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Elon Musk Announces FSD Prices Will Rise to $12,000 Amid Legal Controversy

On January 7, Elon Musk announced that Tesla would raise prices for FSD (Full Self-Driving) from the current $10,000 to $12,000. That will happen only in the U.S. on January 17. The Tesla CEO probably had no worse time to disclose that. On January 9, The Verge revealed that FSD has a law-breaking mode that allows it to perform rolling stops.
Tesla FSD presents three modes: Chill, Average, and Assertive, which "may do rolling stops." 12 photos
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That feature emerged when Tesla released the ill-fated OTA update 10.3. If you did not connect the name to the facts, the EV maker rolled back due to programming issues related to phantom braking. In the same release, Tesla gave its “beta testers” the capacity to choose among three FSD modes: Chill, Average, and Assertive, the more aggressive one.

As The Verge revealed, the automaker describes Assertive Mode like this:

“In this profile(,) your Model (whatever) will have a smaller follow distance, perform more frequent speed lane changes, will not exit passing lanes(,) and may perform rolling stops.”

Rolling stops mean that the car does not fully stop at red lights or stop signs. In some parts of the U.S., such as Texas, they are illegal. In other words, Tesla would have created a driving mode that deliberately breaks the law in some places of its biggest market. Average Mode also "may perform rolling stops."

According to traffic safety specialists, rolling stops increase the risk of accidents at intersections. The Federal Highway Administration informs that these areas already present more than 50% of all crashes in the U.S.

Not long ago, Tesla brought a disclaimer to FSD that said it "may do the wrong thing at the worst time." Why the company thought it would be a good idea to allow such software to have an “Assertive Mode” is something that we fail to grasp. Or would anyone be willing to be legally responsible for a car that performs rolling stops at the worst time?

Luckily for Musk, it seems there are plenty of people waiting for an opportunity to pay $12,000 for a feature that they may only use if they get an adequate Safety Score. The promise that they will eventually become robotaxis has an irresistible appeal, even if that should have happened one or two years ago.





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About the author: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo
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Motoring writer since 1998, Gustavo wants to write relevant stories about cars and their shift to a sustainable future.
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