WATTS-UP
Member
After our granddaughter spent five and a half month in the NICU at Mercy Hospital, guess who got a ride home in a Model “S”. Read a number of stories of people thanking their lucky stars that they were driving a Tesla.
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Cyclone
Cyclonic Member ((.oO))
I am so very happy you (and your family) are here to write this. After some bad accidents in my family, purchasing my Model S was first and foremost for the safety, before the EV, the amazing driving experience, and the joy of not dealing with a dealer.
I hope your 2nd Model S honors the memory of its fallen brother!
James Anders
Member
I suspect not out of morbid curiosity but rather to see how the body/frame handled the crash.
Every indication of AP "reflexes" that I have encountered during my driving would tell me that AP couldnt avoid much of anything. let alone a head on collision. If AP was on I don't know how forthcoming the OP should be about that...nothing beats a capable and aware driver at this point in its development.
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exactly...pictures of the car not of the carnage. Given that they could open their doors in a head on collision is amazing to hear. Moreover the SUV crumple zone went past the door hinges ad prevented them from escaping the car (without outside assistance. That says a LOT and it would be testament to TM and their dedication to safety. No one wants to see anything more than that.
The car was a 2013 model. AP was not available then.
Glad the OP is safe and that the model S is the safest car ever built.
Tesla Autopilot is state of the art when it comes to avoiding accidents. Of course it can't avoid every possible accident but a vigilant and responsible driver + Autopilot is better at avoiding an accident than just a vigilant and responsible driver. I bet there are dozens of accidents that have been prevented by Tesla Autopilot/crash avoidance interventions. And the software will only become more capable.
Most people would not have been able to avoid an accident as well as Tesla Autopilot on the video below, especially when the driver's attention was focused on the cars stopped to the right as mentioned on the YouTube video caption. Watch the video again and notice how quickly Autopilot reacted and anticipated this accident and acted immediately to avoid it.
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AMPd
Well-Known Member
Even one life saved should make Elon Musk and Co proud.I'm so glad you were in a Model S and that you're replacing it - I often wonder how many lives have been saved because of these cars. Probably no way to know.
Glad you're both okay. Welcome to the forum. I look forward to hearing about your new vehicles!
Glad to hear you're all safe OP!
tinm
2020 Model S LR+ Owner
[That video bugs the heck out of me. A good driver would have been slowing down long before. Seeing the right lane backing up and the left lane open is a screaming indicator of trouble ahead. The driver should have cut speed and fully anticipated some bozo cutting into the lane. Happens all the time. No autopilot needed.]
In urban driving this is quite normal and in fact what you should do based on my experience. At least in the NY area if there is traffic stopped on one lane, you keep driving at a regular speed on your lane if the path is clear. If you hesitate that's when you invite all the indecisive people to maybe or maybe not cut in front of you and you never know what they are going to do and neither do they.
IMHO there was nothing wrong with how the driver on the video drove. The fault is with the car that turned in front of him without knowing the lane was clear.
The point of the video is how quickly Autopilot intervened to avoid an accident. It reacted faster than most humans could or would.
Translation: "The fact that humans are imperfect beings really bothers me. Active safety devices are not needed because in my dream world humans don't make mistakes."
brucet999
Active Member
OP's statement is that it was not head-on. SUV ignored red arrow and turned left in front of him; OP thenT-boned the SUV.
Lex
Member
When posting a new message, select the icon of a tree in a square frame, you can then upload images directly.
Glad to hear everyone was OK.
Glad to hear everyone was OK.
Cyclone
Cyclonic Member ((.oO))
FYI that you get a limited amount of storage space to upload photos too and the server will only accept photos are that up to a maximum of some unknown size (smaller than my iPhone natively takes pics at). So I find it easier to upload elsewhere (like on Imgur) and use that same icon to add photos "from the web". Just be sure to uncheck "load local copy" or else it will download the pic into your account here and thus, use some of your storage.
Due to having a limited number of posts, the site might have a restriction on you posting photos or links. (Speculation). An OP may have to approve any photos before they appear.
Andyw2100
Well-Known Member
In spite of the thread subject, as has been pointed out, the OP described T-boning the SUV.
I agree it is unlikely that Automatic Emergency Braking would have been able to prevent this accident entirely, but from the description of things it wouldn't surprise me at all if in the same situation an autopilot enabled car would have hit at a lower rate of speed.
Even assuming that the OP noticed the SUV and decided to brake no later than the autopilot system would have, which is quite the assumption in and of itself, from the point the OP made that decision he still needed to get his foot to the brake pedal and depress the brake pedal. Whatever time that took would be extra time actually spent braking had an automatic emergency braking system kicked in. Add in the fact that it is possible an autopilot enabled car may have identified the problem a little bit sooner, and the speed of impact would have been reduced even further.
So I think it is fair to say that as well as this pre-autopilot Model S fared, and as good a job as it did at protecting its occupants and the occupants in the other vehicle, it is highly likely that an autopilot enabled Model S would have done an even better job.
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