exporting-your-wrap-to-usb

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title: Exporting your wrap to USB and applying it in your Tesla excerpt: Format the USB, drop the PNG in the right folder, select it from your Tesla's display. Five steps total. tags: [export, usb, in-car]

You have a wrap file. Getting it onto the car takes a USB drive, the correct file system, and the right folder. Skip a step and the car silently ignores the file with no error message. Here's the full sequence.

Step 1: Finish and export from the studio

Open your design in the studio and click Export. The studio downloads a PNG to your computer.

A few things the export step handles for you. The PNG is sized correctly for your vehicle (1024x1024 for most, 1024x768 for the Cybertruck). The studio compresses the file to stay under Tesla's 1MB limit. The black mask post-processing has already happened, so no-go zones are pure black and the wrap won't bleed into windows or lights.

If the export warns you that the file is over 1MB, your design is too photo-heavy. Replace photo elements with flatter colors or a solid background and re-export. The car rejects files over 1MB silently; you won't get an error in the car, the wrap just won't appear.

If you haven't shipped a wrap yet, the 5-minute first-wrap walkthrough gets you to the export step from scratch.

Step 2: Format a USB drive as exFAT

Tesla accepts exFAT, MS-DOS FAT (FAT32), ext3, and ext4. Tesla does NOT accept NTFS. This is the single most common reason wraps don't load: a USB formatted as NTFS plugs in, the car mounts it, the wrap never appears, and there's no error message.

If you're not sure how your USB is formatted, reformat it as exFAT. exFAT works on Windows, Mac, and the car. On Windows, right-click the USB in File Explorer, pick Format, choose exFAT, click Start. On Mac, open Disk Utility, select the USB, click Erase, pick ExFAT, click Erase.

Use a small dedicated stick (a 32GB drive is overkill but cheap). Don't use the same USB you're using for Sentry Mode video; the wrap file lives in a different folder structure and mixing them can confuse the car.

Step 3: Create the right folder structure

The car looks for the wrap file in a specific folder on the USB. The folder name has to match exactly, including capitalization.

For Model 3 and Model Y, the folder is TeslaWrap at the root of the USB.

For the Cybertruck, the folder is TeslaCybertruckWrap at the root of the USB.

For Model S 2021, Model S 2025 Plaid, and Model X 2021, Tesla uses model-specific folder names too. Refer to the export screen in the studio for the exact folder name your vehicle expects; it changes per model and Tesla doesn't publish a single canonical list.

If the folder name is wrong (teslawrap, Tesla Wrap, wraps), the car doesn't see your file. Capitalization matters. The space between "Tesla" and "Wrap" matters (there isn't one).

Drop your exported PNG inside that folder. The filename can be anything you want as long as the extension is .png. Most users name the file after the design ("midnight-forest.png", "cyber-grid.png") so they can identify it later if they keep multiple wraps on the same USB.

Step 4: Plug it into the car and select the wrap

Plug the USB into one of the front USB ports inside the car. The glovebox USB port is for Sentry Mode recording on most models; the wrap selection menu reads from the front ports.

Once the USB is mounted, navigate to the car's settings. The exact path depends on your software version, but the menu lives under Controls > Display > Custom Vehicle Image (or a near-identical phrasing). On older software it might be under Toybox or Service.

The car scans the USB for the right folder, finds your PNG, and shows it as a selectable option. Tap it. The in-dash illustration of your car updates immediately to show your wrap.

If the wrap doesn't appear in the selection list, the most common culprits, in order:

1. USB is NTFS-formatted instead of exFAT. Reformat and try again.
2. Folder name has a typo or wrong capitalization. Verify the folder is exactly TeslaWrap (or your vehicle's specific folder name).
3. PNG is over 1MB. Re-export from the studio with a flatter design or stronger compression.
4. PNG dimensions are wrong (you tried to use a Cybertruck file on a Model Y). Re-export against the correct vehicle in the studio.
5. Your car's software version is too old to support custom wraps. The feature shipped in late 2023 across most vehicles; if you're on an unusually old build, update first.

Step 5: Remove or change the wrap

Want a different wrap? Drop another PNG in the same folder. The car shows both in the selection list; tap the one you want. You can keep multiple wraps on the USB and switch as often as you want.

To revert to the stock illustration, the easy way is to tap "Default" (or "Stock") in the car's selection menu. The hard way (if that option doesn't appear): unplug the USB, delete the PNG, plug it back in. A two-finger steering-wheel restart (hold both scroll wheels ~10 seconds) clears any cached preview.

A note on safety and warranty

This is a Tesla-supported feature. You're not jailbreaking the car. You're not modifying firmware. You're loading an image file into a directory Tesla designed for image files. Your warranty isn't affected, your insurance isn't affected, and the car doesn't care which wrap (or no wrap) you've selected.

The wrap only appears on the in-dash illustration. Other drivers can't see it. The car looks exactly like an unwrapped Tesla from outside; this is purely a "the digital twin in your dashboard wears a custom skin" feature.

Common questions

Does the wrap show up on the mobile app? No. The in-dash illustration is local to the car's display.

Will the wrap survive a software update? Yes, as long as the USB stays plugged in. The selection is read on each boot.

Can I unplug the USB after selecting? On most software versions, no. The car re-reads the USB at boot and reverts to stock if the file is gone. Keep the USB plugged in.

Can I share my wrap file with another Tesla owner? Yes. PNGs are portable across any car running the same vehicle type. This is part of why the community gallery exists.

What to do if you're stuck

If you've checked the file system (exFAT), folder name (exact match), file size (under 1MB), and dimensions (correct for your model) and the wrap still doesn't appear, the issue is almost always one of those four. Run through them one more time. If it still doesn't work, the car's software version may not support custom wraps, or the USB port you're using is a Sentry-only port.

For a deeper view of which Tesla models support which features, the feature matrix breaks it down by year and trim.

Otherwise, get exporting. Open the studio and pick a design.