Tesla’s Two Defunct Flagship Models Are Getting a Big Upgrade

Tesla’s two recently-defunct flagship models, the Model S and Model X, are poised to receive a significant software upgrade, according to statements from the company’s Head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy. These vehicles, equipped with older Hardware 3 (HW3) chips, have been the last major group waiting for the Full Self-Driving (FSD) v14 Lite rollout.

What Happened

During Tesla’s Cybercab launch event, Elluswamy told journalist Ryan McCaffrey that the build for the Model S and Model X “was supposed to go out last week.” This comment suggests that the rollout to these specific HW3 vehicles is imminent. Unlike the current Model S and X, which ship with Hardware 4, these pre-refresh flagships rely on the older Autopilot computer, a generation Tesla stopped producing years ago.

While Model 3 and Model Y vehicles with HW3 began receiving v14 Lite in late June 2026, with wider North American expansion in July, the S and X versions did not join that initial wave. The v14 Lite software is a distilled version of the v14 driving stack, compressed to run on the older chip and cameras. Tesla describes this process as distillation, where behaviors learned on newer hardware are scaled down to roughly 15 percent of the original size to fit the memory and bandwidth limits of HW3.

Why It Matters

For owners of the defunct flagship models, this update represents a long-awaited closure to a period of software stagnation. The v14 Lite build introduces several key features, including parking, unparking, and reversing capabilities, as well as arrival options for various locations like driveways and curbsides. Firmware notes for the first Lite build (2026.20.5.1) also highlighted improvements in handling merges, forks, pedestrians, and traffic lights, along with fewer false slowdowns and smoother lane centering.

A subsequent build (2026.20.6.10), which Elluswamy indicated was likely heading to wide release, added a standalone Self-Driving app and the ability to start trips from Park without brake-pedal confirmation. Although HW3 vehicles cannot support unsupervised FSD or robotaxi operations, these enhancements bring the older flagships closer to the experience of newer models. However, results from other HW3 drivers have been mixed, with some reporting significant gains over v12.6 while others noted issues like new indecision or phantom braking.

The Bottom Line

There is currently no official Tesla changelog or specific build number for the Model S and X rollout, only Elluswamy’s informal timeline. The remaining work appears to be model-specific validation rather than the development of a new software stack. Owners will soon see if the distilled v14 Lite software lands cleanly on these older vehicles, which have waited longer than any other HW3 models for the update.