Tesla, the software blocks 130 km of autonomy of a Model S
Tesla
Today's news spread thanks to Twitter user Jason Hughes, famous for his knowledge of the software used by Tesla; more than once in the past Jason has managed to successfully hack Tesla's systems, and it is precisely for this reason that the poor customer protagonist of this story has turned to him.In the past Tesla used to sell Model S models with battery packs partially blocked by software: it is a way to make production simpler and more linear, but to offer different price steps in its catalog - therefore we found ourselves with Model S equipped with a 60 kWh battery pack blocked at 40 kWh, however. Subsequently Tesla offered its customers the possibility of unlocking, for an additional payment, the part of the battery that was "blocked" by the software, for the sum of $ 4,500: today this practice has fallen into disuse and Tesla dusts it only when it needs to be replaced of a battery pack of a size that no longer produces.| ); }
Later on, while the car is parked in his driveway, Tesla calls him to tell him that they found and fixed a configuration mistake with his car.
They remotely software locked the car to be a 60 again, despite having been a 90 for years.
He now has ~ 80 miles less range.
(3 / *)
- Jason Hughes (@ wk057) July 25, 2022
Once the update was complete, the car was returned: following work on the car, Tesla called the owner to inform him that he had identified a discrepancy in the vehicle's configuration, therefore Tesla personnel have applied a "fix" remotely to the car system. The fix actually turned out to be the removal of the battery release, a service already paid in the past by the previous owner, which effectively blocked 1/3 of the car's autonomy: after the owner's first protests, Tesla said willing to unlock the battery again for an additional $ 4,500 payment. Needless to say, this response sent the owner into a rage, who bought the car for it as a Model S 90, and not a Model S 60.
Following Jason's Twitter posts on question, Tesla contacted the customer again and offered to solve the problem for free: it took a social campaign to wake up the company, which is not new to this type of blunder.
Safety regulators are investigating a crash involving a Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot that killed a motorcyclist in Utah, reports say
US road safety regulators are investigating a fatal crash involving a Tesla Model 3 over claims that the driver was using the autopilot system.
On Tuesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced it had opened a special investigation into the death of a motorcyclist that occurred in Utah on Sunday, Reuters first reported. NHTSA later confirmed the investigation to Insider.
The unnamed 34-year-old was traveling southbound on a freeway in Draper county, Utah, when he was struck from behind by the Model 3 Tesla, according to Utah Highway Patrol, KSL News reported. The driver told investigators that the Autopilot function was on and he failed to see the victim, per KSL.com.
The agency has initiated special investigations into 39 separate Tesla crashes involving advanced driver-assistance systems since 2016, according to a database seen by Insider. They've collectively resulted in 19 deaths, including the Utah victim.
The latest probe comes shortly after the safety agency expanded an investigation into Tesla's Autopilot system to cover 830,000 vehicles, on June 9.
If a safety defect is found, the agency could force Tesla to recall vehicles to fix the problem. NHTSA hopes to conclude the investigation — which involves Model Y, Model X, Model S and Model 3 cars sold in the US between 2014 and 2022 — within a year, per The New York Times.
Tesla first introduce its Autopilot feature in 2015 but has yet to realize Elon Musk's vision for fully self-driving cars.
The company is involved in several lawsuits filed by drivers or the families of victims killed in crashes.
June figures released by the agency revealed that of all manufacturers providing automated driver assistance, Teslas have been involved in the most, accounting for 273 of 392 autonomous vehicle incidents since July 2021.
Tesla did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
