According to NHTSA data that tracked crashes while Level 2 autonomous driving systems were active between July 2021 and May of 2022, Tesla happens to have the highest number of crashes by a vast margin. Teslas reported 183 more crashes than second place Honda, and 263 more than third place Subaru in that same time span. Despite this abysmal safety record, Tesla continues to release new forms of Level 2 autonomous features, and the crash numbers continue piling up.
This news segment focuses on the crashes caused while using Tesla’s so-called Smart Summon feature that allows Tesla owners to summon their vehicle to them in a parking lot, or send their Tesla off to park itself in a remote location. Tesla recently released an updated version of the software called Actually Smart Summon or ASS, which given the naming convention appears to be an admission that Smart Summon wasn’t that great.
Tesla owners are warned to keep an eye on their vehicle at all times while using summon features, and the Tesla app is designed in a way that forces owners to keep an on-screen button pressed the entire time the vehicle is navigating itself. Should the owner see the vehicle behaving erratically or entering a dangerous situation, the owner should release the button and the vehicle should stop, but clearly Tesla owners are struggling execute this.
It’s unclear in this news segment which software level (Summon, Smart Summon, or Actually Smart Summon) the Tesla Model Y owner was using when their vehicle sideswiped itself on Tamara Meyer’s Audi A4, but regardless of the software level, Tesla owners are supposed to be aware that their vehicle’s behavior is entirely their responsibility. It’s hysterical to watch the compilation of Tesla owners encountering mishaps while using the Summon feature; it would be even funnier if Yakety Sax was playing in the background, though. When the news team visits the IIHS proving grounds to put Tesla’s Summon feature to the test, the system promptly fails in alarmingly uncomplicated conditions. Calling it a beta feature seems both like a misnomer and an understatement. Summon with caution, Tesla owners. Sincerely, innocent bystanders.
