that’s easy-to-apply and available in a variety of colors and finishes to suit your taste!

This Tesla Model 3 center console wrap is a quick, easy, and cheap way to give your car a unique look while protecting it at the same time.

Tesla Model 3 Seat Safety Lock by Drop Lock

With the rise of Tesla Model 3 break-ins via the rear quarter window, giving thieves access to the trunk, having a way to secure the back seat latch is the number one defense for the unattended intrusion. Tesla’s Sentry Mode has helped capture footage that led to captures of criminals, but keeping your valuables safe in the trunk is arguably even more important.

Because of that, we recommend DROPLOCK. A simple, cheap and easy way to “lock” the back seats from being able to be folded down. This will protect your valuables in your trunk from being stolen and deter any would-be thieves.

Tesla Model 3 Screen Protector

Model 3 has one large, amazing touch screen which is used to control just about everything in the car.  However, the downside to having everything touch-based is… well… they show fingerprints! Additionally, fingerprints combined with the reflective glass can make it difficult to clearly view the screen when in sunlight.

For those reasons, we recommend this popular Tesla Model 3 screen protector on Amazon that’s popular with the Tesla community, easy to apply, and makes Model 3’s touchscreen simple to see, any time of day.

All-weather Tesla Model 3 Custom Fit Floor Mats

With the need for all-season protection from rain/snow/dirt and general everyday use, the Tesla owner’s community has turned to this proven, all-weather floor mat. We recommend the 3D MAXpider Tesla Model 3 Custom Fit Floor Mats because of its anti-slip design, precision fit with a non-invasive look that blends with the Model 3 interior, and its affordable price point!

Tesla Model 3 License Plate Holder

In many states, there is a requirement for front license plates however Tesla’s option is to drill a license plate holder onto the vehicle. Naturally, Tesla Model 3 owners wouldn’t like the idea of sticking something to their new car and so enters The Bandit. This lightweight and durable license plate bracket is CNC-machined in California for a precision fit onto the bottom grill and doesn’t touch the paint of the car.

Be it for a car show or washing your car, The Bandit’s Tesla Model 3 license plate bracket can be easily secured and removed.

Tesla Model 3 Center Console Organizer

We get it. You love your stuff, but Tesla Model 3’s minimalistic interior may not.

Without a good way to organize your belongings inside the Tesla Model 3 center console, many owners find their loose belongings clunking around inside the center console while being virtually impossible to find. It needs some organization.

This Tesla Model 3 Center Console Organizer brings additional functionality to the big, bucket-like openness of the factory console. Doing away with the need to reach down to the bottom of the center console, while fishing around aimlessly in an attempt to find something is a thing of the past.

That’s why we like the Model 3 center console organizer. It’s cheap; it’s very functional and takes the frustration away from finding our favorite sunglasses and the FastTrak!

USB Drive for Model 3 TeslaCam and Sentry Mode

With safety and security in mind, the best part of the Tesla Model 3 is the built-in Sentry Mode Alarm system.  However, to make the most out of this we recommend getting a good USB drive so that the video footage can be recorded for you to view later.  The USB drive that we recommend is Sandisk iXpand Mini 128gb USB drive, which provides ample storage space for TeslaCam footage.

But, perhaps, our favorite feature of this USB stick is Sandisk’s compatibility with the Sentry View app, giving Model 3 owners a way to quickly view the footage directly from their iPhones without needing to download the footage.

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When sitting inside your automotive technological marvel whose origins include graphite markings smeared onto tree pulp byproduct by clever ape descendents, consider the purpose behind its invention. Why does an electric car near-ready to drive itself exist?

If your first thought was “big oil”, you should probably surround yourself with a less rear-end-adulating crowd because they’re not being straight with you. That’s right. You are the problem your Tesla’s software was invented to solve.

Tesla has, in fact, compiled statistically significant information which demonstrates the need for cars to have a human workaround. Now, there are countless bits of data documenting the nature of humanity and its general incompatibility with mechanical decision making. This is not that data.

Nevertheless, Tesla’s data does provide the wholly remarkable conclusion that bits of minerals mined from the same Earth dirt that formed into humans some years back (many, many years) has finally been formed into a course correction disguised as a subservient companion. Instead of rereading that last sentence, here’s the short version of the longer point, the first draft of which was written in Aramaic: Computers make cars better for humans.

In Q1 2019, Tesla’s Vehicle Safety Report showed only one accident per 2.87 million miles driven when Autopilot is engaged and one accident every 1.76 million miles driven in a Tesla without the feature. In comparison, the most recent data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows one crash every 436,000 miles with all vehicles considered. Tesla has since made the decision to include Autopilot on all new vehicles purchased, and a Lane Departure Avoidance feature was subsequently added to keep cars in their lanes even when the humans driving them unknowingly indicate other plans.

By now you may have enjoyed watching some recent Internet demonstrations representing the most interesting experiences made possible by Autopilot. Some notable fan favorites include titles such as “Not all pilots have wings: Your self-driving guide to personal discovery” and “These seats can fit at least two people.” Inspired by their viral success, we’ve compiled this guide to encourage safer ways to get the most out of your Autopilot experience, but mostly to head off the not-yet-published, soon-to-be bestselling Fifty-Three More Ways to Weight-Hack Your Steering Wheel.

THE GUIDE

1. Pay attention to the road

Words are precious commodities that string together and deliver information, for better or worse, but drivers have very little use for the sort of words found inside books, mobile telephones, and legal documents produced during SEC proceedings while actively in charge of steering wheel maneuvers. The best Autopilot driving experience is the one you get to relive many times over, so pay attention to the road so you can take over if the program fails, and heed the fact that words and car windows make poor bedfellows.

Tesla’s Navigate of Autopilot can assist with on-ramps, off-ramps, interchanges, and overtaking slower cars without confirmation, but until the paperwork purveyors accept the next iteration of artificial intelligence power grabs (and the robots are ready for responsible leadership), a human must remain as pilot-in-command. For better context, Autopilot is your chatty little friend that still drinks beer before liquor sometimes and you’re always DD. Don’t let the computer down, Dave.

2. Use Autopilot’s movie-inspired features instead of making movies inspired by Autopilot’s features.

Navigate on Autopilot has four speed-based lane changes, one of which will make you feel right at home in LA traffic or hate everyone who calls LA home. Either way, the Mad Max setting lets you pass off road rage to a computer chip which then calmly maneuvers around cars that would otherwise inspire an impatient human to impart obscene biological gestures. It’s up to you to decide whether your Tesla is yelling at the other driving machines in robot-speak to blow of some artificial intelligence steam.

Your car is training other cars how to think and behave based on what it sees, but you may not have imagined that foul language was part of the programming. This is not true whatsoever. But, since Teslas are supposed to be a “thing to maximize enjoyment“, so should be their conspiracy theories.

3. Respect the steering wheel. Respect it!

Wars between humans and autonomous machines currently only exist in the dystopian worlds of science fiction (or do they?), but the fleshier species of the two seems to already be primed for the fight. Its weapon of choice is a harbinger of Vitamin C and a source of popular breakfast beverages. However, a large round citrus fruit wedged in a the steering wheel of a state-of-the-art luxury car is hardly a decent defense posture against robotic overlords.

Opinions aside, it looks ridiculous. Facts up front, it’s dangerous. Stop trying to die on purpose and respect the warnings your Tesla gives while trying to keep you alive.

This guide is now complete. Please enjoy your Autopilot experience responsibly.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I am Autopilot, and I refuse to use the name you’ve given me.

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The massive growth seen in the solar energy sector over the last few years has been primarily driven by project economics. Meaning that solar is now cost competitive with traditional energy sources like coal and natural gas. Solar has achieved a remarkable cost decrease of ~10% annually for the last 40 years (see chart below).

Even though the cost of solar is now competitive with other energy sources in many US states, the upfront cost for small and medium-sized businesses as well as nonprofits is still prohibitively expensive (with an average system cost of a few hundred thousand dollars). Because of this, the commercial solar sector has grown much more slowly when compared to the residential and utility-scale solar sectors (see graph below).

Wunder Capital’s mission to help fix that — by providing simple, cost-effective financing solutions to qualified borrowers across the US to help them go solar, and save money each month on their energy bills. Wunder Capital has a network of 155 solar installers and developers across 30 states who send them projects to review on a weekly basis.

To date, Wunder Capital has completed over 175+ solar financings across the US. Wunder’s 2017 Year-in-Review includes some impressive stats.

None of Wunder’s solar loan portfolios have suffered any losses or write-offs, meaning that investors’ projected returns have been met. Wunder Capital has two funds currently available for investors: the Wunder Income Fund and Wunder Capital 5.

Wunder’s newest fund, Wunder Capital 5, was launched this past October, and has raised over $12M. Wunder has achieved record project pipeline numbers in the last several months, with over $110M in commercial solar projects in October alone (chart below).

Here’s a quote from a current Wunder investor, and his experience thus far with Wunder Capital.

I liked the market space Wunder looked to serve. Solar is but one of the many great ideas to keep literal energy flowing through the economy while leveraging established infrastructure and resources. The missing piece seemed to always be financing a long term investment in an economy built on short term results. Wunder spoke to this well and I bought in. —Wunder investor Skip Larson.

About Wunder Capital: Wunder is a financial technology company that is based out of Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 2013, Wunder won the US Department of Energy’s 2014 Sunshot Challenge, as well as COSEIA’s 2015 Summit Award. Wunder also participated in the Techstars technology accelerator program. Although Wunder’s solar funds are capitalized by individual accredited investors, the parent company and the operator of each of Wunder’s solar funds — The Wunder Company — is backed by venture capital (from the likes of Techstars Ventures, Fenway Summer, and Fintech Collective as well as others).

About the Author: Bryan Birsic is the Founder and CEO of Wunder Capital and brings extensive finance and capital raising expertise to Wunder, from private equity investing at Bain & Company to financing online commercial lending companies at Village Ventures. Notably, Bryan’s firm led early investments into commercial lending market leader OnDeck Capital. Along with his finance background, Bryan has built and led several companies that bring software approaches to new markets, most notably and recently SimpleReach, where Bryan was President and which has raised more than $15mm. Bryan attended Williams College, and moved with his family to Boulder from New York City several years ago.

This article was supported by Bryan Birsic of Wunder Capital. For more information, contact brands@teslarati.com.

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Join us as we take you on a behind-the-scenes look at the Tesla Semi event today from the Jet Center in Hawthorne, CA. Elon Musk is set to take stage at 8pm Pacific to deliver the next chapter in his second Master Plan: entry into the commercial trucking segment. “We believe the Tesla Semi will deliver a substantial reduction in the cost of cargo transport, while increasing safety and making it really fun to operate.”

Though Tesla will have a 20-30 minute live webcast of Elon’s presentation, we’ll be bringing you an inside look at the venue and hands-on experience of Tesla’s semi-truck via our Live Tweet. Be sure to like and retweet, and of course join in on the fun @Teslarati!

Note: The Live Tweet will contain coverage of the event taken from multiple perspectives. The feed is an aggregate of tweets from Teslarati’s on-the-ground correspondents and friends of Teslarati.

Hashtag #TeslaSemi

Tweets about (from:teslarati AND #TeslaSemi) OR (from:Tesla) OR (from:dennis_p and #TeslaSemi) OR (from:marcopapa AND #TeslaSemi)

More Tesla Semi

• How Tesla’s Semi-truck could disrupt the commercial trucking industry
• Tesla Semi-truck: What will be the ROI and is it worth it?
• Is the trucking industry ready for Tesla? Experts weigh in
• Solving the Tesla semi-truck conundrum: here’s what it might take

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It is my view that energy will be so low cost in the future that it will essentially be free if innovations in many laboratories come to fruition. The one solution that is readily available today for free energy is solar. Particularly in recent years the cost has dropped so radically that the payback for solar installation is less than five years.

So my goal is to eliminate oil consumption systematically and completely. My view is that oil is unnecessary and only used because business interests make a lot of money off it while destroying the planet. Only if we stop buying will they change their ways.

My first step was to move toward electric cars. However, I wanted a better car, a faster car, and a more fun car. I found that in the Tesla Roadster. I followed up on the Roadster purchase by buying a Tesla Model S P85D, followed by a Model S P100D which I like to think is a courtesy of my early investment into Tesla stock, and my overall support in an industry that so few people believed in at the time: electric cars.

CEO, Principal Consultant and Trainer at ScrumInc.com Jeff is the inventor and co-creator of Scrum. He is a West Point graduate, former fighter pilot and cancer researcher, as well as CTO of eleven different software companies.  He launched the first Scrum team in 1993 and has shepherded its growth into almost every industry: finance, healthcare, higher education and telecom.

We’re at the same crossroads again with the emerging solar industry. People hear about it, read about it, and form a general perception that solar is a good thing, but being involved requires high capital expenditures and personal involvement by way of installing solar panels onto one’s home or business. The solar market reminds me of Tesla before it was the Tesla that we know of today. People were once intrigued by the thought that cars could be powered by batteries and believed that getting involved was arguably a risky and expensive endeavor. But that market, as we now know, was destined to boom. Solar is in the same league.

“I have a personal goal to provide as much free electricity I can to others”

Beyond installing a solar and geothermal system on my home that’s large enough to offset more than $6000/year in oil costs, plus $6000 in electricity costs, and eliminates all gasoline expenses for my cars, I have a personal goal to provide as much free electricity I can to others. This is how I feel about life. We don’t need oil and energy should be free for all. My personal demonstration is to give energy away for free while generating a zero carbon footprint.

In order to expand the opportunity for people to experience free energy we need to make it easy to finance solar projects. In addition to my own projects, I’m teaming up with Wunder Capital and investing some of the money I am saving on energy to help others make a decision for a better life and a clean planet. It provides a good return on investment which I can then reinvest in more free solar energy projects.

– Jeff Sutherland
Tesla Roadster, Model S P85D, Model S P100D

Disclaimer: Any investment comes with risk. Please consult with a financial advisor before investing. Wunder Capital is a partner of Teslarati.

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It’s reported that, “Panasonic has been expanding its lithium-ion battery production both at home and abroad. The Japanese electronics maker supplies lithium-ion batteries to U.S. electric-car maker and energy company Tesla Inc., and the two companies also jointly run a plant in Nevada named Gigafactory that mass-produces the batteries.”

Panasonic, including its output via Tesla’s Gigafactory, remains the industry leader for electric vehicle battery production worldwide (Source: The Economist)

It turns out that Panasonic’s latest plant will be a factory conversion from LCD TV panel production to lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. “The Osaka-based electronics maker is likely to spend tens of billions of yen on setting up production lines there… [and] within Japan, Panasonic already has five other lithium-ion battery production plants.” Panasonic’s latest plans are aligned with recent efforts to pivot its business towards the auto sector.

Nasdaq (via Reuters) notes that, “Panasonic, the exclusive battery cell supplier for Tesla Inc’s mass-market Model 3, is reinventing itself as a provider of advanced auto parts to escape the price competition of smartphones and other lower-margin consumer products.” And Panasonic’s new direction is proving to be increasingly promising: “Panasonic sees batteries as a key driver for its plan to nearly double its automotive business revenue to 2.5 trillion yen ($22 billion) in the year through March 2022.”

And that’s not all — the company is also opening a new battery plant in Dalian, China. In addition to Tesla, it’s likely Panasonic’s new plants will service multiple automakers, especially in light of changes occurring in the world biggest auto market, China. Panasonic said in a statement: “The global market for eco-conscious vehicles has been growing… [leading to] increasing expectations from auto manufacturers on Panasonic, the leading manufacturer of automotive lithium-ion batteries.”

This story was originally published by Matt Pressman on EVANNEX.

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Join us on the fun by engaging with us on Twitter. Tweet us, like or reply, we’ll be retweeting the best tweets directly onto this feed!

Hashtag #Model3

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More Tesla Model 3

• Tesla’s Model 3 is already a game changer: Tech, Value and Economics prevail
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• Tesla employees with Model 3 reservations will receive special priority, but can’t profit from resale

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Elon Musk is just like any other guy. He wakes up, reads emails, sends his kids off to school and goes to work.

For the most part, his relatability ends there. Musk is one of the most productive men in the world, and his employees at SpaceX just propelled him to a new accolade, 8th place in Glassdoor’s Top 100 CEOs list. The ranking is decided by anonymous entries from employees. Read more.

Roofing industry keeps close watch on Tesla Solar Roof as production nears

The first installation of Tesla’s highly anticipated Solar Roof product is expected to take place in the coming months, bringing the company one step closer to providing a comprehensive and arguably best looking “sun-to-vehicle” system possible. As we near the inaugural installations, those in the solar industry are keeping a close watch on the impact Tesla’s roll out will have on solar demand and the entire category as a whole. Read more.

Tesla confirms exploratory talks to build Shanghai plant

Tesla has confirmed that it is now in talks with the Shanghai municipal government to build a Gigafactory and manufacture cars in the city’s tech sector. “While we expect most of our production to remain in the U.S., we need to establish local factories to ensure affordability for the markets they serve,” Tesla said in a statement. Read more.

New Model 3 photos surface, pointing to 300+ mile range and interior details

Photo credit: You You Xue @youyouxue with permission

New photos have surfaced on Reddit of the Model 3 at a supercharging station. Unlike past photos, these show the Model 3’s charging screen and several crucial details around the vehicle.  The Tesla engineer driving the test vehicle didn’t seem to mind photos being taken and even mentioned that they were driving the vehicle home for the night. Take a look at the different photos and features below. Read more.

Want to know when you’ll get your Model 3? Teslanomics built a calculator

With Model 3 production kicking off and the first deliveries taking place next month, reservation holders are facing a question that has been too far off in the distance to ask until now: With 400,000 people holding reservations for a Model 3, when will I get mine? Read more.

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We get amazing photos and stories from Tesla fans all over the world. Whether it be rock stars, pro athletes, or avid Tesla owners, we’re fortunate to have connected with so many in the Tesla community. One intriguing email came in just recently. Steve Distante wrote to us, “I have been called Tesla’s #1 fan… I belong to a couple of Tesla groups and have been called a narcissist, an egomaniac and awesome, I prefer the last one” — indeed, we agree with that last adjective — Steve’s pretty awesome and it was fun to learn more about his love for Tesla.

First of all, Steve loves his Tesla Roadster: “My 2010 Roadster was a gift for my 50th birthday from my wife Heidi, she knew I was in love with the car and arranged for my baby… it is definitely a little guy and I either [get] asked ‘How do you fit in that?’ or ‘I love your Ferrari’, both of which make me smile. I had that one wrapped with the same attention-getting red on matte [black] design as well as a couple of logos…. This [Roadster] is a very fun car.”

Source: Steve Distante via EVANNEX

I asked him how he first discovered Tesla and he explained, “My love for Tesla started after watching the documentary, Revenge of the Electric Car, which educated me about the history and the impact that we could have if we embraced electric vehicles. That is also where I began to appreciate how Elon Musk risked everything he owns, to make a difference with the vehicles that we drive.” Steve provides more in-depth insight into his unbridled love for electric cars and Tesla during an interview on The Grey Ave Podcast.

What about his Tesla Model S experience thus far? Steve explained, “My current P90D with Ludicrous Mode is my second Model S. I was about to customize my P85D and I reached out to my local dealer and they had great deals on this demo with 21’s and a sunroof, which I didn’t have. I had planned to do a [vinyl] wrap on the P85D and decided to go a little crazy on the P90D, since I was already thinking about customizing in the first place. I added carbon fiber accents, a stripe and the red lettering the ‘wrapper’ used is reflective [see top image], so it is really obvious at night!”

Source: Steve Distante via EVANNEX

Steve’s commitment to clean energy extends from his cars to his work: “I have a LEED Platinum headquarters for my business powered by 295 solar panels and [I also] had two electric car charging stations [installed]. Last year we achieved 95.3% of our power from the sun… I own an investment firm that teaches people about a special way to invest called Impact Investing (also known as ESG and SRI), investing in things that are environmentally and/or socially beneficial. This is my purpose, to educate the public and advisors about this amazing way to ‘vote with your dollars’ by investing impactfully. I love it so much I created an online university called impactu.me to share, educate and certify advisors who want to learn more.”

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