As we wrote the other day, Tesla has been working for more than a year to make the Full Self-Driving feature (with driver supervision) available in Europe. In accordance with this goal, Tesla is cooperating with the competent authorities to obtain approval in Europe and the Middle East. Once approved, Full Self-Driving (with supervision) will be implemented in all eligible vehicles via an over-the-air software update.
Regardless of the fact that the current Tesla fleet, which numbers more than 6 million vehicles around the world and which collect a lot of useful information every second, and make about 800,000 kilometers every 3.5 minutes, there are also Tesla’s internal tests in 17 different countries in Europe. They do it in Croatia as well, and now they have made that experience possible for us, the journalists, as well as for all other interested current or potential future users.
Today, every Tesla vehicle in the basic equipment comes with Autopilot, and those that use it for their own tests also have the option of unlocking the Full Self-Driving (FSD) option. Just one such vehicle drove us through the streets of Zagreb this morning. It was about the Model 3 Performance, which was driven by one of the employees of the Tesla Store in Zagreb. All he did, after my colleague and I got into the car, was to select our destination on the navigation system, the shopping center next to Zaprešić – Westgate. Everything else the car did independently without a single mistake that would be visible to us as passengers.
We did the driving in real traffic, with other traffic participants, and where this Tesla Model 3 handled ‘like a big one’. In general, the Full Self-Driving option is prepared so that it creates a neural network of the autopilot based on the information it receives from the cameras. Autopilot makes decisions on how to drive with the help of artificial intelligence. It starts and stops without problems and changes lanes if necessary. It is set to respect all speed limits, but tolerance can be allowed, because the driver is responsible for everything. According to the driver’s wishes, this tolerance can be adjusted, so that the Tesla moves a little faster than the limit itself. This is how our Model 3 Performance was set up.
Therefore, sometimes he was slightly faster than the limit, and that was where other vehicles were also driving slightly more than what the traffic sign prescribed. The problem can be some signs that were not set so that certain restrictions were later canceled, so he “remembers” the last seen.
We didn’t have a chance to try the self-parking in front of Westgate, because we immediately headed back. In one direction we went on the city roads, while for the return we chose to drive on the highway. There we saw how the cameras can easily recognize the signs of restrictions on digital screens, not just the classic metal ones. And that part was done without any challenge. Almost before the finish line, on a road with two traffic lanes in the same direction, we had a situation where a vehicle (that is, its driver) from the right side decided to turn in front of us and make a U-turn at the intersection itself. Tesla already noticed the insecurity of the mentioned vehicle when approaching and reduced the speed a little, and in the end was not “surprised” by the maneuver of the other vehicle. There were no sudden actions, and everything was at a very high security level. The ride was extremely pleasant until the very end.
Impression? There is no doubt that it was all prepared at a very high level, and that in the future they could have real Full Self-Driving cars, which should reduce human errors to the lowest possible level. I think it will take a lot of experience to make it all work well in all possible weather and road conditions. Of course, in the end it will be a question of money, how much the drivers will be able and willing to afford such things. I think it’s something that will be good for the generations that come after us, while for us, most drivers with a lot of experience, it’s just a ‘toy’ with not much possibility to like it for everyday use.