Tesla owners respond to.
A man, a Michigan native named Brandon Dalaly, implanted his Tesla key in his hand, CNN reported. Another man, Tad Park, an businesskinda.com based in San Francisco, drove turned his Tesla into a child to prove that the automatic braking system worked.
It’s no secret that fans of Elon Musk’s electric car company are a passionate bunch. In 2019 Mashable wrote that the company inspires “dedicated stan.Tesla also topped Consumer Reports’ Car satisfaction survey 2022and it wasn’t the first time.
A Tesla owner – he has the Models 3, Y and S – told businesskinda.com there are several reasons why he loves his cars so much.
Driving a Tesla versus any other type of car is “the difference between a Model T and a horse and buggy,” said Greg Tramontin, president and CEO of GoAuto Insurance.
“It is a whole” [other] level of driving and technology,” he said, pointing out that he watches Netflix while charging his cars and rarely has to take them in for service or repairs.
But others take this passion to the extreme. This week, a Tesla owner showed CNN how he built in a chip that unlocks his Tesla in his hand so he can never lose his keys.
Are you the type who has trouble keeping track of your car keys? A Michigan man solved that problem by turning himself into a key. https://t.co/AD5xp5Op4s pic.twitter.com/mLJh6BfSBK
— CNN (@CNN) August 24, 2022
“I’m a huge tech geek,” Dalaly told the outlet. He also said he hopes to get his credit card in his hand — and already has another chip that unlocks the door to his house.
Then there is the matter of a man driving a Tesla (slowly) into a child. Or, as Guardian columnist Arwa Mahdawi put it“Why are Tesla fanatics putting their kids in the path of moving cars?”
The answer is that there is an ongoing online debate about whether Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” technology actually stops when a child is in front of it. (FSD is still in beta mode and has a large number of testers. In colloquial terms, it’s also more like assisted driving. The name is a bit of a misnomer.)
The controversy started when a tester posted a video they say shows Tesla’s FSD system doesn’t stop at childish decoys.
Our new safety test from @Elon Musk‘s Full Self-Driving Teslas found that they will mow down children indiscriminately.
Today @RealDawnProject launches a nationwide TV ad campaign demanding: @NHTSAgov ban fully self-driving driving until @Elon Musk proves that it will not mow children. pic.twitter.com/i5Jtb38GjH
— Dan O’Dowd (@RealDanODowd) August 9, 2022
Tesla later changed its website to say it’s meant to reduce the likelihood of a collision, not to stop a collision altogether. Electrek, a transportation-focused retailer, said it will be in a study FSD was not involved during the test.
Tesla fans saw it as a challenge. A shareholder, Volt Equity CEO Tad Park, posted a video of his Tesla approaching a child at 8 mph. the car stopped, according to CNBC.
“We made sure that the car recognized the child. Even if the system failed completely, I was willing to take over at any time. I had an idea when to brake if the car didn’t slow down enough,” he told the outlet.
YouTube removed the video last week, the outlet noted.
Tramontin said he would never consider holding his Tesla key in his hand. (“That’s crazy,” he said.) But he does like the way he rides.
“It’s the most thoughtful vehicle I’ve ever seen. Elon Musk and his engineers have done an amazing job,” he said.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.