A look at Tesla's Safety Score

With the release of update 2021.32.22, Tesla released Safety Score, a feature that assesses your driving behavior. To assess your driving, Tesla is using a similar model to what they use to determine Tesla insurance rates.

By opting-in to Safety Score, you give Tesla the authority to collect certain driving metrics that Tesla will use to measure your driving behavior. Tesla will assess your risk across five major categories.

The five categories are:

• Forward Collision Warnings
• Hard Braking
• Aggressive Turning
• Unsafe Following
• Forced Autopilot Disengagement

Your Safety Score is then available in the latest Tesla app (version 4.1), which is currently available to iPhone users, but will soon be available on Android as well.

Your Safety Score is rated from 0 to 100 and the app does an excellent job breaking down the score for each category and comparing it to the Tesla fleet median.

You can also dig deeper and drill down into an individual day or even a specific trip to see which drives affected your score the most. Tesla will even show you which driver profile was used for an individual trip.

Tesla is currently using this feature to decide the next batch of FSD Beta testers, but this is an excellent feature that should be available to everyone.

Safety Score is a useful feature if you’re looking to improve your safety on the road. It can also be used to monitor new drivers or even to see how your vehicle was handled when used by other individuals such as valet service or car rental services such as Turo.

Tesla Safety Score is currently limited to vehicles on 2021.32.22 and later and to owners in the US. You must opt-in through the Request FSD Beta button in the Autopilot menu.

Expect Tesla to continue improving this feature and expanding it to other regions. I would also expect Tesla to use this data to further improve their FSD Beta.

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Mysterious Covered Up Model 3 Raises Questions

Several covered-up Model 3s have been found over the past of days

@omg_tesla & CloudWalking

If it isn’t the worst-looking LeBra ever made, then what is it? This oddly covered-up Model 3 appeared in the wild just days after Reuters reported Tesla was revamping the popular car. The plot thickens as Teslarati reports the license plates to indicate the vehicle is from Tesla. But what is the biggest secret under the horribly fitting covers?

Twitter user @omg_tesla spotted the car in a parking garage in Santa Cruz, California. Twitter users filled the replies with a lot of speculation. But of interest, the cabin of the car is wide open and visible. This eliminates a lot of conjecture that this is a revamped version. There is a belief the company is trying to cut costs to get the Model 3 under $55,000 to qualify for the US tax incentive in 2023. However, some cost savings will be found in the Model 3’s interior.

That would lead us to believe that the only secret things on this car are some design changes in the front and back. However, on close examination, it doesn’t appear to be different than the current Model 3. The headlights look the same if you follow the lining and the taillights look identical to what is in production as well.

Reddit user CloudWalking, found a different Model 3 similarly covered up a couple of days later.

Twitter user @Aiaddict1, who's a former Tesla employee, tweeted: Tesla policy requires employees who use certain eng fleet cars in public to always use a car cover when parked in public if the vehicle is equipped with hardware not known or available to the public. I know this as I used to drive the eng fleet prototypes. This looks to be one.

Whatever is under those odd covers remains a mystery. Reuters reported that the Tesla revamp, called Project Highland, would start to roll off production lines in the third quarter of 2023. They also quoted Ed Kim, president of AutoPacific Group, who said, “consumers still tend to equate visual changes with newness. Tesla knows visually tangible changes are in order. The upcoming changes that potential customers can see and feel will be very important in ensuring that EV customers still have Tesla at the top of their minds as truly excellent alternatives to Tesla are starting to flood the market.”

Nevertheless, Twitter "detectives" joked that this is the newest Tesla paint protection, bug screen or perhaps automotive underwear. Personally, I think if the covers were off, it would’ve drawn far less attention as there are a lot of Teslas in California, but none sporting these covers.

It's not clear what Tesla is testing with these vehicles, although it doesn't appear to be related to the "revamp" of the Model 3. However, it very likely includes some sort of changes that haven't been publicly announced yet.

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Two Door Cybertruck is Unlikely Now, But May be on the Radar

A sketch of a two-door Cybertruck can be found at the Peterson Automotive Museum

MissJilianne/Twitter

The Tesla crowd of enthusiasts has eyes everywhere. Twitter user @MissJilianne caused quite a stir after visiting the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, which recently opened a new Tesla exhibit. The Model S Plaid owner and FSD Beta tester posted a few pictures of her visit, including some artwork at the Cybertruck display.

The artistic design shows the Cybertruck in a two-door version. Miss Jilianne asks: Are we not going to talk about the beautiful artwork of a two door Cybertruck displayed at the @Petersen_Museum Tesla exhibit?

Her tweet generated discussion on social platforms and Tesla blogs, and it had mixed reactions. @KounisTou tweeted: It's not only that, but it has a totally different, dare I say better looking? A-pillar design with a wraparound windshield like early Semi prototype. Looks great. Except maybe that it looks a bit too much like a Lamborghini.

That may be the biggest clue to this spectacular piece of art. Franz von Holzhausen, Tesla's chief designer, is a huge fan of the “wedge” design. He grew up with Lamborghini Countach posters on his wall. Other responses to the picture believe it is the origin of the piece of art. It is likely an early sketch of what the Cybertruck could look like, and there were likely several. Given von Holzhausen’s love for the Countach, this is quite likely an early concept he was sketching out.

Elon Musk has publicly stated his support for a smaller truck. On November 24, 2019, he tweeted: Long term, it probably makes sense to build a smaller Cybertruck too.

However, the four-door version is due in 2023. CNBC interviewed von Holzhausen right in front of the Cybertruck. He stated, “Cybertruck will look, for all intents and purposes, just like the one behind us, maybe slightly smaller, a few percentages, but in general, this is what the truck will look like.”

Still, the designer did say something else during that interview that leaves the door open for a possible two-door Cybertruck. The creative mind behind the Model S, 3, X, Y, Semi and Cybertruck was asked to pick a favorite. His response was, "My favorite one is the one that is coming. I can't talk about (it).”

For a man that loves sports cars, it was believed that he was referring to the second-generation Roadster. Maybe he is referring to a smaller Cybertruck that looks a lot like those wedge cars that inspired him to become a car designer.

Tesla has a history of providing sketches to early reservation holders of their vehicles. It waits to be seen whether Tesla will do the same for the Cybertruck when deliveries start next year.

Below you'll find other sketches that Tesla provided to Model S, 3 and X reservation holders.

Model S Sketch

An early sketch of the Model S that was given to owners

Electrek

Model 3 Sketch

A sketch of the Model 3 was given to owners who reserved the vehicle on the first night

Electrek

Model X Sketch

An early sketch of the Model X that was initially given to owners of the Model X

Not a Tesla App

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