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An image of a white Tesla Model 3 Performance on the dyno.

What Happens When You Hug Your Tesla Model 3?

Tesla has become pretty well known for their addition of funny, quirky, and unnecessary features, or ‘Easter Eggs’ that can be discovered throughout the car, usually through the infotainment system. Whoopee cushion mode, romance mode, and Christmas mode are available throughout some of the Tesla models, so when a forum writer spoke of a new …

Tesla has become pretty well known for their addition of funny, quirky, and unnecessary features, or ‘Easter Eggs’ that can be discovered throughout the car, usually through the infotainment system. Whoopee cushion mode, romance mode, and Christmas mode are available throughout some of the Tesla models, so when a forum writer spoke of a new Easter Egg he had unlocked, it sent owners running to test it out. Step one? Hug your Tesla Model 3.

Hug your Tesla

The rumor started when a man-made a post on a popular internet forum, revealing that if you hug your Tesla Model 3 in just the right way, a small heart would appear and begin beating, letting the hugger know that the Tesla was returning its affection. Several images of the heart were even provided, though none of them were ever verified, and Tesla Model 3 owners went running to their garage to show their EVs a little love.

A silver Tesla logo on a red vehicle hood
Tesla Roadster | National Motor Museum/Heritage Images via Getty Images)

Unfortunately, it didn’t work

It didn’t take long for owners and Tesla fans to realize that this quirky East Egg was a hoax, but that didn’t stop dozens of people from making their own attempt just to verify. While you can always hug your Tesla to show it some love, the car doesn’t recognize that you are doing so, and, unfortunately, no beating heart will appear, either in the taillight or the dashboard, as several reports have stated.

Employees work at the Tesla Gigafactory in Shanghai, east China, Nov. 20, 2020. U.S. electric car company Tesla in 2019 built its first Gigafactory outside the United States
The Tesla Model 3 | Xinhua/Ding Ting via Getty Images

Easter Eggs you won’t miss

While the beating heart Easter Egg did turn out to be a fib, there are still plenty of other hidden gems to unlock with the Tesla Model 3. While these can vary depending on the car, there some of the cool features of the Model 3 are a Tesla Cybertruck that appears in Camp Mode, a hidden Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy reference when changing the car’s name, and even a sketchpad feature that submits your designs to Tesla.

Side view of a red Tesla model 3
Side view of a red Tesla Model 3 electric car from Tesla Motors |Smith Collection/Gado, Getty Images

So, apparently nothing happens when you hug your Tesla Model 3, which is a bit of a let down. While there is no beating heart, there are still plenty of other fun features that you can unlock.

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