Iihs Studies Suggest Public Confusion About Driver Assist Systems

[diplomat33]

"Vehicles are getting increasingly sophisticated, with more and more of them able to stay in a lane and maintain a set speed and following distance with minimal driver input. But this kind of automation has limitations that can be tricky for drivers to grasp, and two new IIHS studies highlight misperceptions or gaps in drivers' understanding.

One study revealed how the names manufacturers use for these systems can send the wrong messages to drivers regarding how attentive they should be. Another found that drivers don't always understand important information communicated by system displays."

Read more::New studies highlight driver confusion about automated systems

The survey definitely seems to show that more drivers overestimate what Autopilot can do. A whopping 48% think they can take their hands off the wheel!!

However, I am not sure if the name "autopilot" alone is to blame for people overestimating what it can do. After all, the car gives the driver plenty of reminders to keep hands on wheel. I think this problem started years ago when Tesla released AP1. Back then, AP1 was ahead of its time and people were amazed that the car could drive in the lane so well. You had foolish drivers trying to show off how good AP1 was by taking their hands off the wheel. Today, we still have youtube videos with titles like "my full self-driving Tesla". I think this does a lot to spread the mythos that the cars are already full self-driving. And the other factor which cannot be ignored is poor marketing from Tesla. We have Elon liberally talking about how the cars will probably be full self-driving in "6 months definitely". And we also cannot ignore that Tesla actually sells a misleading "Full Self-Driving" option on their website which may be full self-driving at some point in the future but certainly is not FSD right now. We can't blame new potential buyers (I see it all the time on this forum and on facebook) for thinking that their car is full self-driving!

So I think the blame for people thinking AP is more autonomous than it really is lies more in the bad FSD marketing than in the name "autopilot".

I do think Tesla's autopilot visualization is one of the best. The large screen really helps. It is very obvious on a Tesla if the car is seeing lanes correctly, seeing other cars etc.. Other driver assist visualizations seem way too cluttered IMO. This 2017 Mercedes screen is a perfect example. The driver has to pay attention to tiny little icons to know if the car is lane keeping or following another car. Not a good design IMO.

 

[Rockster]

My wife would call this my innate cynicism talking but I believe anything more complicated than a toothpick confuses today's average consumer.

 

[boaterva]

You might be interested in this Twitter thread... Tesla Truth pretty much rips the article/discussion to shreds.

The audience should be Tesla owners, as he says, not people in general.

Steve on Twitter

My bottom line is autopilot has never meant autonomy, it’s meant (in airplanes and boats) something that helps steer a course and keep altitude (if applicable).

As you say, the average non-technical consumer can’t handle anything above a screwdriver.

 

[diplomat33]

You might be interested in this Twitter thread... Tesla Truth pretty much rips the article/discussion to shreds.

Steve on Twitter

My bottom line is autopilot has never meant autonomy, it’s meant (in airplanes and boats) something that helps steer a course and keep altitude (if applicable).

As you say, the average non-technical consumer can’t handle anything above a screwdriver.

Oh, I know that autopilot does not mean autonomous which I said that I did not think the name was the real cause of some of the public's confusion. I even gave my reasons for why some folks mistake autopilot for autonomous.

 

[boaterva]

Oh, I know that autopilot does not mean autonomous which I said that I did not think the name was the real cause of some of the public's confusion. I even gave my reasons for why some folks mistake autopilot for autonomous.

The thread wasn’t for you, but for general reference to counter the FUD journalists and naysayers. I think most people on TMC know what reality is.

 

[Eno Deb]

The thread wasn’t for you, but for general reference to counter the FUD journalists and naysayers. I think most people on TMC know what reality is.

There are actually lots of people even on this forum who have unrealistic expectations for Tesla's driver assist system. In large part I blame this on Tesla's marketing, which has for years suggested that full self-driving and Robotaxis are just around the corner. The fact that after the recent EAP rebranding things like NoA are now officially called "Full Self-Driving Capability" by Tesla does not help.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

This study was rather ridiculous for lots of reasons.

The first one is they only surveyed generic drivers, and not people who either owned vehicles with these systems nor did were they shopping for them. So basically they were tasked with trying to figure out capabilities based on the name itself or what they've heard about them.

Secondly they conveniently left out the Mercedes Drive Pilot, and yet the article uses a picture from a Mercedes Drive Pilot system. Why is that important? Because it doesn't have ASSIST in the name which is kind of a dead give away that the system is only an assist system.

Lastly I'm more concerned about people overestimating capabilities who own, and drive the specific type of car. As an example do most people who have a Radar based Adaptive Cruise Control system know that the vehicle won't always stop for a stopped vehicle?

 

[Az_Rael]

And we also cannot ignore that Tesla actually sells a misleading "Full Self-Driving" option on their website which may be full self-driving at some point in the future but certainly is not FSD right now. We can't blame new potential buyers (I see it all the time on this forum and on facebook) for thinking that their car is full self-driving!

This. Many arguments about Autopilot in the past and whether the name implied more than the car could do, and Tesla just doubles down and names the package Full Self Driving.

 

[Az_Rael]

There are actually lots of people even on this forum who have unrealistic expectations for Tesla's driver assist system. In large part I blame this on Tesla's marketing, which has for years suggested that full self-driving and Robotaxis are just around the corner. The fact that after the recent EAP rebranding things like NoA are now officially called "Full Self-Driving Capability" by Tesla does not help.

You should read the posters on Reddit . They were praising Tesla's ability the other day for the idiot who was allegedly asleep for 30 miles on the 405 in his Model 3. Not talking about how lucky that guy was to not crash.

One of the commenters said he regularly closes his eyes, turns and kisses his wife while using AP and how that is "pure joy".

Even here, when the MX Mountain View fatality happened, there were pages and pages of folks who were absolutely certain there was NO WAY he was using AP and there was no way AP would drive anyone into a barrier. Then Tesla confirmed AP was on.

Overestimation of the abilities by owners is rampant and probably worse outside the forums where people aren't seeing the AP failure examples.

 

[boaterva]

The point of the thread (Twitter) was that you should know reality because Tesla has told you several times and you (the owner) agreed to it. Would a name change really help that much? Autopilot does what autopilot systems have done for decades. That’s the definition of AP. Course and speed. Anything else is gravy.

I agreed FSD is a bit of a problem, but we don’t have that yet and not sure who thinks that they do. As always FUD and negative posts are hard to filter out.

The original point was that this survey sounded like more planted FUD it was so bad.

 

[diplomat33]

I agreed FSD is a bit of a problem, but we don’t have that yet and not sure who thinks that they do.

Actually, there are plenty of new owners who think their car is already FSD because the Tesla website calls it that. For example, there is this thread where a new owner asks if FSD/NOA allows for hands off the wheel and when he is told that it is not, he gets upset since Tesla calls it FSD and follows up with a question about whether he can disable the hands on wheel requirement because he thought he was buying hands off driving. FSD - hands on wheel?

I've seen other similar posts from new owners on this forum as well as on the model 3 facebook page, who get upset when autopilot loses the lane when lane lines disappear or almost hits another car, or blows through a red light, or makes some other mistake because they thought the car was full self-driving.

 

[boaterva]

Actually, there are plenty of new owners who think their car is already FSD because the Tesla website calls it that. For example, there is this thread where a new owner asks if FSD/NOA allows for hands off the wheel and when he is told that it is not, he gets upset since Tesla calls it FSD and follows up with a question about whether he can disable the hands on wheel requirement because he thought he was buying hands off driving. FSD - hands on wheel?

I've seen other similar posts from new owners on this forum as well as on the model 3 facebook page, who get upset when autopilot loses the lane when lane lines disappear or almost hits another car, or blows through a red light, or makes some other mistake because they thought the car was full self-driving.

Sounds like a bunch of people that need to read what they are agreeing to, as was the original point. Hard to fix stupid.