I've been paying $99/month for Tesla's FSD software, and it's my chauffeur. This is Tesla's software that lets a car drive itself everywhere. The big questions are does it drive everywhere and is it worth it?
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Paying $99/Month for Tesla FSD
After having Tesla's FSD software for a month as a free trial and not having to pay, I decided to pay the $99/month and get the subscription to the software. Right now, it's at version 12.3.6.
Tesla describes their FSD software as being able to drive the car almost anywhere, and they call it "FSD Supervised". This supervised software will drive on the freeway and on city streets with stop sign and stop light controls.
There are also a few other features with it. Those features are:
- Smart Summon: Calling your car from a parking space to come to you
- Park Assist: Using a 3D view in order to park your car automatically
- Banish: Send your car away while it drops you off at the front of a building
These additional features are valuable, especially for the elderly and those disabled. It means the car can do most of the work for you while you simply get out right at the entrance of the place you are at without having to use handicap parking - or have any kind of sticker on your car for disabilities. This removes a lot of the stress from driving and parking.
Paying $99/month for the software is something I don't mind doing, and the reason is that it takes a lot of the driving and does it for me. I can relax my mind while it does this, even though I still need to pay attention in case I need to take over.
There are rare cases still where I have to take over. FSD hit a dead zone the other day when the software crashed, and I had to immediately take over. That happened once in probably 30 hours of driving, and only once.
There's been a few cases where the car didn't quite do a turn right, or I wanted it to stay in a lane instead of changing lanes, so I disengaged the system.
But, for the most part, the software drives me everywhere now. So yes, the software can drive me everywhere, but I must supervise it in case it makes a mistake. I think in the next year or so, we'll have unsupervised FSD, which doesn't require paying attention or taking over.
It also drives very well in rain or snow and handles most of the construction you'll encounter.
It's worth it right now if you want the strain of driving to be taken over by the best full self-driving on the market today.
You May Also Like: Tesla Is Removing The Steering Wheel Nag For FSD - Within The Next Month
Like An Invisible Chauffeur
I was thinking about how to describe Tesla's FSD software to someone, and the thought came to my mind. It's like an invisible chauffeur.
An invisible chauffeur who takes over driving my car for me and takes care of all driving responsibility for me.
According to ZipRecruiter, a private chauffeur costs $23.43 per hour. For the 30 hours I'm guessing I've used Tesla's FSD software, that's over $600 I would pay a private chauffeur. Instead, I am paying $99/month, which is much cheaper.
This invisible chauffeur doesn't age or get distracted. It won't get affected by any emotions or problems in its life. It has one task - to get you safely from point A to point B.
In addition to that, it will only get better from here, improving over time with training and updates. Imagine paying $99/month for a chauffeur that only gets safer and safer every month, increasing in skill and becoming vastly superior to a human in driving.
One thing missing, however, is the ability to talk to the car and have it talk back. Supposedly, Tesla will eventually allow you to program against an API for the car. But so far, that hasn't been something that has happened yet.
Eventually, your car will not only drive you everywhere and do it at a superhuman level, but it will have a voice and personality, something you can talk to on long drives or just to ask questions when you want.
It's an exciting time for the future!
For Further Reading: I Drove A Gas Car Today, For The First Time In Over A Year And A Half, After Driving My Tesla: It Was Like Going Back To A Horse And Buggy
What do you think about paying $99/month for Tesla's FSD software? Would you do it? Is it like an invisible chauffeur?
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Hi! I'm Jeremy Noel Johnson, and I am a Tesla investor and supporter and own a 2022 Model 3 RWD EV and I don't have range anxiety :). I enjoy bringing you breaking Tesla news as well as anything about Tesla or other EV companies I can find, like Aptera. Other interests of mine are AI, Tesla Energy and the Tesla Bot! You can follow me on X.COM or LinkedIn to stay in touch and follow my Tesla and EV news coverage.
Image Credit/Reference: My own experience
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