Home Top

Elon Musk reveals Tesla model S cars will soon be able to automatically parallel park and drive themselves on the highway

Car can already sense obstacles, change lanes, and avoid vehicle
No date has so far been given for the release of the latest updates
Tesla says it is having technical issues which has delayed roll out

By Ellie Zolfagharifard For Dailymail.com

Published: 17:11 EST, 3 August 2015 | Updated: 18:32 EST, 3 August 2015

View
comments

Tesla's autopilot technology is about to get smarter.

The company's founder, Elon Musk, has tweeted that the Tesla Model S will soon be able to steer for you on the highway and parallel park by itself.

The car's ultrasonic radar already allows it to sense obstacles, change lanes, and avoid vehicles and pedestrians - but the latest upgrades will make the car far more autonomous.

The company's founder, Elon Musk, has tweeted that the Tesla Model S will soon be able to steer for you on the highway and parallel park. However a date for its release has yet to be announced

'Almost ready to release highway autosteer and parallel autopark software update,' Musk tweeted. However, a date has yet to be announced.

The updates were first announced in October, when Elon Musk also teased a top-spec Model S, the P85D,

The delay in its roll out, said Musk, was due to technical issues, 'Final corner case is dealing with low contrast lane markings (faded white on grey concrete) while driving into the sun at dusk,' he added.

The technology means drivers will not have to control the wheel, acceleration and braking when the car is on a the highway.

Musk is promising that the car will 'learn over time' to deal with these situations.

In the future, the company will also give driver's the ability to summon their car to any location.

The Model S' ultrasonic radar already allows it to sense obstacles, change lanes, and avoid vehicles and pedestrians - but the latest upgrades will make the car far more autonomous

he technology means drivers will not have to control the wheel, acceleration and braking when the car is on a the motorway. The car will be able to sense its surroundings

UBER WANTS TO BUY ALL OF TESLA'S SELF-DRIVING CARS

Despite criticism from taxi drivers, Uber is planning on moving its business up a gear by embracing autonomous vehicles.

The firm's CEO, Travis Kalanick, has reportedly said he intends to buy up all of Tesla's self-driving cars if they're made in the next six years.

Such a move from would go further than driving down the rates taxi drivers are able to charge, and could put them out of business altogether.

Venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson recently recounted his conversation with Kalanick at the 17th annual Top 10 Tech Trends dinner in San Jose, California, Forbes reported.

He suggested that Uber's CEO believes self-driving cars are the future, saying Kalanick told him that if Tesla's cars are autonomous by 2020, he would buy all 500,000 that are expected to be produced.

Tesla is currently testing 12 autonomous cars on Californian roads and Elon Musk says they will spell the end of motorists.

The Model S will also get automatic emergency braking and side collision warnings with the new update.

The technology has been in development since it was first introduced in the Model S last autumn.

Earlier this year, Musk revealed two key software updates for the Tesla model S sedan that he claimed would end 'range anxiety'.

The first was a 'range assurance' app that communicates with Tesla's Supercharger network, warning drivers if they are about to run out of power, and pointing them to the nearest Supercharger.

The second was a trip planner, which combines the Supercharger network with the network of Model S cars to improve long-distance journeys for drivers.

'This makes it effectively impossible for a driver to run out of range unintentionally', said Musk at the time. 'You'll have to confirm you want to, actually. Twice.'

The Model S is already able to estimate how much charge a driver has left in their battery. It can also tell the driver where they are from the nearest Supercharger.

Superchargers are free connectors that charge Model S in minutes. There are currently 403 Supercharger stations with 2,219 Superchargers around the world.

Tesla's software will map out the best route to a driver's destination based on the location of charging stations. It will also warn drivers if battery power is low before they drive beyond an area where they can charge

The latest update combined these two features, to provide more accurate warnings.

Its built-in trip planner, meanwhile, is more advanced, using real-time data such as wind speed and elevation.

The updates addressed one of the biggest concerns for owners of electric cars; that their battery could run out at any moment, leaving them stranded with no recharging station nearby.

So-called 'range anxiety' is a fear that has apparently plagued some owners of Tesla's Model S vehicle.

Tesla regularly updates drivers' software for free over the air.

In January, for instance, an update increased the speed of the top-of-the-line P85D via use of 'insane mode' - enabling the car to go 0 to 60mph (97km/h) in 3.2 seconds, compared to the usual 5.9 seconds.

'We've designed the Model S to be basically a computer on a wheels,' Musk said. 'We view in the same way you view updating your phone and your laptop.'

Musk added that owners should expect such important software updates to be delivered to their Tesla Model S once every three or four months.

Elon Musk (left) said that owners should expect such important software updates to be delivered to their Tesla Model S once every three or four months. On the right is a preview of what the Trip Planner will look like