The Tesla Model S P90D with Ludicrous Mode was recently tested on one of the most challenging roads by Matt Farah of The Smoking Tire and The Drive, notes Jalopnik. Farah, who took the car this time for canyon carving, decided to let the car’s Autopilot driver assistance software take the lead after driving for a few miles. However, he found that it faced difficulty with hairpin turns.
How Autopilot performed on a curvy road
Recently after charging the vehicle to ensure there is sufficient battery for some Ludicrous Mode launches, Farah decided to see how the Autopilot mode works on the famous curvy California road called “The Snake.” The popular road has been seen in numerous accident videos and is also referred to as Mulholland Highway.
Farah tried activating the Autopilot at 35 miles per hour, but the vehicle didn’t allow that, after which he had to reduce the car’s speed to 25 mph. Farah observed that the Tesla Model S took about 20 seconds on its own before doing things like not turning, thus forcing him to take back control.
Farah is seen admitting in the video that it was too optimistic to expect the Autopilot system to manage the tight hairpin turns at the bottom of “The Snake,” but he was curious and hence tried again on an easier stretch of road. This too was curvy, but the system managed it much better. He admitted though that the vehicle drove itself somewhat like a drunk person would drive.
Tesla’s Autopilot is not meant to be tried on the fun roads of southern California; rather, it is meant for relatively tame highways. Farah confessed that when he is not driving, he puts more energy and focus on what the car is doing compared to when he is actually driving. However, he believes Autopilot is one of the greatest automotive achievements.
Tesla Model S fire incident – authorities investigating
In other Tesla news, the EV firm said it is working with French authorities to find out why one of its cars burst into flames during a test drive. The U.S. firm said all four passengers inside the Model S 90D came out unharmed, safely exiting the vehicle after it gave a warning.
The driver who signed up for the test drive said while he was accelerating, he heard a loud sound coming from the car, reported local newspaper Sud-Ouest.
“In less than a minute, the car was in flames and, in five minutes, it was totally destroyed,” the driver said.
