Tesla “Full Self-Driving” suite under review ahead of price rise

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving beta software is under review to determine whether it requires more regulatory oversight while the company tests updates to the suite via private owner-drivers.

The scrutiny comes as the Californian EV maker makes plans to raise the price for its semi-autonomous package on Monday from $US10,000 to $US12,000 (around $A16,500). It is currently available in Australia for $A10,100, and whether a price rise will apply locally is as yet unclear.

For drivers buying the package today in both the US and Australia, the suite currently consists of five features: exiting and entering highways, auto lane change on highways, autoparking, summon in carpark, and traffic light and stop sign control.

The beta FSD software also allows Tesla cars that have opted in to the testing program to autosteer on city streets, including turning corners and navigating roundabouts.

Drivers must agree to keep the vehicle under their supervision at all times, and the company states that it is not a fully autonomous (Level 5) system, although it has aspirations to introduce this in the future when regulations allow.

Because of this, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has previously ruled that the FSD beta system is not subject to its rulings on autonomous vehicles.

Tesla has also implemented a Safety Score system which uses driving data from individual driver’s cars to determine if they are eligible to participate in the program. Some of these drivers post videos of their testing on Youtube, showing the progress each subsequent update to the software is making.

But the DMV is now reviewing its previous decision on whether the FSD beta program should be subject to autonomous driving regulations, because it says some videos show dangerous driving behaviour.

In a letter to Lena Gonzalez, chair of the state Senate Transportation Committee, the DMV said it was “revisiting that decision following recent software updates, videos showing a dangerous use of that technology, open investigations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the opinions of other experts,” Reuters reports.

In March 2021, Tesla CEO and co-founder Elon Musk said that the company had revoked access to the program for drivers who were “not paying sufficient attention” when driving.

Critics of Tesla and the FSD program claim the company has deceived customers by naming its semi-autonomous suite “Full Self-Driving”, as it does not yet actually do this. But Musk says he believes that in the long run, having access to the suite will be worth far more than its current price to Tesla owners in the future, because it will allow them to participate in a “robo-taxi” program.