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| Tesla raises the price of fully autonomous driving to $12,000 |
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced via Twitter that the company will raise the price of a driver assistance package from $10,000 to $12,000 on Jan. 17 for US customers only.
In a series of tweets on Twitter with 69.2 million followers, Musk wrote: On January 17, the price of FSD in the United States rose to $12,000. The closer we get to releasing the code to generate the FSD, the higher the price of the FSD.
When asked by a follower about Tesla's FSD subscription products (most customers currently have $199 a month in monthly fees), Musk said, "If FSD goes up, the price of monthly subscriptions will go up."
He's also excited about the new release of the FSD Beta, an invitation-only program that provides enhanced features for some of the company's eligible drivers.
Tesla did not disclose in its earnings report how many customers prepaid or signed up for FSD each quarter.
Therefore, it is not clear to what extent future price increases in the US will increase profit margins.
The company's standard driver assistance package is sold as an automatic manual. This is the standard configuration for all new cars (Model S, Model X, Model Y, Model 3).
Autopilot functions include automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning.
In addition to lane keeping, adaptive cruise control allows your vehicle to adapt to surrounding traffic conditions.
Tesla's fully automatic driving option, also known as FSD, is an advanced package with autopilot functionality. It also includes advanced features such as automatic lane change, traffic sign recognition, and smart reminders.
Despite its name, this option does not allow today's cars to drive autonomously without driver intervention. There is also an FSD shareware that includes advanced features. Musk said in a tweet that the new version 10.9 of the FSD beta is about to expire.
Tesla raises the price of the FSD feature to $12,000
Drivers who receive, purchase or subscribe to an FSD can access the FSD Benefit Beta Program. Once they enter the FSD pilot program, they can test out unfinished functions, such as automatic steering on city streets.
Tesla said this feature enables drivers to navigate the streets and avoid all obstacles without having to drive themselves.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are investigating various aspects of Tesla's development of FSD and technology.
Tesla announced to the authorities that its technology falls under Level 2 autonomous driving, California's vehicle definition, where Level 2 systems can improve safety or provide driver assistance. However, it is impossible to drive or operate a vehicle without human physical control.
Tesla has been committed to offering self-driving cars since around 2016. But the company has yet to offer hands-free driving services in the United States. Although Musk said this could be achieved by the end of 2017.