Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has announced that the price of the Full Self-Driving pack (called Total Autonomous Driving Capability in our country) will go from $12,000 to $15,000 in the United States. At the moment it does not seem that this rise affects Europe since the brand’s online configurator still costs 7,500 euros.
The previous price will be maintained for those orders placed before September 5, even if the delivery takes place later. This upload will coincide with the release of update 10.69.2 in a few weeks. According to Musk, the new software will be a big step forward, as it will entail major changes to the code.
The logic behind the continuous price increases of the FSD package is that the more the autonomous driving system evolves, the more valuable it becomes. This strategy has been advocated on several occasions by Musk himself; however, some Internet users have begun to ironize that in the end, it will be cheaper to hire a driver.
And it is that, as of September 5, the FSD pack will be worth 30% of what a Model 3 RWD costs ($ 48,490); that is, this extra will involve an outlay practically equivalent to a third of the value of the car itself. Logically, many customers will no longer be interested in a system that is also still in full development.
Enhanced Autopilot now includes almost all FSD features
Despite the numerous software updates introduced and its promises of Musk, the truth is that the FSD package is still far from being able to offer a complete autonomous driving experience (it is still a level 2 system).
Basic Autopilot already includes adaptive cruise control and lane center assist, while Enhanced Autopilot ($6,000) adds Navigate on Autopilot, Auto Lane Change, Autopark, and Smart Summon. The very expensive FSD at the moment only adds the automatic stops at STOP signs and traffic lights.
To head off criticism of the high price of this extra, Tesla recently introduced a subscription service to the FSD pack for $199 per month. This rate was not modified with the penultimate increase in the price of the system, so it is expected that it will also remain unchanged with the last one. A priori, it seems that Tesla is trying to “orient” its customers toward the subscription service by purchasing the pack increasingly inaccessible; not in vain, there are not a few manufacturers that aspire to turn this type of service into an important source of income.
