Elon Musk speaks on stage during the Westworld Featured Session during SXSW at the Austin Convention Center on March 10, 2018 in Austin, Texas.
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Tesla is recalling 362,758 vehicles in the U.S. equipped with the company’s experimental driver assistance software, marketed as Full Self-Driving Beta, or FSD Beta, according to a recall notice issued Thursday.
The FSD Beta system can cause crashes by allowing affected vehicles to: “behave in an unsafe manner around intersections, such as driving straight through an intersection while in a turn-only lane, entering an intersection controlled by a stop sign without coming to a complete stop, or passing into an intersection during a steady yellow light without exercising due care,” according to a statement on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website.
The FSD Beta system may also have problems responding appropriately “to changes in published speed limits,” it said.
The group of affected vehicles included the following years and models: 2016-2023 Model S and Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles equipped with or awaiting installation of FSD Beta.
Tesla is allowing thousands of drivers to test new and unfinished driver assistance features on public roads in the US through FSD Beta. This technology does not make Tesla’s electric cars autonomous or safe to drive without a human behind the wheel ready to brake or steer at any second — despite the brand name.
Only Tesla owners equipped with the premium FSD driver assistance system are eligible to participate in the FSD Beta program. This option currently costs $15,000 up front or $199 per month in the US. To access the FSD beta, owners must achieve and maintain a high driver safety score, which is determined by Tesla’s software that monitors their driving habits.
FSD Beta can best be described as a bunch of new features that aren’t fully debugged yet. The main attraction is “urban street driving”, which allows the Tesla to automatically, albeit imperfectly, navigate difficult urban environments.
Tesla will deliver software updates to the cars over the air to fix the problems, according to the recall notice.
Tesla shares fell slightly on the news.
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