Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

The success of FSD and my increase for trust in Tesla

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
I paid 10 grand and now my already great Model Y now drives itself through my town. It slows down for speed bumps, handles four ways on its own, swerves around bikers and parked cars who's doors are open. It handles the 5 and the 405 quite well too!

Obviously it's not perfect and can do the wrong thing at the wrong time and has a price tag you don't like. But dude the car is literally driving itself. Do you own another car that can do that? Does your $80,000 Bronco do it? Your $90,000 lightning that hasn't even been delivered yet? Maybe your R1T will have lane keep assist when it's delivered to you in 2023 lol.

Haters are going to hate Tesla until they're blue in the face, but no matter what haters say Tesla actually delivered here on FSD and my Model Y is the only SUV (apart from the X 😉) that will drive and park itself. My trust in Tesla has only gone up because it's clear they're perhaps the only company in the world bold enough to build FSD and actually give it to real customers. Ford Blue Cruise works on like 1 highway... FSD works on back alley streets in the Hollywood hills.

0x0-ModelY_01.jpg


(Image - Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Once you start selling outside the Tesla fan club this becomes a big issue. People who are not familiar with tech companies and agile software development practices have no idea what they are even signing up for with FSD. IMO, Tesla should break up the offer and put FSD by itself since it will be a continual work in progress/perpetual beta. If they want to create a package and monetize Summon, AutoPark and NoA then go ahead but FSD for city streets should be free just like all beta versions of software products.
i dont nessicarly think they should break up the feature, tho thats certainly an option. i do however agree they really need to invest in consumer education, they would avoid a lot of customer frustration this way, tho i'm sure they dont see that as profitable lol. and frankly the venn diagram of people who have 70k to drop on a car and the people who would spend 70k on a car without proper research is fairly small haha but all the same they are doing themselves a disservice by ignoring that.
 
There's a reason why pilots and doctors wear suits and ties. It's not because they need to, it's because the perception of professionality and attention to minor details increases confidence.

I won't consider FSD because Tesla can't even figure out how to handle wiper blades while speeding onto the highway in Oregon drizzle. It's small, it's petty -- but I will pay an arm and a leg for something that truly is a convenience to me. If even the wiper blades can't figure out that water is falling from the sky in an increased rate, then I will not pay for something that could get me killed.

It's just simple logic here. You can BS yourselves, but you're actually less relaxed for FSD and paying for the beta test.
 
For me FSD/NOA, and now FSD-beta is what makes my Tesla a Tesla. It makes all the difference, perfect yet or not. I wouldn't want a Tesla without it. It drives me 150 miles from my house to work and 150 miles home once a week, with me only having to casually supervise. It rarely makes a mistake on that drive. That's a big thing when I worked all night, 12-15 hours, in a busy emergency department and have to drive home. No question it's more relaxing. But then as a physician, I don't wear no stinkin' suit and tie either........logic is only logical with experience......
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Yelobird
There's a reason why pilots and doctors wear suits and ties. It's not because they need to, it's because the perception of professionality and attention to minor details increases confidence.

I won't consider FSD because Tesla can't even figure out how to handle wiper blades while speeding onto the highway in Oregon drizzle. It's small, it's petty -- but I will pay an arm and a leg for something that truly is a convenience to me. If even the wiper blades can't figure out that water is falling from the sky in an increased rate, then I will not pay for something that could get me killed.

It's just simple logic here. You can BS yourselves, but you're actually less relaxed for FSD and paying for the beta test.
Let's hope FSD users are not too "relaxed" when using FSD or they may kill someone and blame it on the FSD system. ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: PACEMD
For me FSD/NOA, and now FSD-beta is what makes my Tesla a Tesla. It makes all the difference, perfect yet or not. I wouldn't want a Tesla without it. It drives me 150 miles from my house to work and 150 miles home once a week, with me only having to casually supervise. It rarely makes a mistake on that drive. That's a big thing when I worked all night in a busy emergency department and have to drive home. No question it's more relaxing. But then as a physician, I don't wear no stinkin' suit and tie either........logic is only logical with experience......
Let me qualify this, you have to learn how to use the software. Until you retrain your brain to drive using the software it's more work than not.
 
  • Like
Reactions: pilotSteve
I paid $7K for the FSD nearly 3 years ago and still waiting for this *sugar*, also joined the beta program but I live in an area where I get cut of 25 times a day during my daily commute where the car alerts me of late braking and such which is total horse *sugar*, than the stupid score goes down.
So, here is how I see it, I paid for this *sugar* and cant get it due to demographics of the area/driving madness i live in, but, people who haven't paid and live in rural areas can keep their 100% score and can get it.
I think its criminal and **** tesla for that reason, I will sell the retarded hunka junk 2020 M3 long range as soon as I finish paying for it, and, tesla can than go **** itself, I will but an ev that has dealers all over where I live and **** FSD. it wont work around where I live anyways.
For those blindly defending tesla, I have news for you, there will be about a dozen chinese ev's coming to the market in the next few years, lets see the how things will compare than, especially with the big automakers also going in to the game.
And if you believe tesla is a technology company first, so what, I bought a tesla car that came with their technology, they should make it right, the frikken thing is falling apart.
Just my 2 cents,
Bummer! You paid for it but can’t have it 😲😖. I’ll be upset too. Sorry for your dilemna.
 
Let's hope anyone operating a motor vehicle is not too relaxed or intoxicated. What am I saying? That would put me out of business, wouldn't it?
Valid point. A couple years ago I had someone stop me in a parking lot and ask me about my Tesla experience and he right away started saying he wanted to get one so he could go out drinking and have the car drive him home. He was dead serious. I was like, no dude, it is not at that level yet. Then he was like, well it should eliminate the swaying and keep me in the lane right?

So, while I am still a skeptic when it comes to FSD, I am hopeful that the technology can help fix stupid and possibly save lives.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PACEMD
The Tesla Vision solution is a miracle, but I believe in lidar because of its reliability

That is something you should really research. I can go back a long time with radar detectors and tell you how many times I got false positives from supermarket door openers and other sensor tech all over. The problem is that LIDAR contains no encoding, so there is no reliable measure that the waves you are sending out are the ones that your vehicle is sensing on the return.

I have one of the first Vision Only Model Y's (June 2021). I almost refused delivery because of the perceived bait and switch, but I will say that driving with it, I get a ton less follow-braking issues than I did with the Volvo LIDAR cruise control that I owned before, and same for my wife's LIDAR cruise control in both her then-Subaru and now-Nissan LEAF.

I will admit that early on the Vision Only system was a little rough, but by August 2021 I was having very little issues with it, and actually saw significant improvements over what I had before.
 
That is something you should really research. I can go back a long time with radar detectors and tell you how many times I got false positives from supermarket door openers and other sensor tech all over. The problem is that LIDAR contains no encoding, so there is no reliable measure that the waves you are sending out are the ones that your vehicle is sensing on the return.

I have one of the first Vision Only Model Y's (June 2021). I almost refused delivery because of the perceived bait and switch, but I will say that driving with it, I get a ton less follow-braking issues than I did with the Volvo LIDAR cruise control that I owned before, and same for my wife's LIDAR cruise control in both her then-Subaru and now-Nissan LEAF.

I will admit that early on the Vision Only system was a little rough, but by August 2021 I was having very little issues with it, and actually saw significant improvements over what I had before.
It's still wildly impressive to me how good Tesla is with just a vision only system.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Yelobird
It's still wildly impressive to me how good Tesla is with just a vision only system.
Dude you can buy an add-on module for $2k from Comma.AI that uses cameras already installed in compatible vehicles + a smartphone and will supposedly do everything Autopilot does, and the founder of the company says they'll be 1-2 years behind Tesla whenever they achieve full autonomy.

I think you'd be surprised how comparable a lot of these systems are under the hood but the differences in apparent abilities are created by what the manufacturer implements and allows -- most manufacturers are much more conservative than Tesla. The technology is probably more prolific in China because China will throw everything aside in the relentless pursuit of technological advancement.

The big Western/Euro car manufacturers are proceeding much more deliberately. I don't think it matters much in the end, because Level 4-5 autonomy will quickly spread to all new vehicles when it's finally achieved -- if it actually drastically improves road safety, anything less would be unconscionable as the technology needs to be deployed ASAP to reduce accident rates and save road users from injury/death. The technology will not remain with one manufacturer, we'll quickly have a hodgepodge of different brands all with their own flavor of autonomy.
 
Last edited:
Dude you can buy an add-on module for $2k from Comma.AI that uses cameras already installed in compatible vehicles + a smartphone and will supposedly do everything Autopilot does, and the founder of the company says they'll be 1-2 years behind Tesla whenever they achieve full autonomy.

I think you'd be surprised how comparable a lot of these systems are under the hood but the differences in apparent abilities are created by what the manufacturer implements and allows -- most manufacturers are much more conservative than Tesla. The technology is probably more prolific in China because China will throw everything aside in the relentless pursuit of technological advancement.

The big Western/Euro car manufacturers are proceeding much more deliberately. I don't think it matters much in the end, because Level 4-5 autonomy will quickly spread to all new vehicles when it's finally achieved -- if it actually drastically improves road safety, anything less would be unconscionable as the technology needs to be deployed ASAP to reduce accident rates and save road users from injury/death. The technology will not remain with one manufacturer, we'll quickly have a hodgepodge of different brands all with their own flavor of autonomy.

I'd argue that China has a lot of advantages over other nations.

Infrastructure, Regulatory, and liability.

They can quickly build out infrastructure
They can quickly implement regulatory changes
They can limit liability for manufactures of autonomous vehicles

They're not really that far behind the US in terms of autonomous technology such as sensors, and AI. The technology workers in China are also highly productive.

I expect China to have a faster, and wider roll out of autonomous vehicles.

I'm only referring to fleet based autonomous vehicles, and not privately owned vehicles.

I don't expect anyone to be able to buy autonomous vehicles, and instead the closest one will get is subscription based.
 
I'd argue that China has a lot of advantages over other nations.

Infrastructure, Regulatory, and liability.

They can quickly build out infrastructure
They can quickly implement regulatory changes
They can limit liability for manufactures of autonomous vehicles

They're not really that far behind the US in terms of autonomous technology such as sensors, and AI. The technology workers in China are also highly productive.

I expect China to have a faster, and wider roll out of autonomous vehicles.

I'm only referring to fleet based autonomous vehicles, and not privately owned vehicles.

I don't expect anyone to be able to buy autonomous vehicles, and instead the closest one will get is subscription based.

That's a little simplistic view. It's an authoritarian system, so of course regulatory changes can be quick, as well as infrastructure builds; the regime just orders it done with no thoughts to the effects.

Technology does move faster there, but a lot of that is driven by the Chinese Surveillance State, especially in the camera and AI departments.

I would also note that a lot of restrictions in Tesla software come from Chinese government regulation, and not US.

In any case, this is an iterative technology. It will never be "born" overnight, nor will it dramatically increase in accuracy overnight. Unless there is a processor revolution that allows for actual neural-net type capabilities, we are limited by how fast computers can "think."

Bad marketing language, and borderline truthless tweets from Elon aside, Tesla is making good headway. Arguments can be made about the pricing and marketing (most of which I 100% agree are overpriced and misleading), but the actual usability is lightyears beyond any other manufacturer at this point in time or in the near future.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CyberGus
That's a little simplistic view. It's an authoritarian system, so of course regulatory changes can be quick, as well as infrastructure builds; the regime just orders it done with no thoughts to the effects.

Technology does move faster there, but a lot of that is driven by the Chinese Surveillance State, especially in the camera and AI departments.

I would also note that a lot of restrictions in Tesla software come from Chinese government regulation, and not US.

simplistic view or not, nothing you wrote contradicts what @S4WRXTTCS said.

Essentially, their mode of government means they are more agile and are willing to push the boundaries more. Just because we might not agree with their methods doesn't negate their rate of technological improvement.
 
Valid point. A couple years ago I had someone stop me in a parking lot and ask me about my Tesla experience and he right away started saying he wanted to get one so he could go out drinking and have the car drive him home. He was dead serious. I was like, no dude, it is not at that level yet. Then he was like, well it should eliminate the swaying and keep me in the lane right?

So, while I am still a skeptic when it comes to FSD, I am hopeful that the technology can help fix stupid and possibly save lives.
Bill Engvall on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour said it the simplest: “you can’t fix stupid.” Wisdom there.
 
simplistic view or not, nothing you wrote contradicts what @S4WRXTTCS said.

Essentially, their mode of government means they are more agile and are willing to push the boundaries more. Just because we might not agree with their methods doesn't negate their rate of technological improvement.
The ends do not justify the means, is the basic refutation.

When you talk about a totalitarian state, short term technological gain because the State orders it can be evident. But without competition (and there is very little in the high tech area of Chinese development), long term strategies fall flat because they are set from the highest levels of government without direct knowledge of the topics they are working on.

Witness the decline of Hong Kong. As the State moved in to take over more government functions, it caused stifling of innovation. While iteration on existing technology can be centrally directed, it is hard to order up new technologies.

I also disagree with @S4WRXTTCS on the assertion about "limiting liability." Since the State effectively owns everything in China, they are not limiting liability, they are simply saying that they, the State, are immune from consequences. That only works as long as the people you govern permit it.

Also, you cannot make arguments that it is "better" without a holistic view of the consequences. The rapid infrastructure builds that are mentioned, have devastating consequences on the environment. Arguing that Environmentally friendly technology is boosted by infrastructure that destroys the environment again is what I would call a simplistic view.
 
The ends do not justify the means, is the basic refutation.

When you talk about a totalitarian state, short term technological gain because the State orders it can be evident. But without competition (and there is very little in the high tech area of Chinese development), long term strategies fall flat because they are set from the highest levels of government without direct knowledge of the topics they are working on.

Witness the decline of Hong Kong. As the State moved in to take over more government functions, it caused stifling of innovation. While iteration on existing technology can be centrally directed, it is hard to order up new technologies.

I also disagree with @S4WRXTTCS on the assertion about "limiting liability." Since the State effectively owns everything in China, they are not limiting liability, they are simply saying that they, the State, are immune from consequences. That only works as long as the people you govern permit it.

Also, you cannot make arguments that it is "better" without a holistic view of the consequences. The rapid infrastructure builds that are mentioned, have devastating consequences on the environment. Arguing that Environmentally friendly technology is boosted by infrastructure that destroys the environment again is what I would call a simplistic view.
This guy owns a thesaurus for sure.