Tesla to Make Design and Software for Model S and Model X Open Source

Tesla to Make Design and Software for Model S and Model X Open Source - Not a Tesla App

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Karan Singh

July 27, 2026

Three years ago, Tesla published all the design, theory, research, and development documentation for the original 2012 Tesla Roadster on their Service website. These detailed manuals and documents go deep into the various parts of the Roadster, covering everything from suspension geometry and the system layout for battery cooling to the various pieces of software used for the microcontrollers throughout the vehicle. Now, Elon Musk has confirmed that Tesla will do the same for the Model S and Model X in the near future.

Just as Tesla made the original Roadster design & software open source, we plan to do the same with Model S & X — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 24, 2026

What Tesla Released for the Roadster Tesla’s public Roadster archive offers a detailed look at the company’s first production vehicle. It includes the complete service and parts manuals, just like every other Tesla vehicle. It also includes electrical circuit and connector information, as well as theory-of-operation documents that cover both the vehicle and the groundbreaking battery tech that kicked everything off. The archive also contains research and development documents for three of the key systems that made EVs viable, including the Battery Monitoring Board (part of the BMS), the Vehicle Display System (or infotainment), and the HVAC Controller. Those files include schematics, component information, CAD files, and other technical material that was created when the Roadster was being designed. One interesting distinction is that the R&D documents are not Service documents. Final production vehicles and components, as well as parts or repair procedures from the R&D documents, likely vary from Tesla’s actual Service guidelines. Even with that limitation, this information is a gold mine for owners, independent repair shops, engineers, and enthusiasts, as well as companies who were looking to design their own EVs following Tesla’s success in building mass-market EVs like the Model 3 and Model Y.

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Model S and Model X are Next Musk did not provide a release date or say precisely which Model S or Model X materials Tesla intends to publish. His wording suggests that both vehicle design documentation and software will be included, but the exact scope isn’t clear. The Model S and Model X of today run the modern Tesla infotainment UI package, and that software is likely a closely held secret. Instead, we could expect the original 2012 Model S software to be included as part of the materials. There is also a considerable amount of history to document. The Model S entered production in 2012, and the Model X in 2015. Both vehicles have received substantial reworks over their lifetime, with several major hardware refreshes, including the major 2021 redesign that made the Model S and X what we know today. Although production has ended at the Fremont factory, with the line now being set up to produce the Optimus humanoid robot, the design files will help preserve the engineering history to create replacement parts for decades to come. That means the release could also become a long-term technical resource for owners.

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Tesla to Make Design and Software for Model S and Model X Open Source

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