Why people are crashing Tesla cars into fake walls

Users use fake walls to test crash sensors on Tesla cars. Photo: Kyle Paul .

Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature is gaining attention for its advanced driver assistance capabilities. FSD allows the car to navigate the highway on its own, recognizing traffic lights, stop signs, and automatically changing lanes.

However, many car owners are still not completely confident in this feature. Therefore, Mark Rober, a YouTuber with more than 65 million subscribers, used a fake wall to test the Tesla's ability to recognize in real-life situations.

Another content creator named Kyle Paul also had a similar idea by posting a video testing the FSD feature on two car lines, including a Model Y equipped with the HW3 system and a Cybertruck with the HW4 camera system.

In the original video, Rober tested whether Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, with its camera-scanning technology, could automatically stop before crashing into a wall reflecting the horizon. The surprise happened when the car did not automatically stop, leaving viewers surprised and worried about using this feature on Tesla cars.

Then, in Paul’s video, the Tesla Model Y with FSD version 12.5.4.2 didn’t fare any better. Paul was forced to slam on the brakes before it crashed into a fake wall. However, Paul’s test of the Cybertruck with FSD version 13.2.8 ended up being a little better.

The Tesla pickup truck detected the fake wall and slowed to a stop, indicating that the vehicle’s FSD system has improved significantly since upgrading to newer versions.

While Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature has made some progress, real-world testing has shown that there are still limitations that need to be addressed. The inability of vehicles like the Model Y to stop in time in simulated situations raises concerns about the safety of the system.

Although Tesla is still facing challenges in perfecting Full Self-Driving, the latest improvements on the Cybertruck show that the electric car company is gradually improving the reliability of FSD technology. This opens up the expectation of a safer and more efficient autonomous driving system in the future.