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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Mitsubishi is partnering with Ample and Yamoto Transports to deploy an innovative new battery swap network for electric cars in its Japanese home market — but it’s not just for electric cars. Mitsubishi Fuso commercial trucks are getting in on the action, too!
Despite a number of early EV adopters with an overdeveloped concept of ownership, battery swap technology has proven to be both extremely effective and extremely positive to the overall EV ownership experience. And when you see how simple it is to add hundreds of miles of driving in just 100 seconds — quicker, in many cases, than pumping a tank of liquid fuel into an ICE-powered car — you might come around, yourself.
That seems to be what Mitsubishi thinks, anyway, and they’re hoping they’ll be your go-to choice when it’s time to electrify your regional and last-mile commercial delivery fleet(s) by launching a multi-year pilot program to deploy more than 150 battery-swappable commercial electric vehicles and 14 modular battery swapping stations across Tokyo, where the company plans to showcase its “five minute charging” tech in full view of hundreds of commercial fleets and, crucially, the executives of the companies that own and manage them.
A truck like the Mitsubishi eCanter typically requires a full night of AC charging to top off its batteries, and at least an hour or two on DC charging in Japan, according to Fuso. This joint pilot by Mitsubishi, Mitsubishi Fuso Trucks, and Ample aims to circumvent this issue of forced downtime with its swappable batteries, supporting vehicle uptime by delivering a full charge within minutes. The move is meant to encourage the transport industry’s EV shift while creating a depository of stored energy that can be deployed to the grid in the event of a natural disaster — something Mitsubishi in Japan has been working on for years.
Trucks like the eCanter already serve a number of roles throughout the global truck market, including municipal waste collection, regional delivery support, and more.
The pilot is backed by Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s “Technology Development Support Project for Promoting New Energy,” with local delivery operator Yamato Transport testing swappable EVs for delivery operations on both its eCanter light-duty trucks and Mitsubishi Minicab kei-class electric vans.
Electrek’s Take
Electrifying the commercial truck fleet is a key part of decarbonizing city truck fleets – not just here in the US, but around the world. I called the eCanter, “a great product for moving stuff around densely packed city streets,” and eliminating the corporate fear of EV charging in the wild just makes it an even better product for that purpose.
Here’s hoping we see more “right size” electric solutions like this one (and more battery swapping tech) in small towns and tight urban environments stateside somewhat sooner than later.
SOURCES | IMAGES: Mitsubishi, Fuso.
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After becoming the first European brand to offer fully electric versions of every model it sells — and at the same price as the ICE models — Opel is going even further, with a new, AWD electric SUV that should give American Jeep fans hope for a new electric Cherokee!
Now part of the Stellantis, rather than GM portfolio of brands, Rüsselsheim-based Opel showed off the first official pictures of its new Opel Grandland Electric AWD — the company’s first all-electric SUV to feature the “Blitz” performance emblem and all-wheel drive.
“Our top-of-the-range Grandland SUV is a milestone for Opel,” says Opel CEO Florian Huettl. “Customers already have a choice of battery-electric drive, plug-in hybrid and hybrid with 48-volt technology. We are now offering even more choice with the Grandland Electric AWD and thus ensuring that our customers can enjoy maximum efficiency and safety in diverse weather and road conditions, combined with plenty of driving fun.”
Stellantis gets it right in Europe
Opel says its new, AWD Grandland is its most aerodynamically efficient model yet, with a drag coefficient (Cd) of just 0.278. That efficiency, paired with similarly efficient electric motors and a 73 kWh li-ion NMC battery give the electric crossover a 501 km (311 mile) WLTP range, while a combined 325 hp and 375 lb-ft of torque should make for suitably spirited acceleration to go along with all that green cred.
Suspension and handling, too, are promised to deliver on what Opel claims is a “typical” Teutonic driving experience in the Grandland AWD:
Both driving pleasure and comfort are further emphasized by dampers with frequency selective damping technology. This unique technology comes as standard on the Grandland Electric AWD and incorporates a second hydraulic circuit in the damper chamber to mechanically adapt the damping force in relation to the frequency. Depending on the situation, road surface conditions and driving style, it enables different damping characteristics for comfortable gliding at high frequencies – i.e. with short impacts such as on cobblestones or a manhole cover – as well as for a sporty, ambitious driving style with more direct contact with the road at low frequencies. The Grandland reacts even more immediately and directly to any command from the driver and, as is typical for Opel, remains stable when braking, cornering and at high speeds on the Autobahn.
OPEL PRESS RELEASE
The Opel Grandland Electric AWD ships with four standard drive modes that include “normal,” eco, sport, and 4WD mode, which simulates locking axles and true 4×4 off-road performance. The ESP and traction control systems adopt specific settings to enhance grip in 4WD mode as well, and maximum power and torque are instantly available.
Electrek’s Take
As you maybe could tell by now, feeding European Stellantis EVs into an AI image generator and asking it to “make them into Jeeps” is one of my new favorite things to do. This new Opel is no different, and the resulting image (above) paired with the models’ stated specs give me hope that the next wave of Jeep EVs will do better than the Wagoneer S at attracting buyers. All they really need, I think, is the right name — and the right price, to be winners.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Opel.
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Like a 90s “gifted” kid that was supposed to be a lot of things, the electric Jeep Wagoneer S never really found its place — but with dealers discounting the Jeep brands forward-looking flagship by nearly $25,000, it might be time to give the go-fast Wagoneer S a second look.
SKIP THE STORY: get straight to the deals.
Whether we’re talking about Mercedes-Benz, Cerberus, Fiat, or even Enzo Ferrari, outsiders have labeled Jeep as a potentially premium brand that could, “if managed properly,” command luxury-level prices all over the globe. That hasn’t happened, and Stellantis is just the latest in a long line of companies to sink massive capital into the brand only to realize that people will not, in fact, spend Mercedes money on a Jeep.
That said, the Jeep Wagoneer S is not a bad car (and neither is its totally different, hideously massive, ICE-powered Wagoneer sibling, frankly). Built on the same Stellantis STLA Large vehicle platform that underpins the sporty Charger Daytona EVs, the confusingly-named Wagoneer S packs dual electric motors putting out almost 600 hp. That’s good enough to scoot the ‘ute 0 to 60 mph in a stomach-turning 3.5 seconds and enough, on paper, to convince Stellantis executives that they had developed a real, market-ready alternative to the Tesla Model Y.
With the wrong name and a sky-high starting price of $66,995 (not including the $1,795 destination fee), however, that demand didn’t materialize, leaving the Wagoneer S languishing on dealer lots across the country.
That could be about to change, however, thanks to big discounts on Wagoneer S being reported at CDJR dealers in several states, according to our friends at the Car Dealership Guy podcast.
- Jimmy Britt Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Georgia, has a Wagoneer S with an MSRP of $67,590 listed at $43,104 ($24,486 off)
- In Florida, Taverna Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat has a $67,590 Wagoneer S slashed to $43,138 ($24,452 off)
- Chris Nikel Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Fiat in Oklahoma has a Wagoneer S listed for $43,425 ($24,165 off)
“Stellantis bet big on electric versions of iconic American brands like Jeep and Dodge, but consumers aren’t buying the premise,” writes CDG’s Marcus Amick. “(Stellantis’ dealer body) is now stuck with expensive EVs that need huge discounts to move, eating into already thin margins while competitors focus on [more] profitable gas-powered vehicles.”
All of which is to say: if you’ve found yourself drawn to the Jeep Wagoneer S, but couldn’t quite stomach the $70,000+ window stickers, you might want to check in with your local Jeep dealer and see how you feel about it at a JCPenneys-like 30% off!
Jeep Wagoneer S gallery
SOURCES | IMAGES: Car Dealership Guy, CarScoops, and CarsDirect.
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