Tesla refuses to do the right thing about ‘Full Self-Driving’ transfers
Tesla is refusing to do the right thing about ‘Full Self-Driving’ package transfers and instead holds its own incapacity to deliver the package over the head of its owners.
I just had a conversation with Tesla about doing the right thing about FSD transfer. I got an answer: a “categoric no”.
Tesla is literally using its own incapacity to deliver a feature it promised and sold to people, unsupervised self-driving, as a demand trigger to get people to order new cars.
The Context
For those who are not aware, Tesla has been selling since 2016 something called “Full Self-Driving package”, FSD for short, that includes advanced driver assist features, and the automaker has been promising that it will eventually result in unsupervised self-driving capability through over-the-air software updates.
At first, Tesla claimed that all cars produced since 2016 would be able to achieve that. However, Tesla quickly found out that it was wrong and introduced a new computer called HW3 in 2019 and retrofited vehicles with it.
In 2023, Tesla introduced again a new computer, HW4, but the automaker claimed that it would just add more computing power to improve capacity in the future, and it was still confident that it could deliver on its self-driving promises with HW3 cars.
In fact, Tesla CEO Elon Musk even claimed that software updates on HW4 cars would lag 6 months behind updates on HW3 cars as Tesla focuses on delivering on its self-driving promises on the older vehicles.
That lasted less than a year. Since last year, Tesla has been focusing updates on HW4 as it is reaching the compute limits of HW3. As we previously reported, Tesla is now using both nodes on the HW3 computer – meaning that it doesn’t even have any compute redundancy, which is required for level 4-5 autonomy.
Late last year, Tesla finally signaled that it might be reaching the limits of HW3 and said that it would provide computer retrofits if needed, but there’s no retrofit in sight despite HW3 falling now months behind HW4 cars.
With the questionable hardware situation and the even more questionable data pointing to Tesla being way behind schedule on its self-driving ambition, Tesla FSD owners are asking for a simple thing from the automaker, and it can’t even do that.
The Problem
With the situation looking dire for HW3, Tesla owners have been asking the automaker for years to link the FSD software package to the owner rather than the car – meaning that if you upgrade your car to a new Tesla, you can transfer your FSD software package, which you paid up to $15,000 for and Tesla never fully delivered, to the new car.
Doesn’t this sound fair? Tesla sold you a product they never delivered, and you are only giving them another shot on the newer hardware with a new car, which has a higher chance of success.
It doesn’t cost Tesla anything since it’s just a software package that it transfers to hardware that is standard on all cars.
Yet, Tesla has refused to do the right thing here. Musk was asked several times by Tesla owners about doing that and refused. Instead, he devised a plan to use Tesla’s own inability to deliver self-driving capability as a demand trigger.
In the summer of 2023, Musk finally agreed to allow FSD transfers, but not because it was the right thing to do. Instead, he said it would be a “one-time amnesty” for a single quarter. Tesla used this to boost sales in the quarter.
Tesla ended up bringing back the incentive four more times when it needed to boost orders, making Musk a liar for saying it would only be for a quarter. By claiming it’s only for this one time, Tesla is creating urgency in trying to get people to upgrade – instead of doing the right thing and offering everyone who bought FSD the ability to transfer until Tesla actually delivers on its promise.
Currently, Tesla is not offering it because it doesn’t need to. There are plenty of other factors boosting demand right now including the new Model Y, the fear of losing the tax credit in the US, and in Canada, Tesla just announced a price increase coming next month – pushing people to take delivery this month.
I reached out to Tesla about transferring my FSD on a new car this week, and I was told “the FSD transfer window is closed right now”. After explaining all this above to the salesperson and highlighting that it’s the right thing to do not to charge me $11,000 for a software package that I already bought and they never delivered, they agreed to run it up the chain.
The next day, I was told that upper management responded: “a categoric no.”
Electrek’s Take
It’s such a simple thing to do. It’s not only the right thing to do, but it’s also smart for Tesla as it reduces the obvious liability of having HW3 cars that paid for FSD.
At this point, it’s clear that Tesla will never be able to deliver on its promised unsupervised Full Self-Driving capabilities on HW3 cars. Should we really be surprised? Tesla was wrong before and had to upgrade cars from HW2.5 to HW3, which is now 6 years old.
Tesla didn’t know what hardware it needed to deliver self-driving then, and there’s a good chance it doesn’t know now. But even then, would anyone seriously believe that Tesla would deliver unsupervised self-driving capability on 6-year-old hardware? I think not.
Therefore, every HW3 vehicle Tesla sold with a FSD package is a liability. It makes for them to remove the packages from those cars and move them to more recent vehicles with a higher chance of ever delivering on their promise – even though there’s plenty of room for doubt with those cars too.
Regardless, It’s about doing the right thing for your customers instead of using your own inability to deliver a product you promised as a demand lever for more orders. It’s worse than the tactics used by car dealerships that Tesla despises so much.
As usual, I want to highlight that I think FSD is an incredible product, and if it was developed without Elon Musk claiming that it would achieve unsupervised self-driving by the end of every year for the last 5 years and Tesla selling the product to customers before it is ready, I think it would be much more celebrated.
But instead, Tesla and Musk are doing those things, and many people see it as a fraudulent and dangerous product. It doesn’t help when the CEO grossly misrepresents data about the program.
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Executives from TravelCenters America (TA) and BP were joined by local elected officials at a ribbon cutting for the two companies’ first DC fast charging hub on I-95 in Jacksonville, Florida – the first of several such EV charging stations to come online.
Frequent road-trippers are no doubt familiar with TA’s red, white, and blue logo and probably think of the sites as safe, convenient stops in otherwise unfamiliar surroundings. The company hopes those positive associations will carry over as its customers continue to switch from gas to electric at a record pace in 2025 and beyond.
“Today marks a significant milestone in our journey to bring new forms of energy to our customers as we support their changing mobility needs, while leveraging the best of bp and TA,” explains Debi Boffa, CEO of TravelCenters of America. Boffa, however, was quick to – but TA is quick to point out that TA isn’ no’t leaving its ICE customers behind. “While this is significant, to our loyal customers and guests, rest assured TA will continue to provide the same safe and reliable fueling options it has offered for over 50 years, regardless of the type of fuel.”
The charging hub along the I-95 offers 12 DC fast charging ports offering up to 400kW of power for lickety-quick charging. While they’re at the TA, EV drivers can visit restrooms, shop at TA’s convenience store, or eat at fast food chains like Popeyes and Subway. Other TA centers offer wifi and pet-friendly amenities as well – making them ideal partners for BP as the two companies builds out their charging networks.
“As we expand our EV charging network in the US, I am thrilled to unveil our first of many hubs at TA locations,” offers Sujay Sharma, CEO of BP Pulse Americas. “These sites are strategically located across key highway corridors that provide our customers with en route charging when and where they need it most, while offering convenient amenities, like restaurants and restrooms.”
Electrek’s Take
As I type this, BP has more than 37,000 EV charging ports operational globally, and plans to have more than 100,000 in service by 2030. The company made headlines in 2022 when it announced that its EV chargers were “on the cusp” of being more profitable than its gas pumps. Three years on, it seems like that’s a done deal.
As ever, money talks.
SOURCE | IMAGES: BP.
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The new e2500-THL and TS electric Ultra Buggies from Toro offer construction and demo crews a carrying capacity of 2500 lbs. (on the TS model), six-and-a-half foot dump height (on the THL), nearly 13 cubic ft. of capacity, and hours of quiet, fume-free operation.
Despite the second Trump administration’s loosening grip on emissions regulations, the fact remains that a growing number of municipalities in both red and blue regions of the US are continuing to clamp down on noise regulations, which means that construction crews with quiet running electric equipment will be able to get jobs that crews stubbornly holding on to diesel and gas won’t. Toro absolutely gets it, which is why its e2500-THL and TS Ultra Buggy line will be welcomed by smart crews with open arms.
For their open-mindedness, those crews will be rewarded with machines powered by 7 kWh’s worth of Toro HyperCell lithium-ion battery. That’s good enough for up to eight hours of continuous operation, according to Toro – enough for two typical working shifts.
And, thanks to the Toro Ultra Buggies’ narrow, 31.5″ width, they can easily navigate man doors on inside jobs, as well, making them ideal for indoor demolition and construction jobs. A zero-turn radius and auto-return dump mechanism that ensures the tub automatically returns to the proper resting position make things easy for the operator, too.
Toro says that each of its small (for Toro) e2500 Ultra Buggy units can replace as many as five wheelbarrows on a given job site. Pricing is expected to start at about $32,000.
Electrek’s Take
Electric equipment makes job sites cleaner, quieter, and safer than they are under diesel or gas power – and as more municipal and private sector RFPs begin to enforce ZEV requirements and quiet hours, more and more viable electric alternatives to ICE power will start to show up on more and more job sites (regardless of who is in the White House).
SOURCE | IMAGES: Toro, via Construction Equipment.
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