Consumer Reports Slams Tesla's Full-Self Driving Capability

Consumer Reports updated an in-depth report this week on Tesla Inc TSLA Full Self-Driving and Autopilot capabilities, and the review is far from flattering.

Unreliable Features: Consumer Reports said Tesla’s ambitious self-driving technology promises some extremely cool features, but the reality of what drivers actually get when they cough up $10,000 for FSD is inconsistent, unpredictable and potentially very dangerous.

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Earlier this week, the California Department of Motor Vehicles notified Tesla that it is “under review” for its claims related to its autonomous driving capabilities. In addition, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has 28 special investigations open related to Tesla crashes involving FSD and Autopilot.

Jake Fisher, senior director of auto testing at Consumer Reports, said Tesla has made significant strides in autonomy in recent years — but Tesla owners should not rely on Autopilot or FSD to make driving easier or safer.

“Despite the name, the Full Self-Driving Capability suite requires significant driver attention to ensure that these developing-technology features don’t introduce new safety risks to the driver, or other vehicles out on the road,” Fisher said.

“Not only that, in our evaluations we determined that several of the features don’t provide much in the way of real benefits to customers, despite the extremely high purchase price.”

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Reported Issues: Consumer Reports specifically mentioned the following issues when testing Tesla’s AV capabilities:

• Most FDS capabilities worked “inconsistently,” including its Autopark feature, which sometimes failed to park between lines or even recognize open parking spaces.
• Smart Summon sometimes drove on the wrong side of parking lot driving lanes and failed to stop at stop signs.
• Navigate on Autopilot was “inconsistent,” sometimes ignoring exit ramps, driving in the carpool lane and completely disengaging for “no apparent reason.”
• Traffic Light and Stop Control stops at green lights (by design), and at times did not stop for stop signs, slammed on breaks for yield signs and stopped at every exit at a traffic circle.

Consumer Reports said it reached out to Tesla with a series of questions about its features, but Tesla did not respond.

Kelly Funkhouser, head of connected and automated vehicle testing at Consumer Reports, said Tesla would be better served devoting time and resources to improving the usefulness and safety of its Autopilot system rather than adding additional features.

“It seems like Tesla is focused on being the automaker with the most features rather than ensuring that the features work well,” Funkhouser said.

Benzinga’s Take: There’s no question Tesla has some extremely cool ideas about the future of autonomy. However, it remains to be seen whether or not its ambitious AV software rollouts and marketing promises will ultimately have a negative impact on Tesla’s reputation or create legal and/or regulatory issues for the company and its investors.

Photo courtesy of Tesla.