Posted on 11/04/2025 12:17:18 PM PST by nickcarraway
An Iowa man decided to put the latest version of Tesla's Full Self-Driving to the test, using the autonomous-vehicle technology on an 800-mile drive to Colorado, according to Supercar Blondie.
The YouTuber, who goes by Iowa Tesla Guy (@iowatesla), posted about his journey online.
From the YouTuber's perspective, the trip ended up being a resounding success.
"There you have it," he said after completing the journey, per Supercar Blondie. "The FSD experiment is done. 800 miles from Iowa to Boulder, Colorado, using nothing but FSD — I would say 99.9% of literally all of the driving."
However, not all Tesla enthusiasts who have put the latest supervised Full Self-Driving to the test have enjoyed similar success.
Two other Tesla influencers attempted to pull off a comparable, yet more ambitious, experiment, aiming to drive from California to Florida without human intervention.
The trip was intended to belatedly fulfill Elon Musk's 2016 promise that, by the end of 2017, a Tesla would be able to drive itself coast-to-coast autonomously.
Despite setting out on a 3,000-mile journey from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, the Tesla enthusiasts found their vehicle unable to continue any further after experiencing a crash only about 60 miles into the trip. Running into trouble so early may have been bad luck, but it seemed to highlight how Tesla's optical detection system has had documented cases of missing or underestimating objects in the road.
While Iowa Tesla Guy might have successfully completed his 800-mile trek using Full Self-Driving, some experts have remained skeptical of the technology's reliance on cameras without lidar or radar to assist in detection.
In a recent analysis of the newest version of Full Self-Driving, Forbes found the technology to be "error-prone." In fact, the software made so many serious mistakes that the author questioned whether it should even be legal.
Under California law, drivers in both directions must stop when a school bus is flashing its lights.
Such glaring performance issues have led some to question why the technology has been allowed on the streets at all.
"A drug company wouldn't call something a universal, full cancer cure when it didn't actually cure cancer," Dan O'Dowd, a software developer who has become a vocal critic of Tesla's Full Self-Driving, told Forbes. "But [Tesla CEO Elon Musk] does it every day because no one in government will take action. No regulators will take action at this point."
"It should never be in a customer's hands," O'Dowd added. "It's just a prototype. It's not a product."
For those interested in an EV, such as a Tesla, and concerned about self-driving capabilities, the good news is that drivers can choose not to use the Full Self-Driving feature if they own a Tesla, as it is actually sold as an add-on.
Furthermore, those looking to upgrade to an electric vehicle have never had as many options as they do today, with an increasing number of EV models entering the market each year. There hasn't been a case of an EV forcing self-driving mode on a user, though both electric and gasoline-powered cars often come with passive driver-assist features nowadays that may help avoid obstacles or drifting across lanes.
EVs are not only responsible for considerably less planet-heating pollution per mile than gas-powered cars, but they also can save drivers thousands of dollars per year on fuel costs.
To take the cost savings and environmental benefits of driving an EV to the next level, you can install solar panels on your home. Charging an EV with home solar is cheaper than doing so using the electrical grid or at a public charging station.
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Similarly, EnergySage takes the guesswork out of home solar with powerful, easy-to-use online tools that allow you to compare quotes from prescreened installers in your area while helping ensure that you take maximum advantage of tax rebates and other incentives.
Federal tax credits of $7,500 for new EVs sunset on Sept. 30, 2025, and tax credits for home solar end Dec. 31, so you must act now to save thousands of dollars.
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The current controversy in San Francisco is that a Waymo allegedly killed a cat.
I immediately disabled the driver assist from my car. Even on well defined roads it had trouble with the nuances like giving a pedestrian extra space, or unable to swerve when another car veers into my lane. When I’d make the necessary moves, the “assist” feature would gently “correct” me to get into the center of the lane. It was gentle — I didn’t have to fight it with all of my might. But it was unpredictable.
Mine operates properly when I have my blinker on. I use it almost all the time, but wasn’t using it when I entered the Peach Pass lanes here in Georgia. I always enter at a place where no one can ride up behind me, so I didn’t see a need to use it there.
Then after countless times of the car spazzing out when I crossed the double lines I found out it was because I was not using my blinker there.
ROFL!!!
"A drug company wouldn't call something a universal, full cancer cure vaccine when it didn't actually cure cancer prevent illness," Dan O'Dowd, a software developer who has become a vocal critic of Tesla's Full Self-Driving, told Forbes. </sarc>
Corrected.
Lol. 800 miles down I-70. Pretty much flat and straight.
I won’t even use the cruise on my car.
🌽 🌽 🌽 🌽 🌾 🌾 🌾.
Once they were able to get the Tesla's computer to not run into a ditch to relieve the boredom the drive became much safer.
You couldn’t give me an EV even if the battery never had be charged.
I’ll take the sound of a cam’d up V8 anyday.
Did FSD from Las Vegas to South Lake Tahoe and then on to Sacramento. We were so impressed that we added a second Tesla a month later (Cybertruck). Yes it makes mistakes sometimes (rarely). You have to monitor it at all times. It still makes driving less fatiguing and stressful.
Just my thought. I’ve driven that route. How did they keep the onboard computer from falling asleep due to boredom?
I see you’ve driven that route, too.
Bunch of yuppies. As an all-remote team, we represent America from coast to coast and everywhere in between.
Specifically, the CEO and Founder is a multimillionaire from creating media entities.
"Dave Finocchio is an American businessman who co-founded the sports news website Bleacher Report, which is the second-largest digital sports publisher with over 45 million monthly readers.[2][3] In 2012, Finocchio led the company through an acquisition by Turner Broadcasting System for approximately $175 million.[4][5] He stepped away from daily operations of Bleacher Report in 2014 but returned to the company as its CEO in 2016."Two bucks, this is one of those "product placement" review articles, part of marketing, in this case Tesla.Source: Dave Finocchio. Wiki
And, yeah, they want your email address so you can receive :updates." Meaning more marketing. Or in the nice words....
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ShadowAce wrote: “A drug company wouldn’t call something a universal, full vaccine when it didn’t actually prevent illness,”
No, not Corrected unless you can name one vaccine that is 100% effective in preventing illness.
I just finished a Tesla drive from central Missouri to south central Tennessee. A wide range of roads and traffic. I touched the wheel once both ways. I won’t leave home without now after having it for three months.
How many hours did this trip take?
How many recharges were required?
From the article: “EVs are not only responsible for considerably less planet-heating pollution per mile than gas-powered cars, but they also can save drivers thousands of dollars per year on fuel costs. To take the cost savings and environmental benefits of driving an EV to the next level, you can install solar panels on your home. Charging an EV with home solar is cheaper than doing so using the electrical grid or at a public charging station.”
Now, let’s compare the pollution of EV production vs. ICE.
And, let’s include the cost of a home charger and solar panels.
“Unless you were 100% confident (and nothing less will do) that Tesla will self-drive you safely across the country…”
It doesn’t have to be 100%. It only has to be better than you.
This thread is strong with the Elon slob-jobbery.
As for the V-8 sound, my friend's Tesla can make them and also farting sounds using his smart phone. Still with his high school sense of humor, my friend sometimes sits in the parking lot at the grocery store triggering the fart sounds so as to startle passersby. His wife of almost forty years shakes her head.
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