Here are many of the acronyms and abbreviations you’ll see on our site and commonly used at Tesla and on various forums (Jan-2023 update)
| AC | Air Conditioning (HVAC is the preferred acronym) |
| AC | Alternating Current |
| ACC | Adaptive Cruise Control |
| Ah | Amperage for an hour at a specific voltage |
| Amps | Amperage/Current |
| Ant | Antenna |
| AP | AutoPilot – A group of safety and driver assistance features |
| AP1 | Autopilot 1 (software and hardware prior to AP2) |
| AP2 | Autopilot 2 (software and hardware after AP1) |
| AP3 | Autopilot 3 (software and hardware after AP2 which includes FSD option) |
| APP | AutoPilot (Tesla Internal) |
| AWD | All-Wheel Drive |
| BCM | Body Control Module |
| BEV | Battery Electric Vehicle |
| BMB | Battery Management Board |
| BMS | Battery Management System |
| CAFE | Corporate Average Fuel Economy |
| CAN | Controller Area Network (a data bus within a vehicle) |
| CARB | California Air Resources Board |
| CC | Cruise Control |
| CCC | Courage, Clarity, and Confidence (opposite of FUD) |
| CCS | Combined Charging System – An alternative clunky charging connection system forced on users in Europe and Korea, but only useable by about 20% of the EV market in the USA. |
| CD | Coefficient of Drag, and occasionally the Center Display (MCU) |
| CH | Cup Holder |
| CHAdeMO | CHArge de MOve, the tradename of an older DC charger standard |
| CID | Center Information Display |
| CMP | Compressor |
| CO2 | Carbon Dioxide Gas |
| CP | Charge Port |
| CPU | Central Processing Unit |
| CTM | Come To Me (Smart Summon feature) |
| D | Dual Motor (AWD) |
| DA | Driver Assistance |
| DAS | Driver Assistance System (i.e. Autopilot) |
| DC | Direct Current |
| DES | Delivery Experience Specialist – A Tesla employee who reviews the car’s operation with a new owner |
| DI | Drive Inverter |
| DM | Dog Mode, where the climate control stays on when the car is locked |
| DRL | Daytime Running Lights |
| DS | Delivery Specialist |
| DU | Drive Unit |
| EAP | Enhanced Autopilot; Rarer, EAP = Early Access Program |
| ECU | Electronic Control Unit |
| EM | Elon Musk |
| eMMC | embedded Multi Media Card (Flash memory) |
| EPA | Environmental Protection Agency |
| EPAS | Electrically Powered Assisted Steering |
| EPB | Electric Parking Brake |
| EPBL | Electric Parking Brake Left |
| EPBR | Electric Parking Brake Right |
| ERS | Executive Rear Seat – A short-lived option that offered two rear executive seats in the 2015 Model S with a large center armrest. |
| ESA | Extended Service Agreement – Similar to an extended warranty, it provides parts/labor coverage beyond the first 4 years/50K miles |
| ESP | Electronic Stability Program (sometimes called ASC – Active Stability Control) |
| EU | European Union |
| EV | Electric Vehicle |
| EVSE | Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment – A unit between the AC supply and an EV for charging |
| FC | Fast Charge (i.e DC charging via Supercharger) |
| FD | Falcon Doors (Model X) |
| FOB | Electronic Key (not really an acronym) |
| FSD | Full-Self Driving |
| FUD | Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt – often evoked intentionally in order to confuse. |
| FWD | Front-Wheel Drive; often also used for Falcon Wing Doors on Model X |
| GF | GigaFactory – A huge factory for manufacturing batteries or vehicle production |
| GPS | Global Positioning System |
| GPU | Graphics Processing Unit |
| GTW | Gateway |
| hp | Horse Power |
| HPC | High Power Charger (for Roadster) |
| HPWC | High Power Wall Connector, now just called Wall Connector |
| HQ | Headquarters (as in Tesla’s HQ) |
| HSPA+ | Evolved High-Speed Packet Access (for wireless broadband) |
| HV | High Voltage |
| HVP | High Voltage Protect |
| HW1 | Hardware 1 (referring to Autopilot S/X hardware prior to HW2) |
| HW2 | Hardware 2 (referring to Autopilot S/X hardware after Oct-2016) |
| HW2.5 | Hardware 2.5 (referring to Autopilot S/X/3 hardware after ~Jul-2017) |
| HW3.0 | Hardware 3.0 (referring to Autopilot S/X/3/Y hardware released in April 2019 on new cars with a retrofit available on older AP2 cars) |
| HW4.0 | Hardware 4.0 (referring to Autopilot S/X/3/Y/Cybertruck hardware expected to be released in Q4-2023 on new vehicles |
| HVAC | Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning |
| HVB | High Voltage Battery |
| IBST | iBoost electromechanical brake booster system by Bosch |
| IC | Instrument Cluster (display module and electronics) |
| ICE | Internal Combustion Engine |
| ICEd | When an ICE vehicle is parked in an EV charging stall |
| IEC | International Electrotechnical Commission (for European plugs) |
| IIHS | Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (for safety ratings) |
| IMHO | In My Humble Opinion (often used in forums) |
| IMU | Inertial Measurement Unit – used to help maintain location info when GPS is lost (i.e. tunnels, etc.) |
| J/K | Just Kidding (humor) |
| J1772 | AC power charging connection standard by SAE |
| JIT | Just-In-Time delivery, an inventory control system |
| kW | Kilowatt (1000 watts, a unit of electric power) |
| kWh | A kilowatt of electric power in an hour |
| LCD | Liquid Crystal Display |
| LDU | Ludicrous Drive Unit (on Performance cars) |
| LDW | Lane Departure Warning |
| LED | Light Emitting Diode |
| LHD | Left-Hand Drive |
| LIN | Local Interconnect Network |
| LR | Long Range (Applies to Model S/X/3/Y) |
| LTE | Long-Term Evolution (referred to as 4G data) |
| M3 | Model 3 (but also commonly used for BMW’s M3 model) |
| MC | Mobile Connector, previously called Universal Mobile Connector (UMC) |
| MCU | Media Control Unit (17″ center screen unit (Model S/X prior to 2021) or on newer cars the display and CPU module combination) |
| MCU1 | Media Control Unit, Version 1 (S/X until March 2018) |
| MCU2 | Media Control Unit, Version 2 (all 3/Y, and S/X starting in March 2018), with a retrofit option on older S/X cars. No longer used in S/X/3/Y, switched to MCUZ |
| MCUZ | Media Control Unit with the AMD Ryzen processor. |
| mi | miles |
| Model ☰ | Model 3 (used unofficially by some owners, no longer used) |
| MR | Medium Range (Model 3, now discontinued) |
| MS | Model S |
| MSDS | Material Safety Data Sheet (often required for shipping used vehicles overseas) |
| MX | Model X |
| MY | Model Y – The SUV version first based on the Model 3 |
| NADA | National Automobile Dealers Association |
| NEC | National Electrical Code – A common US standard for building wiring and electrical work |
| NEDRA | National Electric Drag Racing Association |
| NEMA | National Electrical Manufacturers Association (for plugs) |
| NEMA 14-50 | NEMA 50 amp AC power connection (for charging at 240 VAC, 40 amps) |
| NHTSA | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (for safety ratings) |
| NN | Neural Net (relating to part of the AutoPilot software) |
| OA | Owner Advisor, Tesla employee |
| OCS | Occupant Classification System – used to detect the weight of persons in front seats for airbag deployment |
| ODIN | Diagnostics IN service |
| OEM | Original Equipment Manufacturer |
| OMC | Owner’s Manual Companion |
| OTA | Over-The-Air – usually in reference to software updates via wireless links |
| P | Performance, as a prefix to the model name |
| P3 | Performance Model 3 with 75 kWh battery |
| P3D | Performance Model 3 Dual Motor with 75 kWh battery |
| P3D+ | Performance Model 3 Plus Dual Motor with 75 kWh battery. Currently, the P3D has the plus features and the “+” is no longer used. |
| P3D- | Performance Model 3 Dual Motor with 75 kWh battery, without Plus features (not an official designation) |
| P85 | Performance Model S with 85 kWh battery, now discontinued |
| P85+ | Performance Plus Model S with 85 kWh battery, now discontinued |
| P85D | Performance Model S with 85 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| P90D | Performance Model S/X with 90 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| P100D | Performance Model S/X with 100 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now called “Performance Long Range” in 2019, now discontinued |
| Plaid | Highest Performance Model S/X (2021+) |
| PCS | Power Conversion System (i.e. in-car charger) |
| PHEV | Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (ICE/EV combo) |
| PM | Pedal Monitor (supervision of the pedal operation) |
| PPU | Pay Per Use, for charging either at Superchargers or other public chargers |
| PS | Product Specialist – Tesla employee at galleries and stores |
| PT | Pickup Truck |
| PTC | Positive Temperature Coefficient |
| RADC | Radar Center |
| RC | Remote Control |
| RCM | Restraint Control Module – to control the airbags |
| RLSH | Rain/Light/Solar/Humidity sensor (pre-HW2 vehicles) |
| RHD | Right-Hand Drive (for Australia, England, Japan, etc.) |
| RKE | Remote Keyless Entry |
| RPM | Revolutions Per Minute |
| RR | Rated Range (instead of Ideal mode) |
| RTFM | Read the Fu.king Manual – For those who refuse to read the manual where items are clearly stated in the manual. |
| RWD | Rear Wheel Drive |
| S40 | Model S with 60 kWh battery, software limited to 40 kWh, discontinued in mid 2013 |
| S60 | Model S with 60 kWh battery, discontinued, but revived in June 2016, and discontinued again in March 2017 |
| S60D | Model S with 60 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, discontinued in March 2017 |
| S70 | Model S with 70 kWh battery, discontinued in June 2016 |
| S70D | Model S with 70 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, discontinued in June 2016 |
| S75 | Model S with 75 kWh battery, discontinued in September 2017 |
| S75D | Model S with 75 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| S85 | Model S with 85 kWh battery, now discontinued |
| S85D | Model S with 85 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| S90D | Model S with 90 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| S100D | Model S with 100 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, renamed as “Long Range Model S/X” in 2019, now discontinued |
| SA | Service Advisor – Tesla employee contact for service |
| SAE | Society of Automotive Engineers |
| SAE Combo | Combo AC/DC charging standard by SAE |
| SC | SuperCharger (usually) |
| SC | Service Center (sometimes, use TSC as a better acronym) |
| SCCM | Steering wheel Column Control Module |
| SDS | Safety Data Sheet (often required for shipping used vehicles overseas) |
| Semi | Semi Truck announced in November 2017 and began shipping in Dec-2022 |
| SOC | State of Charge – typically shown as a percent of available energy |
| Soon | Issued by Tesla in the early days to state a timing from months to years |
| SR | Standard Range – Model 3 with the smallest battery, RWD, now discontinued |
| SR+ | Standard Range Plus – Model 3/Y, RWD. As of 2022, Tesla calls this model RWD. |
| SRB | Standard Range Battery – Model 3 |
| SvC | Service Center (to avoid confusion with SuperChargers) |
| SWP | Subzero Weather Package |
| TACC | Traffic-Aware Cruise Control |
| TAS | Tesla Air Suspension |
| TEA Score | Troll Evaluation Alarm – indicates the likelihood of a troll providing fake news or fake information (i.e. 100% = All BS/Fake news; 50% = uncertain if true or not, 0% = not a troll). |
| TPMS | Tire Pressure Monitoring System |
| TM | Tesla Motors (not often used, as TM is confused with Trademark and Toyota’s stock symbol. Tesla Motors, Inc. name has been officially changed to Tesla Inc.) |
| TMC | Tesla Motors Club |
| TMI | Tesla Motors Inc. (old name, now Tesla, Inc.) |
| TSC | Tesla Service Center |
| TSLA | Tesla’s Stock Symbol |
| TT | TeslaTap |
| UDS | Universal Diagnostics System (Tesla Internal) |
| UHFS | Ultra-High Fidelity Sound (now called Premium Sound) |
| UI | User Interface |
| UMC | Universal Mobile Charger, now called Mobile Connector (MC) |
| USB | Universal Serial Bus (Connector for flash drives) |
| V | Volts, an electrical potential |
| VCFRONT | Vehicle Controller Front, for the front lights, HVAC, sensors, etc. |
| VCLEFT | The Vehicle Controller Left, for the steering column, left seat, left windows, left mirror, locks, etc. |
| VCRIGHT | Vehicle Controller Right, for the right seat, right windows, right mirror, etc. |
| VCSEC | Vehicle Controller Secondary on Model 3/Y, security, alarm, charge port, trunk, frunk, etc. |
| VIN | Vehicle Identification Number (see our VIN decoder) |
| W | Watts, a unit of power |
| WC | Wall Connector – previously known as HPWC |
| Wh | Watt-hour, is a measure of electrical energy equivalent to the power consumption of one watt for one hour. |
| WiFi | Wireless local area network |
| WOT | Wide Open Throttle – Pressing the accelerator pedal to the floor |
| WTF | What The Fu.k- an expression of disbelief |
| X | Model X |
| X60D | Model X with 60 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| X75D | Model X with 75 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| X90D | Model X with 90 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| X100D | Model X with 100 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| XP90D | Performance Model X with 90 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now discontinued |
| XP100D | Performance Model X with 100 kWh battery and AWD/Dual motors, now called “Performance Long Range” in 2019; now discontinued |
| Y | Model Y SUV |
| YFFC | Yacht Floor Front Console, now discontinued |
| YMMV | Your Mileage May Vary |
| ZEV | Zero Emission Vehicle |
2 comments
I didn’t see PTC: Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC) heater
Now added.