FSD Profiles let you pick from three different driving styles and assertiveness. By adjusting your FSD profile your vehicle will adjust its following distance, acceleration, how aggressively it makes lane changes, and more.
When using the 'Assertive' FSD Profile, the vehicle may also perform rolling stops at a stop sign when certain conditions are met.
The NHTSA is now asking Tesla to remove the ability for Teslas to roll stop signs. It's not clear if this recall is delaying the release of FSD Beta 10.9 to all testers.
This change is making headlines, but it impacts a very small amount of owners. Tesla recently revealed that it has almost 60,000 FSD Beta testers. This change will only affect those testers who have their FSD Profile set to assertive, which is not the default setting. So it's going to be a fairly small amount of users.
It's pretty clear why Tesla added FSD Profiles and the ability to roll stop signs. If you go out on the roads and perform four-second stops at every stop sign, drive the speed limit and follow every traffic law under every condition, you're likely to run into some pretty angry drivers.
It was forward-thinking of Tesla to add driving profiles, letting you set Autopilot to your preference and match the driving style in your area. Drivers in New York City and drivers on country roads are clearly not driving the same way.
What's interesting in this recall is that Tesla outlined exactly when a Tesla may perform a rolling stop. It's not enough to have just your FSD Profile set to assertive. The vehicle goes through a checklist to confirm that it's safe to make a rolling stop, much like a human might do when coming up to a stop sign. You look around, make sure there are no other cars coming, there are no police cars, no pedestrians, etc.
FSD Beta will only perform a rolling stop if all these conditions are met:
1. The functionality must be enabled within the FSD Beta Profile settings; and
2. The vehicle must be approaching an all-way stop intersection; and
3. The vehicle must be traveling below 5.6mph; and
4. No relevant moving cars are detected near the intersection; and
5. No relevant pedestrians or bicyclists are detected near the intersection; and
6. There is sufficient visibility for the vehicle while approaching the intersection; and
7. All roads entering the intersection have a speed limit of 30 mph or less.
After going through the list above, one may actually be able to argue that FSD Beta will perform a rolling stop much safer than a human.
After speaking with NHTSA, Tesla agreed to send out an update to FSD Beta testers that will disable rolling stops when using the assertive driving profile. The recall outlines that Tesla will release the update as version 2021.44.30.15.
Tesla's latest FSD Beta, Beta 10.9 is version 2021.44.30.10.
It's not clear whether this update will simply be a point release of FSD Beta 10.9 or if it will be part of FSD Beta 11, which Elon has previously said was coming after Beta 10.9.
Everyone in the Tesla community knows that this is a simple software update, but in NHTSA's safety report, they're still calling these kinds of issues recalls, which could be misleading.
It'd be nice to see NHTSA use different language when a vehicle needs to be physically brought in and when it can simply be performed as a remote software update that requires almost no owner intervention.
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Tesla has begun to reach out to customers in the United States and is offering demo drives of the Cybertruck on an invite-only basis. @brandonhd on X shared the first invite image, and it looks like it's going out quite quickly to multiple locations that have Cybertrucks on display.
Up until now, display vehicles have been for just that – looking, but no touching. Some Tesla delivery centers and showrooms have also allowed viewers to take a seat inside and open it up, but most are still locked away behind the velvet rope.
It’s exciting to see that Tesla has begun to demo them – and it can only be so long until demo drives open up to everyone.
Advisor-led Demo
This Demo Drive is led by a Tesla Advisor – while you’re driving, the advisor will be in the passenger seat, walking you through the experience. They’ll explain steer-by-wire, off-road controls, and will introduce new-to-Tesla buyers to all the features that are currently available.
The list of locations so far for demo drives appears to be fairly limited, but we will hopefully see demo drives roll out throughout the United States, and eventually Canada too. Here is the current list of city/state locations that have seen demo drive invites.
Actually Smart Summon, the successor to Tesla’s Smart Summon feature, has been confirmed to be coming as soon as next month as per Elon Musk. Colloquially known as “ASS”, Actually Smart Summon is supposed to improve on the regular Smart Summon capabilities, which have historically used ultrasonic sensors (USS) to navigate parking lots.
We’re looking forward to Actually Smart Summon, and we’re quite excited about what other features will be unlocked once it finally shows up at our doorstep.
Vision-based Improvements
ASS is supposed to bring Smart Summon to vehicles that don’t have USS – using Tesla Vision. Most recently, Tesla has brought Autopark to vehicles without USS, and Vision-based Autopark has been a huge success. It is faster, more reliable, and smoother than the older USS-based solution. It can also park and maneuver in tighter locations.
Today, Smart Summon is sometimes useful at best, usually a party trick, or downright dangerous at worst. It’s excellent and best used in straight lines, where you have a clear line of sight of the vehicle, and can stop it if doesn’t see an obstacle.
I used Smart Summon today, just before writing this article – my 2022 Model Y (with USS) – did manage to show up just fine – in a straight-line location from where I was parked, after exiting the parking spot fairly cleanly. However, I’ve previously used Smart Summon and have had the vehicle turn towards obstacles, such as cart returns or curbs. Overall, it’s a sometimes-useful feature that has a lot of drawbacks right now.
Smart Summon is also restricted to a certain distance – and it's pretty small. The max distance is shorter than most parking lots, being only about 215 ft (65m). If you’re lucky enough to park close, it's very useful to bring your car right to you.
Actually Smart Summon
ASS will bring FSD V12-like capabilities to Smart Summon – the vehicle will primarily use Vision to drive toward you (or the location you’ve indicated). ASS has been supposed to be coming since about September 2022 and has seen many delays – we’re almost at the 2-year point today.
We’re looking forward to Actually Smart Summon being able to bring the vehicle – safely – right to you. ASS is also one of the key steps towards bringing some other cool features that Elon Musk has previously mentioned – Park Seek and Banish Autopark.
We’re also hopeful that Actually Smart Summon will increase the maximum range a vehicle can be summoned, because the current range is fairly small. Alongside Park Seek and Banish Autopark, we’re closing in on a Robotaxi-based future.
Park Seek and Banish Autopark
When the FSD v12.4 showed up, Elon also mentioned that going forward, vehicles would automatically park themselves when arriving in a parking lot – Park Seek – and that if you got out of the car at the entrance to a business, you could get it to automatically park itself in the parking lot – Banish Autopark. These are two features that are needed for Robotaxi to work – which itself is delayed to October 10th of this year. We’re looking quite forward to them – as in combination with Actually Smart Summon, Tesla has reached the cusp of vehicle autonomy.
A vehicle that arrives, driverless, at the location you’re at, then drives somewhere, parks itself there, and waits for you – is the definition of a Robotaxi.
While we’re likely to have to wait for Banish Autopark and Park Seek just a bit longer, Actually Smart Summon being around the corner is exciting! Gone will be the days of having to run out to your car when you forgot your umbrella – your car will just come right to you instead.
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