Tesla Faked an Autopilot Drive Video

Wanting to overdo it in a video for her Autopilot, Tesla even officially lied to make people believe that its cars could drive completely on their own.

In 2016, Tesla aimed to impress the automotive world. Not only proud of being ahead in electric cars, the brand wanted to lead in autonomous driving. Maybe too much, as it pushed them to cheat.

The Autopilot director confirms that Tesla lied

More than six years ago, the manufacturer released a video of the new version of its Autopilot system, on a Tesla Model X. This system, combining driver assistance features like cruise control and active lane keeping, promised to become an autonomous driving system. According to the video, Tesla showcased driving from home to the supermarket without touching the wheel. It even begins with this statement: “the person in the driver’s seat is only there for legal reasons, they do nothing, the car drives itself”.

In reality, it would be quite different. The Autopilot software director, Ashok Elluswamy, admitted that “the car was not being driven with the technology Tesla had deployed”, as reported by Reuters. The engineer made this public, testifying in a case involving a fatal accident caused by a Tesla from 2018. He also added, at the request of CEO Elon Musk, that the video was a “demonstration of the system’s capabilities”, not reflective of the system available in the cars.

Is Autopilot oversold?

At Mobiwisy, we have already driven a Tesla, and we can tell you whether the brand is the best in semi-automatic driving. Don’t be mistaken; the American brand is not capable of making electric cars that drive themselves because the law forbids it and requires keeping hands on the wheel, nor are they the best in this area. We were impressed by the cars’ capabilities, but in our opinion, Mercedes-Benz does better in this regard. This is especially true with the Mercedes EQS 450+ tested last December, whereas the Tesla Model Y Performance tested this month is clearly one level below.

Reminder: full Autopilot is also not standard on Tesla Model 3 or Y with the eco-friendly bonus. Only adaptive cruise control with lane keeping is included, as it requires an additional €3,800 to add automatic lane changes and parking, or €7,500 for traffic light and stop sign recognition, and eventually a true semi-autonomous driving in the city (via an upcoming update).

Also read: Autonomous driving: Volvo relies on Google mapping