Would smooth Spotify audio or Netflix video integration sell you on a new electric car?

Tesla started pushing out its much-anticipated Software Version 10, or V10, to owners last week, just as it intensified the push to sell what might, by some estimations, be a quarterly record for the company in the third quarter of 2019.

Promotional e-mails obtained by Green Car Reports invited shoppers to learn about the benefits of taking delivery before October 1. Bonus offers extended to some sources—conditions not verified—included unlimited free Supercharging for two years, and promotions relating to the rollout of V10. 

Tesla called V10 “our biggest software update ever”—perhaps partly because it's one that includes fundamental and long-anticipated updates to its entertainment interface. 

Tesla’s longstanding commitment to Slacker and TuneIn stays, but the brand steps up with Spotify Premium integration—a move that at last dispels reports from last year about the automaker starting its own streaming service

On the visual side, Tesla Theater allows you to access most major streaming services—via accounts for Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, or Hulu + Live TV—through your vehicle’s center display. Globally that includes iQiyi and Tencent Video. There’s also a “Car-aoke,” with a library of music and lyrics, and a Tesla Arcade that allows gameplay with the USB-based controller. 

With V10, a new “Joe Mode” allows you to push down the volume when a passenger is sleeping in back. Tesla has also added support for HomeLink garage-door opening, defrosting, and window control (Model 3 and Model X) via the smartphone app. 

Tesla V10 Smart Summon

Tesla V10 Smart Summon

Smart Summon is a convenience feature, and one of the showcase features of this software release. The feature, which has been teased for months, is only available to those who have purchased Full Self-Driving Capability or Enhanced Autopilot. According to Tesla it can “enable their car to navigate a parking lot and come to them or their destination of choice, as long as their car is within their line of sight.”

Tesla reminds users that they remain responsible for the car and must be present to monitor it and the surroundings at all times. 

The updates are now available and started rolling out last week to owners around the world.