Elon Musk’s Tesla is recalling nearly all of its 2 million cars on US roads, to update software and and fix a detective software and fix a defective system that’s supposed to ensure drivers are paying attention while using autopilot.
Documents posted Wednesday by U.S. safety regulators “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration” say the update will increase warnings and alerts to drivers and even limit the areas where basic versions of Autopilot can operate. The over-the-air software update will give Tesla drivers more warnings when they are not paying attention to the road while the Autopilot’s “Autosteer” function is turned on. Those notifications will remind drivers to keep their hands on the wheel and pay attention to the road, according to a statement from NHTSA
The added controls updates and alerts will “further encourage the driver to adhere to their driving responsibiliy” the NHTSA said.
But safety experts are saying that, while although the recall is a good step, but it still makes the driver responsible and doesn’t fix the underlying problem that Tesla’s automated systems have with spotting and stopping for obstacles in their path.
The recall comes two days after a detailed investigation was published by the Washinton Post that found at least eight serious accidents, including some fatalities, in which the the Autopilot feature should not have been engaged in the first place.
Models that are recalling are Y, S, 3 and X produced between Oct. 5, 2012, and Dec. 7 of this year. The update was to be sent to certain affected vehicles on Tuesday, with the rest getting it later.
History of Autopilot
This is not the first time the recall is happening to make changes to Tesla’s Autopilot or Full Self Driving features after finding the features posed safety problems.
In February, Tesla recalled all its 3 million cars then on the road with its FSD feature after finding that the cars with that autopilot feature are violating traffic rules and other road safety measures which are responsible for drivers and road safety
Tesla has made a greater emphasis than competitors on self-driving. It charges buyers $6,000 for cars with what it calls “enhanced Autopilot.” and $12,000 for the FSD feature. Even after that huge price customers are not satisfied with the cars and they thinks that this feature is not worth the extra money .The reports of serious accidents and deaths by police and safety regulators could hurt Tesla’s efforts to market the cars and their expensive features.
Why Autopilot is important for Tesla ?
The reports of serious accidents and deaths by police and safety regulators could hurt Tesla’s efforts to market the cars and their expensive features. The effects can be easily seen on the Tesla stock
Tesla is already the most valuable automaker in the world, by far, despite having a fraction of the sales of many established automakers such as Toyota, Volkswagen, General Motors, Ford and Stellantis.
Investors are betting on projections of future sales growth as well as the value of its software in making those stock valuations. CEO Elon Musk has said the company’s investment in artificial intelligence and its use in both self-driving vehicles as well as its plans for humanoid robots are a key to its current and future value.
“In the long term, I think, has the potential to make Tesla the most valuable company in the world by far,” Musk said in October on a call with Wall Street analysts. “If you have fully autonomous cars at scale and fully autonomous humanoid robots that are truly useful, it’s not clear what the limit is.”