Matrix LED is a technology for adapting headlight LEDs to subjects approaching on the road. The way it works is not new, but pretty awesome. When you are driving with full headlights and a vehicle is approaching, its location on the beam is analyzed and the LEDs corresponding to this space are deactivated. This way, you do not blind the person in front, but still benefit from maximum lighting on the rest of the surfaces. All this happens in a fraction of a second. If several vehicles arrive opposite, it’s the same thing. Not only is there no longer a switch between high beams and low beams, but it also allows you to have a much better vision of the road at night, particularly for portions without lighting.
Matrix LED system compared to traditional lighting.
Generally speaking, manufacturers who have integrated this technology into their vehicles use it to adapt the headlight lighting to the driver’s environment in real time. This is one of the functions that you can’t do without once you’ve tried it.
Teslas are sold equipped with the necessary hardware for Matrix LED technology, but it is not used for road lighting. Among the fun features unique to Tesla, the headlights can display words on a wall and create light movements when you launch the Light Show. A paradox since the purpose of these lights is rather to increase nighttime visibility, and therefore safety.
Matrix Led headlight of a Model Y during the Light Show. © Jérémy FDIDA
Last December, a European certification leaked that an OTA update would enable the activation of Matrix LED lighting on the “Model 3 Highand”. However, doubt was allowed, Tesla never using this name internally.
Certification document appeared last December.
And yet, a 2024.2 update currently accessible to Tesla employees offers, among other things, the activation of Matrix LED lighting.
This means that the new Model 3s should quickly adopt this feature before, why not, it benefits all models in the range. The Teslas would then further strengthen their quality/price ratio by offering the heat pump, the panoramic roof and the Matrix LED as standard for a price below €38,000, bonus deducted for the Model Y Propulsion.