FSD test drive

[Cshama]

I took out an S with FSD for a test drive.

I went down what I would call B roads. The FSD light went on an off and admittedly it was a very hard test of the feature.

But I felt it was incredibly dangerous. Now admittedly I'm a complete novice when it comes to full self driving. But one minute the light was on and the next minute there was a little beep and the light went off. The little beep caused me to panic slightly and yank the steering wheel to regain control of the car. It would happen on sharp corners and in fact in random areas. I cannot see how this is possibly safe. I'm sure over time I would get used to it but still it felt incredibly unsafe.
Was I missing something? But this seemed more trouble than it was worth. The amount of vigilance and uncertainty when driving down the road was was much more than I usually have to have.

 

[Microterf]

What you are talking about is auto pilot. Not the full self driving beta that everybody is talking about now. Auto pilot is mostly meant to be used on the highway even though you can engage it pretty much anywhere it can see lane lines

 

[Tam]

...But I felt it was incredibly dangerous...

It's meant to be a tool for you to use and not a substitution of yourself for now. You can learn its strength and weakness and make your drive much easier or you just concentrate on its weakness and make it unusable.

 

[TresLA]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I don't think you were using FSD beta (Full Self Driving). It sounds like you were just using normal Autopilot (an Advanced Driver Assistance System).

 

[Huskyf]

The beeps is because you don't have the hands on the wheel for a couples of secondes.

 

[Cirus]

Hello everyone ! How do I get a hold of someone so I can send my proposal regarding solving the test-drive problem in a very convenient way? I've sent it to a few email addresses found on the net, but so far they've come back as blocked or failed to deliver! This is Elon's material. If he hears about it, I believe he is going to give a greenlight to that. I just can't go into too much depth here- quite detailed and long if it doesn't reach anyone who can connect me to someone with (some) authority. Thank you!

 

[Dan D.]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I don't think you were using FSD beta (Full Self Driving). It sounds like you were just using normal Autopilot (an Advanced Driver Assistance System).

Where does this level of knowledge disconnect come from? Not asking in a mean way, but why do these drivers mistake the features they have? Were they told they could use it on B roads, did they not read the manual (or try but fail to understand all the manual limitations)?

It's doing nobody any favors having "novices" using Autopilot on roads where it is unsafe, and thinking their car is supposed to handle it. Sure, Tesla could geofence AP but seems unlikely to do so.

This question seems to keep coming up in various ways and the answer keeps being "you don't actually have FSD". Who/what is telling them that they do?

 

[hamoneaster]

I'm curious to know how you just found a Model S with FSD to test drive? Based on your description and others responses, it seems like you tested "autopilot." I have a 2020 Model S with the FSD purchase; but I have not gotten the FSD beta yet. What you are describing doesn't really happen in my Model S. Currently, my 'Navigate on Autopilot" feature does pretty well on interstates -- which is what it is meant for. If I don't leave my hands on the steering wheel, then it will start beeping and it will eventually lock me out from using Navigate on Autopilot for the duration of the drive if I keep breaking that rule.

Now if you test drove it with from a dealership, the rep should have known better and told you the correct info? I don't think Tesla lets even dealerships have cars with FSD beta to be "test drove."

 

[Microterf]

I believe the problem is with their idea of "all input is error". They want it to be so easy to use that it's very intuitive. The problem is that it isn't there yet, and they don't do a good job of educating the people who need it the most (first time owners/test drivers)