I was very skeptical about the self driving feature and it performed way better than I expected. I have read a number of reviews today and what I have noticed is that the more that people love driving the more that they dislike the autopilot and mostly it’s because it’s not doing what they would do in certain situations. People like me who hate driving consider it a godsend.
Look at my thread on my issues with the Tesla software. It can’t even get cruise control right.
In ICE aviation they called/call the go-knobs the “throttle(s)”. When jets came out they stuck with that terminology for awhile, inapt though it is.
The buzzword being pushed by the manufacturers for the last ~30 years has been “power lever(s)”. Like “Set power levers to idle”, “Adjust power levers to maintain speed”, etc., As old farts like me retire, folks in the biz are finally beginning to use that term without a mocking tone in their voice. We farts still called 'em “throttles” except when dealing with management / QC pilots.
I propose the EV equivalent is the “power pedal”. As in “I mashed the power pedal and away we went” or “I gave it some power to pass that slowpoke” or “Just a tap of power tells FSD to stop being scared of [whatever] and just keep going”.
But that’s the problem, EV drivers using one-pedal mode don’t use the brake pedal, except when something unexpected happens. We slow down by easing up on the accelerator. We need a word for that
“easing up” seems perfectly serviceable already.
Except for stopping, I drive my manuals that way most of the time, so it’s not just EVs.
But “easing up” doesn’t capture how strongly the regenerative brakes slow the vehicle down. It’s something like 75%* of the braking power as the friction brakes. There’s no coasting while one-pedal driving.
*That’s the number that pops in my head, but can’t find a good cite right now. Anyone know the actual number?
Some systems are configurable where you can set it to actually coast in some pedal positions.
Also, you’re never really coasting in a manual when it’s in gear and you haven’t put pressure on the clutch, because the car is dragging the engine along and it’s still compressing air. Engine braking predates EVs.
Sounds like you should buy one. The latest update sounds like a big deal… Taking that much stress out of your life would be worth it!
Yep. That’s why we need a term like “engine brake” for electric cars. (Sure, we could use terms like “gas pedal” and “engine brake” for a vehicle without those, but it feels weird to me.)
Decelerating
I know!
But I also have financial anxiety. I’m waiting for my financial planner to tell me “dude for the millionth time, you’re fine. Treat yourself.” I’ve never owned a nice car. It’s weird.
One of my friends has a Y and if I order through his referral link I get three free months of FSD so I can really test it for a while before pulling the trigger.
It’s amazing and awesome, except in those cases where it isn’t. You might come across those exceptions very rarely given your location and driving patterns, but given enough time, you’d see them. None of that means it won’t be much safer than you doing all the driving, but it still isn’t set-it-and-forget-it.
Earlier in the thread, there was discussion between those who say self driving is already here and those who say it’s decades away. It really just comes down to definitions. If you define it as something that gets through 9x% of all situations, or 100% of standard controlled situations, then it’s here. If you define it as able to handle every situation such that manual controls are not even needed, then it’s probably decades away.
You left out the best term to use: “Balls to the wall”. “The guy thought he could beat me, so I went balls to the wall and showed him!”
For non-aviation types. the balls in question are the knobs on the end of the throttle, mixture and prop controls ln a light aircraft. Max takeoff power is throttle all the way in (against the furewall), Prop full fine (control pushed in to the firewall), and mixture full rich (control pushed forward to the firewall). So when someone says they went ‘balls to the wall’, it means basically max power, max performance, whatever.
that needs to go into the “Tell us an interesting random fact you stumbled across” thread !!!
We just got our first really “nice” car (Cadillac Lyriq) and we’re really enjoying it, but it does make my 14 YO truck (that was a nice truck for the time–Dodge 1500 Laramie) feel pretty janky! Our financial advisor said “Just buy it…”
I appreciate that. I’m very close to pulling the trigger. My financial guy indeed said that I can easily afford it and it’s a very sensible choice given my lifestyle.
Almost all the same, but ours is a 12 year old Subaru. It was the entry level model…no bluetooth, no nothing, so this new car seems super nice. I’ve driven the Subie once in the month we’ve had the Tesla and it now seems so crude, particularly the steering. And yes, we met with our retirement guy and he assured us we could afford the new car. 
Haven’t gotten out of the house much lately, but I just got back from the movies, and used FSD v12 there and back. Absolutely perfect this time. No interventions at all, not even minor ones. Only tiny quibble is that I wish it drove faster–usually it goes the speed limit. But I can hardly fault it on that.
A few events, notable only for their unnotability:
- Car in the oncoming lane, waiting to turn left after I passed–but there was a pedestrian wearing all black (it was night) crossing behind the car. Not particularly visible until after he made it to my lane. The car saw him just fine, slowed appropriately, and accelerated after he passed.
- A bicyclist, again wearing all black (what is it with these people?). At least his bike had a taillight. Was staying in the bike lane, but was pretty narrow. The car edged to the left to give him more room, then recentered after it passed.
- Similar situation, except that apparently one of the side-streets near my complex is the hangout for semi truck drivers getting some shut-eye. The lane wasn’t wide enough for them parked on the side and my car passing them. So it crossed the double-yellow a bit to give them more room.
There wasn’t too much traffic at this hour, but there were no events where I thought I’d annoy other drivers.
Oh, it did come to a halt at the fire lane at the theater. Exactly where you’d stop to drop someone off, but probably not to park . It doesn’t yet find a spot in the parking lot. I’d probably override that anyway, unless it had fine-tuning for “park at least two spots from anyone if at all possible”.
I’ve had my Tesla since Tuesday and I am still very impressed by the FSD. I only have v11. The newer Teslas have different sensors and don’t get v12 yet. It’s so much fun.
I am sure that you know this but you can change the max speed to above the speed limit by scrolling the right wheel up. Obviously there is a limit to how high and it will only go as fast as is safe.
I love this car and I have never loved a car before.
Or I can’t get v12 yet because it’s in Beta and I don’t have enough driving experience. I can’t find out how much I need.
ETA: the guy who told me that on Reddit was wrong. Tesla customer service told me that it’s my “configuration” and it will roll out to me at some unknown point in the future