Tesla Full Self-Driving v12.5 first impression: more natural but still dangerous
I finally got a chance to test out Tesla Full Self-Driving (supervised) v12.5 myself, and my first impression is that the system drives more naturally, but it is still dangerous.
Vigilance is paramount.
Yesterday, I finally received a software update on my Tesla Model 3 that read ‘v12.5’ (12.5.2.1, to be exact).
I had been waiting for it for a while. You see, call me naive, but when Tesla CEO Elon Musk said last year that FSD updates on HW4 (newer Tesla vehicles) would lag about 6 months behind HW3 (older Tesla vehicles), I believed him:
It made sense. He promised unsupervised self-driving on millions of HW3 vehicles for years. It makes sense that Tesla focuses on delivering on the promise for these older vehicles with less computing power before starting to utilize the higher computing power on newer HW4 vehicles.
However, that didn’t happen.
Earlier this year, Musk promised significant improvements to FSD rolling every two weeks:
But I got FSD v12.3.6 on HW3 Tesla Model 3 at the time and didn’t receive any more FSD update for 6 months.
Instead, Musk admitted that Tesla now needs to optimize its FSD code to work on older HW3 vehicles, and HW4 vehicles are getting more updates sooner – signaling Tesla is reaching the limits of the hardware on older vehicles despite promises made.
While this situation has greatly reduce my hopes of Tesla ever delivering on its promise of achieving self-driving on millions of vehicles sold since 2016, I was still excited to see this in the release notes on my car after an update this week:
Yesterday, I had to drive from Shawinigan to Trois-Rivieres (25 miles) and back. It was a good opportunity to test out the system on both surface streets and highways.
My first impression is that there are significant improvements in driving comfort. It drives way more naturally; the auto speed mode feature helps a lot. It drives at a speed that makes sense for the road rather than sticking to the speed limits plus or minus what you tell it.
The new driver monitoring system, which is vision-based rather than sending alerts asking you to tug on the wheels even though you are holding it, also helps make the system feel more natural.
Now, if you don’t look ahead to the road for a few seconds, you get an alert on the screen to pay attention to the road, which goes away if you bring your attention back to it or give inputs to the steering wheel.
These were the main changes. I didn’t see a significant improvement in performance, but the system is at least more enjoyable to use now. It makes using Tesla FSD less like a job and more like a feature, which is a welcomed change after more than two years of “FSD Beta” and now “Supervised FSD”.
I had to disengage the system as I was approaching my destination because the car insisted on going into the right lane when I needed to be on the left to stop. This was a minor annoyance, but a disengagement nonetheless.
On the way back, the car slowed down from my set speed on the highway for seemingly no reason. It is a common problem with Tesla FSD that I had in almost every iteration of the system. it can be dangerous on highways, but this time, it only slowed down by about 5-8 km/h and went back to the set speed in a few seconds without having to disengage.
However, shortly after, I had a more significant issue that resulted in a critical disengagement.
I had to make a left turn here:
A car was coming from the left, but it was pretty far and not coming fast. I would have done the turn without hesitation, but I wasn’t sure if FSD, which is often on the cautious side in those turns, would or if it would wait for the car to pass.
It decided to go, but it was almost as if it changed its mind a third of the way into the turn as it stopped, or at the least decelerated greatly into the turn; it’s hard to tell cause I had to react fast.
The front of the car was already in the way, so I had to take over and complete the turn faster to make sure the upcoming car didn’t crash into me.
Up until that point, I was pretty impressed by FSD v12.5. It’s a good reminder that as the tech improves and feels better, especially more natural like this update, it is super important to remain hyper-vigilant. The smoothness of this update can induce overconfidence, but it is still prone to errors, as I was quickly reminded.
Electrek’s Take
While I am impressed and I think it is an important step as FSD is now starting to feel like an actual feature rather than just homework for Tesla customers to train a system that Tesla sold to us years ago, I still find it hard to see a path from this to unsupervised self-driving, especially on HW3 cars.
Obviously, this was just my first drive, and I need to spend a bit more time with the system for a full review, but I had two disengagements, including a critical one, in about 50 miles. We are still very far from unsupervised.
My main fear is that as the system feels better, like with this update, more people will start getting complacent with it, which could lead to more accidents. I am hoping that Tesla’s new driver monitoring system will counter that potential complacency.
What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below.
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Tesla has quietly removed the Cybertruck’s range extender from the options in its online configurator.
Does Tesla still plan to bring the product to market?
When Tesla unveiled the production version of the Cybertruck in late 2023, there were two main disappointments: the price and the range.
The tri-motor version, which was the most popular in reservation tallies, was supposed to have over 500 miles of range and start at $70,000.
Tesla now sells the tri-motor Cybertruck for $100,000 and only has a range of 320 miles.
As for the dual-motor Cybertruck, it was supposed to cost $50,000 and have over 300 miles of range. The reality is that it starts at $80,000, and it has 325 miles of range.
However, Tesla had devised a solution to bring the range closer to what it originally announced: a separate battery pack that sits in the truck’s bed. Tesla called it a “range extender.” It costs $16,000 and takes up a third of the Cybertruck’s bed.
Even though the Cybertruck has been in production for a year and a half at this point, the range extender has yet to launch.
Initially, Tesla said that it would come “early 2025”, but we reported that it was pushed to “mid-2025” late last year.
At the time, Tesla also reduced the range that the removable battery pack adds to the Cybertruck to “445+ miles” rather than “470+ miles” for the dual motor – a ~25-mile reduction in range.
Now, Tesla has removed the option from its online Cybertruck configurator. It used to take reservations for the range extender with a “$2,000 non-refundable deposit”, as seen on the image above, but now it’s not in the configurator at all at the time of writing.
It’s unclear if Tesla is not planning to launch the product anymore or if it is just pausing reservations.
In its specs page, Tesla still lists the achievable range of both versions of the Cybertruck with and without the range extender battery:
Electrek’s Take
I’m curious. Is it dead, or does Tesla just want to stop taking reservations for it?
At first, I was curious about the product even though I didn’t think it would make up for Tesla’s significant miss on Cybertruck specs.
However, after it was confirmed that it takes up 30% of your bed and that it needs to be installed and removed by Tesla at a service center, I think it’s pretty much dead on arrival at $16,000.
It’s going to be a product limited to only a few people at best. And now that’s if it makes it to market.
With the option being removed from the configurator, there’s no production timeline available. Again, the last one was “mid-2025”, which is soon.
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Environment
EcoFlow members can save up to 65% on power stations while supporting disaster relief during the 2025 Member’s Festival
Portable power station specialist EcoFlow is kicking off its third annual Member’s Festival this month and is offering a unique new rewards program to those who become EcoFlow members. The 2025 EcoFlow Member’s Festival will offer savings of up to 65% for its participating customers, and a portion of those funds will be allocated toward rescue power solutions for communities around the globe through the company’s “Power for All” fund.
EcoFlow remains one of the industry leaders in portable power solutions and continues to trek forward in its vision to power a new tech-driven, eco-conscious future. Per its website:
Our mission from day one is to provide smart and eco-friendly energy solutions for individuals, families, and society at large. We are, were, and will continue to be a reliable and trusted energy companion for users around the world.
To achieve such goals, EcoFlow has continued to expand its portfolio of sustainable energy solutions to its community members, including portable power stations, solar generators, and mountable solar panels. While EcoFlow is doing plenty to support its growing customer base, it has expanded its reach by giving back to disaster-affected communities by helping bolster global disaster response efforts the best way it knows how– with portable power solutions.
EcoFlow and its members look to provide “Power for All”
Since 2023, EcoFlow has collaborated with organizations worldwide as part of its “Power for All” mission. This initiative aims to ensure access to reliable and timely power to disaster-affected communities across the globe, including rescue agencies, affected hospitals, and shelters, to support rescue and recovery efforts.
This fund most recently provided aid for communities affected by the recent Los Angeles wildfires, assistance to the Special Forces Charitable Trust (SFCT) in North Carolina following severe hurricanes, and support for non-profits engaged in hurricane preparedness in Florida and the Gulf Coast. Per Jodi Burns, CEO of the Special Forces Charitable Trust:
In the wake of devastating storms in Western North Carolina, reliable power was a critical need for the families we serve. Thanks to EcoFlow’s generous donation of generators, we were able to provide immediate relief, ensuring these families and their communities had access to power when they needed it most. We are so impressed with EcoFlow’s commitment to disaster response through their ‘Power for All’ program. It has made a tangible impact, and we are deeply grateful for their support and partnership in helping these families recover and rebuild.
In 2024, the US experienced 27 weather and climate events, each causing losses exceeding $1 billion, marking the second-highest annual total on record, according to National Centers for Environmental Information. The increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters underscore the critical need for reliable and timely power solutions during emergencies, much like EcoFlow and its members are helping provide through the “Power For All” initiative.
To support new and existing EcoFlow members, the company is celebrating its third annual Member’s Festival throughout April to offer a do-not-miss discount on its products and donate a portion of all sales to the “Power for All” fund to provide rescue power to those in need in the future. Learn how it all works below.
Save big and give back during the 2025 Member’s Festival
As of April 1st, you can now sign up to become an EcoFlow member to participate in the company’s exclusive 2025 Member Festival.
As a member, you can earn “EcoFlow Power Points” by completing tasks like registration, referrals, and product purchases and tracking your individual efforts toward disaster preparedness and recovery.
Beginning April 4, EcoFlow members will also be able to take advantage of exclusive discounts of up to 65% off select portable power stations, including the DELTA Pro Ultra, DELTA Pro 3, DELTA 2 Max, DELTA 3 Plus, RIVER 3 Plus, and more. However, these sale prices only last through April 25, so you’ll want to move quickly!
Click here to learn more about EcoFlow’s “Power for All” campaign. To register for EcoFlow’s 2025 Member Festival in the US, visit the EcoFlow website. To register as a member in Canada, visit here.
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Tesla is losing another top talent: its long-time head of software, David Lau, has reportedly told co-workers that he is exiting the automaker.
Tesla changed how the entire auto industry looks at software.
Before Tesla, it was an afterthought; user interfaces were rudimentary, and you had to go to a dealership to get a software update on your systems.
When Tesla launched the Model S in 2012, it all changed. Your car would get better through software updates like your phone, the large center display was responsive with a UI that actually made sense and was closer to an iPad experience than a car.
Tesla also integrated its software into its retail experience, service, and manufacturing.
David Lau deserves a lot of the credit for that.
He joined Tesla in 2012 as a senior manager of firmware engineering and quickly rose through the ranks. By 2014, he was promoted to director of firmware engineering and system integration, and in 2017, he became Vice President of software.
Lau listed the responsibilities of his team on his LinkedIn:
- Vehicle Software:
- Firmware for the powertrain, traction/stability control, HV electronics, battery management, and body control systems
- UI software and underlying Embedded Linux platforms
- Navigation and routing
- iOS and Android Mobile apps
- Distributed Systems:
- Server-side software and infrastructure that provides telemetry, diagnostics, over-the-air updates, and configuration/lifecycle management
- Data engineering and analytics platforms that power technical and business insights for an increasingly diverse set of customers across the company
- Diagnostic tools and fleet management, Manufacturing and Automation:
- Automation controls (PLC, robot)
- Server-side manufacturing execution systems that power all of Tesla’s production operations
- Product Security and Red Team for software, services, and systems across Tesla
Bloomberg reported today that Lau told his team he is leaving Tesla. The report didn’t include reasons for his stepping down.
Electrek’s Take
Twelve years at any company is a great run. At Tesla, it’s heroic. Congrats, David, on a great run. You undoubtedly had a significant impact on Tesla and software advancements in the broader auto industry.
He is another significant loss for Tesla, which has been losing a lot of top talent following a big wave of layoffs around this time last year.
I wonder who will take over. Michael Rizkalla, senior director of software engineering and vehicle firmware, is one of the most senior software engineers after Lau. He has been at Tesla for 7 years, and Tesla likes to promote within rather than hire outsiders.
There are also a lot of senior software execs working on AI at Tesla. Musk has been favoring them lately and he could fold Lau’s responsibilities under them.
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