How can I permanently disable automated braking?

[Alex10000]

Hi all,

How can I permanently disable automated emergency braking (Model Y AWD)? I've noticed that I need to disable automated emergency braking each time I start the car. I don't remember this being the case previously. From my recollection, you used to be able to turn off automated braking and it would stay off. Now, it seems automated braking is the default setting and has to be disabled each time you drive the car - perhaps as part of a recent software upgrade?

In any case, I'd like to not have to turn it off every time I drive. I'm concerned about the risks of phantom braking, especially since I live in a rural area with mostly two-lane driving on winding roads. Does anyone have suggestions?

Thank you!

 

[Mattemsmy]

I don‘t think you can disable it permanently. But I would love to find out.

 

[Alex10000]

Thank you! Anyone else have any thoughts on how to do this?

I've been reading the stories on the forum about phantom braking incidents. Terrifying! It's easy to forget to manually turn AEB off each time you drive. The least Tesla could do if the system is often giving false positives is to allow us to disable it and leave it off. Elon, are you listening??

 

[jjrandorin]

Thank you! Anyone else have any thoughts on how to do this?

I've been reading the stories on the forum about phantom braking incidents. Terrifying! It's easy to forget to manually turn AEB off each time you drive. The least Tesla could do if the system is often giving false positives is to allow us to disable it and leave it off. Elon, are you listening??

The "Terrifying" phantom braking you are reading about has virtually zero to do with Automatic Emergency Braking. They are all (like 99.5% or more) talking about phantom braking when on autopilot or FSD. Since you mention you mention you are reading the threads, I am surprised you are not noticing that but check them again and you will see that.

So now that we have established that the AEB you are turning off is not the same as the phantom braking that people are talking about, the answer to your question is no, there is no way to permanently disable it (at least not that I am aware of).

The manual for the vehicle spells this out:

=====================================

Model Y Owner's Manual | Tesla

Learn about Collision Avoidance Assist and its specifications.

www.tesla.com

Relevant text directly from the tesla manual:

Automatic Emergency Braking​

Model Y is designed to determine the distance from a detected object traveling in front of it. When a frontal collision is considered unavoidable, Automatic Emergency Braking is designed to apply the brakes to reduce the vehicle's speed and therefore, the severity of the impact. The amount of speed that is reduced depends on many factors, including driving speed and environment.
When Automatic Emergency Braking applies the brakes, the touchscreen displays a visual warning and sounds a chime. You may also notice abrupt downward movement of the brake pedal. The brake lights turn on to alert other road users that you are slowing down.

Emergency braking in progress
Automatic Emergency Braking operates only when driving between approximately 3 mph (5 km/h) and 90 mph (150 km/h).
Automatic Emergency Braking does not apply the brakes, or stops applying the brakes, when:

• You turn the steering wheel sharply.
• You press and release the brake pedal while Automatic Emergency Braking is applying the brakes.
• You accelerate hard while Automatic Emergency Braking is applying the brakes.
• The vehicle, motorcycle, bicycle, or pedestrian is no longer detected ahead.

Automatic Emergency Braking is always enabled when you start Model Y. To disable it for your current drive, touch Controls > Autopilot > Automatic Emergency Braking. Even if you disable Automatic Emergency Braking, your vehicle may still apply the brakes after detecting an initial collision to reduce further impact (see Multi-Collision Braking).

 

[Alex10000]

Can you please clariffy then what system causes the PB incidents? AEB is a control that falls under Autopilot. Are you saying these PB incidents are occurring when AEB has been switched off?

My understanding from reading the posts is that these people had AEB switched on, and that was what caused the PB incident. What isn't clear is if all of them or most of them occur when the driver is using cruise control. I've seen some posts saying PB incidents can occur without cruise control being engaged. But in those cases, I assume it is because AEB has been left enabled.

If not, then what caused the incident?

 

[jjrandorin]

Can you please clariffy then what system causes the PB incidents? AEB is a control that falls under Autopilot. Are you saying these PB incidents are occurring when AEB has been switched off?

My understanding from reading the posts is that these people had AEB switched on, and that was what caused the PB incident. What isn't clear is if all of them or most of them occur when the driver is using cruise control. I've seen some posts saying PB incidents can occur without cruise control being engaged. But in those cases, I assume it is because AEB has been left enabled.

If not, then what caused the incident?

I would suggest going back and looking at the threads you are looking at again, because its not Automatic emergency braking, its Traffic aware cruise control, or Full self Driving, or Enhanced autopilot (Teslas words for fancy cruise control).

AEB has nothing to do with any of those. its under "autopilot safety features" and is not what people are talking about in those threads. I have read the vast majority of "phantom braking " threads here (and they number probably close to 100 or more since I have been here" and the number of times someone says they had "phantom braking" when NOT using some form of autopilot (which is Traffic aware cruise control, enhanced autopilot, or Full self driving) I could probably count on one hand.

 

[SageBrush]

its Traffic aware cruise control, or Full self Driving, or Enhanced autopilot (Teslas words for fancy cruise control).

Good catch, so I'm sure OP wants to know how to set whichever of these are in his car to be off by default.

I remember the PB braking problem well. I finally took delivery of a Model Y after a year wait, and sold it after a week. The PB episodes made me one unhappy camper. It was not the reason I sold the car, but it sure took the gleam out of the car since I chose to disable every system that elicited that behavior.

 

[RickCRNA]

I have a 2021 MY LR and 2022 M3 LR and I don’t use autopilot or TACC when driving either vehicle. Mine and my wife’s safety comes first. I did not buy two Teslas because I was enamored with AP and TACC. That said, if Tesla successfully figures out a way to reliably eliminate PB, then for long trips I would probably use AP and TACC.

 

[johnnycnote]

The first few times FB happened to me, I kind of freaked out and was reluctant use AutoPilot. However, I don't find FB to be much of a distraction anymore. I drive approx 2k miles per month with 80% of those miles on FSDb and I experience FB maybe 2-3 times during that time. When it does happen, I look at my surroundings and, if there's no apparent cause for the gradual reduction in speed, I just tap the accelerator and we're good

I do agree that it should be addressed quickly as it seems to be a big concern for new owners

 

[aselvan]

I have a 2021 M3 and I experienced the scarry fantom breaking (FB) 3 times during my drive from Dallas to Austin using just cruise control (TACC). On my way back I turned off the "automatic emergency braking" and "Obstacle aware acceleration" settings and did not experience FB at all during the entire drive using just TACC. I am not sure this settings are the culprit for FB but sure does seem like they had something to do with it, at least in this case. I wish there is a way to disable the stupid "automatic emergency braking" permanently!

 

[iloveplywood]

I have a 2021 M3 and I experienced the scarry fantom breaking (FB) 3 times during my drive from Dallas to Austin using just cruise control (TACC). On my way back I turned off the "automatic emergency braking" and "Obstacle aware acceleration" settings and did not experience FB at all during the entire drive using just TACC. I am not sure this settings are the culprit for FB but sure does seem like they had something to do with it, at least in this case. I wish there is a way to disable the stupid "automatic emergency braking" permanently!

Interesting. This phantom breaking stuff kind of freaks me out. I can see from Tesla's perspective why it would be tough to fool around with. From a liability standpoint I think it's a lot better to do something that causes another car to rear end you versus not erring on the side of caution and plowing into the car in front of you. Still, I don't get why it's so much worse than other car manufacturers. You hardly ever hear about phantom breaking in other car forums (except when they talk about Tesla).

 

[DanDi58]

I have a 2021 M3 and I experienced the scarry fantom breaking (FB) 3 times during my drive from Dallas to Austin using just cruise control (TACC). On my way back I turned off the "automatic emergency braking" and "Obstacle aware acceleration" settings and did not experience FB at all during the entire drive using just TACC. I am not sure this settings are the culprit for FB but sure does seem like they had something to do with it, at least in this case. I wish there is a way to disable the stupid "automatic emergency braking" permanently!

'Scary phantom braking'.

Sure, go ahead and disable safety features for rare occurrences of phantom braking. Seems smart. I just 450 miles on TACC with zero issues. Monitor where it happens and be prepared to intervene instead.

 

[CJCS]

'Scary phantom braking'.

Sure, go ahead and disable safety features for rare occurrences of phantom braking. Seems smart. I just 450 miles on TACC with zero issues. Monitor where it happens and be prepared to intervene instead.

I have a 2023 dual Model 3 and have experienced PB a number of times only when cruise control is ON, never with cruise OFF. It is scary I've learned to drive while cruise is ON by positioning my hand near the stem that turns OFF cruise. Turning OFF cruise seems to shorten the PB process (not completely.) Regarding turning off the so called safety features, I've driven vehicles all my life without these complex safety features and have a clear, long and safe driving record and I commute therefore for me if I turn off "auto emergency braking" and "obstacle acceleration" and eliminate PB in a +$50 vehicle fine. I love my model 3 dual motor but for the cost Tesla software engineers are letting us down..... fix it.

 

[jjrandorin]

For more discussion on phantom breaking, please join in one of the threads on the topic in the subforum that is dedicated to Autopilot / FSD, like these:

Phantom braking when a car is following you.

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Why are TACC, AP (and ?FSD) so bad?

Just recently took another long drive in my 2022 Model S LR and tried out TACC and AP again. (I didn't purchase FSD since it's not ready for prime time). Still serious problems: - Multiple phantom braking episodes on deserted straight roads (single and double lane) - Multiple "Collision warning"...

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Why I am losing faith in Tesla’s Autopilot (Autosteer)

I absolutely love my Model 3. I have had it for just over 3 years now and enjoyed driving every mile of the 42,000 miles that I have clocked till today. Most of the mileage has been on the highway and the remainder was miles that I racked up while commuting for work before the pandemic. When I...

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Phantom Braking

I‘m not so sure Tesla could fix PB overnight. Several months back I experimented with disabling all AEB and safety features for a week. PB events were decreased but definitely not eliminated. You may not be able to disable it .. but of course Tesla could disable all non-driver brake...

teslamotorsclub.com