driver got confused and rolled his autopilot tesla in mn this weekend. he was on rural road and hit the accelerator and did not realize that doing so would disengage the auto pilot. unfortunately he was coming up to a curve in road and ran off into ditch and rolled the car. i would think there would be a blaring announcement over the speakers that said AUTOPILOT OFF!!! curve approaching. duh. grab the wheel you IDIOT
all the bleeping radars and sensors and car sees that curve is approaching and detects NO steering wheel movement or brakes? i thought many new cars had lane departure and auto braking for cars stopped ahead of you and it totally ignores the obvious fact car is going to go into ditch?
Here’s the drivers latest statement, sounds like it was his fault all the way:
"To the best of my recollection I had engaged the autopilot system but then I had disengaged it by stepping on accelerator. I then remember looking up and seeing the sharp left turn which I was accelerating into. I believe we started to make the turn but then felt the car give way and lose its footing like we hit loose gravel. That was the feeling that I was trying to describe to you that I had lost control of the vehicle.
The next thing I know tall grass is whipping past the windshield and we were traveling at an odd angle in the ditch and then flipped over the right side and ended up on the roof.
I am truly thankful for the safety features that Tesla had put into this car that saved all 5 of us from serious injury."
maybe the software programmers should dial in a feature where the autopilot is on
heightened alert whenever you turn it off? where it will give you LOTS of audible
warnings when you switch it off. than after 3-5 minutes or so of the driver ACTUALLY
steering and stopping, it might really go into sleep mode?
CURVE approaching.
radar says a car ahead of you is going slower than you are?
car is drifting out of lane?
Here is what I don’t understand: Using auto pilot on what was apparently not a limited access multi-lane highway-with four other people in the car-stepping on accelerator before looking up.
This reminds me of stories of guys who activate their cruise control on the freeway, then get out of the driver’s seat, to do other things, and expect everything will be okay
Like commercial and military aircraft. They now tend to have flashing red lights and audible warnings when autopilot is disengaged. Fortunately aircraft pilots may have minutes to respond. Motor vehicle drivers will likely have seconds.
