Tesla will not deliver on its self-driving promise for all of its models.
Tesla’s quarterly results were an opportunity for Elon Musk, his boss, to take stock of some burning issues. If anyone will remember the confirmation of the entry into production of the Cybertruck in the summer of 2023, another sentence should have reacted at least in the same proportions. In fact, by announcing the next generation of its car electronics, the Hardware 4, Tesla has buried a promise it made to its long-standing customers: the backwards compatibility of the FSD (Fully autonomous driving), or the possibility of accessing 100% autonomous driving as soon as it is actually available.
In fact, when purchasing their vehicle, whether it’s a Model 3 or a Model S Plaid, customers of the brand have the option of subscribing to the “Full autonomous driving capability” option. This, however invoiced at 7,500 euros, is the promise that the vehicle purchased will one day be equipped with “automated city driving”.
In addition, Tesla announces it as an “coming soon” option in addition to improved autopilot or the recognition of traffic lights and stop signs. However, so far, Tesla hadn’t changed an iota in its communication regarding this FSD option. As soon as the customer pays for this future option, it must be installed in his vehicle as soon as it is available, regardless of model type, year of purchase or mileage. Indeed, during the implementation of Hardware 3, Tesla had agreed to upgrade vehicles equipped with the previous version of its on-board electronics.
7,500 euros for level 2 autonomy?
Elon Musk simply questioned this promise by admitting that current electronics probably won’t allow access to the same level of autonomous driving as the brand’s next vehicles that will be equipped with Hardware 4. The price and difficulty of backwards compatibility between Hardware 4 and Hardware 3 is significant. Economically, it won’t be feasible “, He admitted. However, to ease the tensions that could arise from this statement, the head of the brand wanted to reassure current customers about the capabilities of current electronics. ” The Hardware 3 won’t be as good as the Hardware 4, but I’m confident it will perform well enough to pass the average driver’s safety rating. If Hardware 3 is, say, 200% or 300% more efficient than the human driver, Hardware 4 will be 500% or 600%. Hardware 5 will go even further. But what really matters is improving road safety “.
Will Elon Musk’s argument be enough to convince customers that they have accepted a significant additional cost in anticipation of this feature? In fact, at present, and given that even in the United States Tesla is struggling to have its 100% autonomous driving capabilities recognized, this FSD option is equivalent to paying $9,000 or $7,500 for the simple recognition of traffic lights and stop signs . An option included in any vehicle with Level 2 autonomy.
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