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The DMV Failed a Teen Driver for Regen Braking on His Tesla Model 3, and Now There’s Drama

Teslas are efficient, reliable and safe. Teslas are also packed with tech and, because of it, able to make the driving experience less stressful and overall easier. “Too easy,” one California driving instructor thought.
Teen driver failed his DMV test because he drove a Tesla Model 3 with regen braking 21 photos
Photo: CBS San Francisco
There’s some drama happening online right now, following the news that a 16-year-old teen from San Jose, California, failed his driving test because he used a Tesla Model 3 and it had regenerative braking. As CBS San Francisco reports (see the video below), the teen showed up for the test drive in the family car. Not long after the test started, even before the vehicle left the parking lot, he’d already been told, in more or less exact terms, that he was about to fail.

Like all EVs and most hybrids, Teslas have regen braking, which kicks in when you ease your foot off the accelerator and results in a slowing down of the car, allowing the motor to recapture kinetic energy to recharge the battery. In the eyes of the instructor, the fact that the car braked by itself, without the aspiring driver even touching the brake pedal, was a big no-no, and she listed that as reason for flunking him. She also told him not to bring a Tesla next time he tries out for a driver’s license.

The “drama” has been solved since, because the teen and his father filed a complaint with the California DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles), and then went to the media with the story. The DMV reassessed the case and declared that the teen had passed the test. It also instructed its staff to not include regen braking as the sole reason for flunking a driving test.

The argument the teen and his father make, as well as the DMV in the revised decision, is that modern tech is there to assist you and, as such, it can’t be considered a fault on the driver’s part.

The drama continues to play out online, among car enthusiasts, who find themselves divided on the issue. It’s true, the tech is meant to make our life easier, but in this particular case, what happens if the teen driver, now granted a driving license, gets behind the wheel of a gas-powered car, where he has to actually step on the brake for the vehicle to slow down? At the opposite pole are those who say this is the perfect example of how the DMV is failing to keep up with what’s happening in the auto industry. Not few are those who bring up comparisons to driving automatic and driving a stick shift.

Whichever side of the fence you’re on – and we’d love to hear your input on this – the case does show the urgent need for updating regulations for driving tests. As Teslarati pointed out last August, this has happened before; the DMV also confirmed it to CBS, saying they’d been aware of a regen braking “issue” during driving tests for “several months.”

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
Elena Gorgan profile photo

Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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