The idea of autonomous vehicles has been in the works for a while and everyone including Apple is working on developing such technology. Meanwhile, Tesla being one of the first in the segment to employ the full self-driving (FSD) software, has come the closest with delivering one so far. While the company uses the tech in all its cars, that impressive ability has repeatedly resulted in the car getting crashed into other vehicles. Even though the technology is rapidly evolving to make the driving experience convenient, Tesla’s FSD is still a long way from being as safe and one CNN reporter’s experience was less than pleasant when he took the latest beta version of the tech for a spin. CNN reporter Matt McFarland tried out Tesla’s FSD Beta software in New York City and the Model 3 car kept turning into oncoming traffic multiple times. It should also be mentioned that no self-driving car can be run without human supervision and for this drive/experiment, McFarland was seated in the back seat, while another driver sat in the front seat, ready to take full control when needed. They decided to test the FSD Beta loaded tech on Brooklyn’s Flatbush Avenue and the video showed extracts of the drive, focusing mostly on moments when the Model 3 hesitated or attempted to turn into traffic.
Meanwhile, the driver said that he had to take over control from the autonomous FSD about every three blocks. While Mcfarland noted that the car often made erratic turns and braked or accelerated at unexpected points.
“Getting honked at was common,” he said. “Asking FSD to navigate Brooklyn felt like asking a student driver to take on a road test they weren’t ready for yet,” McFarland added.
The report also mentions that buyers can purchase the FSD Beta software for a $10,000 one-time payment or $199 per month, if they want to access the feature. However, after this experience, it is not surprising to see that their Beta tech still has a lot of work left to do, as the FSD and Autopilot functions have come under fire over the past year.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Telegram.