Tesla has a secret 'Elon Mode' that removes nagging
MKBHD/Twitter
Well-known Tesla hacker and a treasure trove of undiscovered Tesla secrets, @GreenTheOnly has once again made waves in the Tesla community. His recent Twitter revelation uncovers a hidden gem in Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta software - a unique feature named 'Elon Mode'.
@GreenTheOnly's tweets give the world a peek into this under-the-radar feature that is yet to see public release. His deep dive into the hidden depths of Tesla's software brings to light an interesting twist to how Tesla's FSD Beta monitors driver attentiveness.
'Elon Mode' - Redefining Driver Monitoring
The driver monitoring system in Tesla vehicles is known for its 'nag' feature. This alerts drivers to maintain their focus on the road and requires them to exert resistance on the steering wheel, signifying their attentiveness. 'Elon Mode' brings a paradigm shift to this system.
In 'Elon Mode', featured above, the car switches from steering wheel 'nags' to a more advanced driver monitoring method. It employs only the internal camera to keep a watchful eye on the driver, ensuring they are not distracted. This is a significant stride towards enabling hands-off driving, a promising prospect for Tesla's global user base.
Green’s Intriguing Experience with 'Elon Mode'
Taking us on a virtual ride spanning nearly 1,000km, Green shares his firsthand experience with 'Elon Mode'. During this journey, Green enjoyed the luxury of a nag-free ride, thanks to Tesla's computer vision-based driver monitoring.
Green observed that the irritating nuisances of the FSD, such as random lane changes and slower driving speed, become less noticeable if he doesn't have to watch the car continually. He even entertained the idea of reading a book or browsing a website, suggesting that the mild, non-human driving choices made during the journey go virtually unnoticed.
He commended the FSD's performance on divided highways and revealed that there's a fair chance the car can navigate between two points without needing any human input. He even ventured that if this technology were offered as Level 3 automation, where the driver doesn't need to pay attention constantly, it would be a "solid deal at $15k" (historical FSD prices).
Despite the benefits, Green also highlights the downside of 'Elon Mode'. Giving the car free rein to make unnecessary lane changes could incite road rage from other drivers. This suggests there's still room for refinement before 'Elon Mode' is ready for public release.
Green's journey in Elon Mode offers a promising glimpse into the future of autonomous driving. While it's not clear when this hidden mode will be publicly accessible, one thing is certain - the future of driving is closer than we think.
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The greatly anticipated FSD v12.4 is around the corner, with Elon Musk mentioning that it will be going to employees this weekend, with limited external testers next week.
Several significant improvements are coming with V12.4, which is being compared to the leap in performance that was previously seen between V12 and V11.
Improved Comfort and Reduced Interventions
There are quite a few improvements expected with V12.4, which Musk has said will be focused on user comfort by reducing hard accelerations and sudden braking. According to Musk, FSD v12.4 is also expected to have a 5-10x improvement in time between user interventions, which means that Tesla is rapidly approaching its goal for the Robotaxi announcement on August 8, 2024.
Steering Wheel Nag Removal
FSD V12.4 is expected to eliminate the steering wheel nag, as Musk confirmed its removal last week. The camera-based driver monitoring system will be taking over, providing a hands-free experience. These improvements will most likely benefit owners who have cabin cameras with infrared lights the most, while Tesla may continue to use steering wheel nag as a fallback mechanism.
Driverless Autopark
The second key feature that may be included in v12.4 will be Banish Autopark, previously known as Reverse Summon, allowing you to choose a parking spot, exit the vehicle and have the car park itself. Whether this feature makes it in v12.4 is yet to be seen, but Musk has mentioned that parking without a driver is coming soon.
Automatically Seek Parking Spot at Destination
Finally, your Tesla will now traverse a parking lot and automatically enter Autopark mode when arriving at a destination, according to a post from Musk.
Eligibility and Branch
Tesla recently added FSD v12.3.6 to the 2024.14 branch with updates 2024.14.5 and 2024.14.6. This makes it very likely that Tesla’s next FSD version will also be based on 2024.14, meaning that it will be available to any vehicle on 2024.14.x.
For users on update 2024.3.25, this means that they’ll receive all of the features included in updates 2024.8 and 2024.14, which should make it a massive update.
Release Date
Musk has mentioned that FSD V12.4 is going out to employee vehicles for internal testing this weekend, with external testing starting next week. The rollouts typically go slower than predicted but looks like we may see this begin shipping to customers by the end of the month.
Today, as part of a broader change of tariff rates on Chinese goods, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that he’ll raise tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, increasing the rate from 25% to 100%, effective this year.
This increase won’t just impact the import of vehicles, but also the rate for lithium-ion batteries produced in China, which will be moving from 7.5% to 25%.
Impact on Competition
The immediate impact of this new regulation is significant for Chinese manufacturers, who have been regarded as Tesla’s largest and greatest competition. Given the tariff hike, this means that new Chinese manufacturers, such as Nio, XPeng, or BYD, will either need to set up production in North America, or be subject to the increased import tariff.
Nio’s vehicles cost between $40,000 USD to $70,000 USD in China based on today’s conversion rates, and with an import tariff of 100%, an imported vehicle’s price would be doubled to $80,000 USD to $140,000 USD, not including other fees. Chinese manufacturers will have to closely weigh the advantages and disadvantages of opening up the North American market, with challenges including vehicle homologation, new tariffs, and a difficult EV market.
Tesla and Chinese Tariffs
Elon Musk recently visited China, engaging with officials to build a foundation for what is currently the world’s largest electric vehicle market. With the potential import of Chinese EVs becoming restricted to the United States, this places Tesla in an advantageous position over its Chinese competitors who have yet to establish their brands in North America.
On the other hand, this could also impact Tesla, as they import Chinese batteries for usage in some vehicles in the United States.
Tesla does not import Gigafactory Shanghai vehicles to the US, but has been increasing North American battery production lately, with expansions in Lathrop, California and a new facility in Sparks, Nevada.
Canadian Tariffs
In Canada, the Model 3 and Model Y are currently being imported from Gigafactory Shanghai. Given Canada’s close following of US foreign policy, this could impact either the prices of Tesla vehicles in Canada or have Tesla shipping vehicles from Fremont and Texas to the United States once again, should Canada also adopt a similar tariff policy.
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