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Tesla's Autopilot conquers intimidating highway and inner city trip with ease
recent video from a Tesla enthusiast shows that the electric car maker’s driver-assist software is fully capable of handling lengthy trips on the highway, navigating through various on and off ramps and performing smooth lane changes.
As a part of his “Tesla Challenge” series on YouTube, Tesla owner and enthusiast Dirty Tesla took his Model 3 on a 45-mile journey from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Troy, Michigan. He decided it was a perfect opportunity to test Tesla’s Navigate on Autopilot system as the journey was taken during a relatively busy time on the highway. His Model 3 was operating on Software 2019.40.50.7 with Hardware 2.5.
Dirty Tesla noted that the intention of the video was to intervene as little as possible with the car to see how it would handle the trip in somewhat stressful conditions. He stated that in past challenges, he has been a tad disappointed with his Model 3’s performance when navigating on the highway with Autopilot and Full Self-Driving. However, this test gave a completely different result.
When traveling on Interstate-75 in Michigan, Dirty Tesla notes that exit 186B has given his vehicle some issues in the past. Even though the vehicle and GPS recognized that the exit needed to be taken to get to the destination in the quickest way possible, the Tesla would sometimes speed by the exit and reroute.
However, the vehicle easily recognized the exit in this instance and took it with relative ease. “Perfect, it took it. That is so nice. That’s an exit that [the car] used to just fly right past it. It had it on the screen, it said it was going to exit, and it just didn’t. But now, that is working,” he said.
Shortly after taking the correct exit in a manner that was impressive to Dirty Tesla, the car then displayed its recently added Adjacent Lane Speed Adjustment feature. When approaching a traffic light that had recently turned green, a line of cars in the lane next to the one Dirty Tesla was driving in was not yet moving. The Model 3’s Autopilot cameras and sensors recognized this and eventually slowed the vehicle down so it would be traveling at a safer speed that was similar to the cars around it.
After exiting the freeway, the Tesla was then automatically navigating through a series of city roads and intersections flawlessly. This was impressive as some lines on the road were faded or not visible at all. This did not seem to be a challenge for the Tesla and it was able to travel through the streets of Troy without any intervention from the driver.
The performance of Dirty Tesla’s Model 3 is another example of how far Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems have come. As the company has released frequent updates to the software that has made it safer, the Tesla enthusiast noted that the vehicle seems to perform with more confidence than it ever has before. Ultimately, the YouTube host gave Autopilot’s performance an A rating and stated the drive was super impressive and a lot of fun.
You can watch Dirty Tesla’s 45-mile journey in his Model 3 below.
Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announces major update with texting and driving on FSD
“Depending on context of surrounding traffic, yes,” Musk said in regards to FSD v14.2.1 allowing texting and driving.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced a major update with texting and driving capabilities on Full Self-Driving v14.2.1, the company’s latest version of the FSD suite.
Tesla Full Self-Driving, even in its most mature and capable versions, is still a Level 2 autonomous driving suite, meaning it requires attention from the vehicle operator.
You cannot sleep, and you should not take attention away from driving; ultimately, you are still solely responsible for what happens with the car.
The vehicles utilize a cabin-facing camera to enable attention monitoring, and if you take your eyes off the road for too long, you will be admonished and advised to pay attention. After five strikes, FSD and Autopilot will be disabled.
However, Musk announced at the Annual Shareholder Meeting in early November that the company would look at the statistics, but it aimed to allow people to text and drive “within the next month or two.”
He said:
“I am confident that, within the next month or two, we’re gonna look at the safety statistics, but we will allow you to text and drive.”
“I am confident that, within the next month or two, we’re gonna look at the safety statistics, but we will allow you to text and drive.”
Does anyone think v14.3 will enable this? pic.twitter.com/N2yn0SK70M
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 23, 2025
Today, Musk confirmed that the current version of Full Self-Driving, which is FSD v14.2.1, does allow for texting and driving “depending on context of surrounding traffic.”
Depending on context of surrounding traffic, yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 4, 2025
There are some legitimate questions with this capability, especially as laws in all 50 U.S. states specifically prohibit texting and driving. It will be interesting to see the legality of it, because if a police officer sees you texting, they won’t know that you’re on Full Self-Driving, and you’ll likely be pulled over.
Some states prohibit drivers from even holding a phone when the car is in motion.
It is certainly a move toward unsupervised Full Self-Driving operation, but it is worth noting that Musk’s words state it will only allow the vehicle operator to do it depending on the context of surrounding traffic.
He did not outline any specific conditions that FSD would allow a driver to text and drive.
News
Tesla Semi just got a huge vote of confidence from 300-truck fleet
The confidential meeting marks a major step for the mid-sized carrier in evaluating the electric truck for its regional routes.
The Tesla Semi is moving closer to broader fleet adoption, with Keller Logistics Group wrapping up a key pre-production planning session with the electric vehicle maker’s team this week.
The confidential meeting marks a major step for the mid-sized carrier in evaluating the electric truck for its regional routes.
Keller’s pre-production Tesla Semi sessions
Keller Logistics Group, a family-owned carrier with over 300 tractors and 1,000 trailers operating in the Midwest and Southeast, completed the session to assess the Tesla Semi’s fit for its operations. The company’s routes typically span 500-600 miles per day, positioning it as an ideal tester for the Semi’s day cab configuration in standard logistics scenarios.
Details remain under mutual NDA, but the meeting reportedly focused on matching the truck to yard, shuttle and regional applications while scrutinizing economics like infrastructure, maintenance and incentives.
What Keller’s executives are saying
CEO Bryan Keller described the approach as methodical. “For us, staying ahead isn’t a headline, it’s a habit. From electrification and yard automation to digital visibility and warehouse technology, our teams are continually pressure-testing what’s next. The Tesla Semi discussion is one more way we evaluate new tools against our standards for safety, uptime, and customer ROI. We don’t chase trends, we pressure-test what works,” Keller said.
Benjamin Pierce, Chief Strategy Officer, echoed these sentiments. “Electrification and next-generation powertrains are part of a much broader transformation. Whether it’s proprietary yard systems like YardLink™, solar and renewable logistics solutions, or real-time vehicle intelligence, Keller’s approach stays the same, test it, prove it, and deploy it only when it strengthens service and total cost for our customers,” Pierce said.
News
Tesla extends FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe by three months
Needless to say, it does appear that FSD fever is starting to catch in Europe.
Tesla appears to be doubling down on its European Full Self-Driving (Supervised) push, with the company extending its demo ride-along program by three months until the end of March 2026. The update seems to have been implemented due to overwhelming demand.
Needless to say, it does appear that FSD fever is starting to catch in Europe.
Extended FSD demonstrations
Tesla EU Policy and Business Development Manager Ivan Komušanac shared on LinkedIn that the company is offering ride-along experiences in Germany, France and Italy while working toward FSD (Supervised) approval in Europe.
He noted that this provides a great feedback opportunity from the general public, encouraging participants to record and share their experiences. For those unable to book in December, Komušanac teased more slots as “Christmas presents.”
Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt highlighted the extension on X, stating that dates now run from December 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, in multiple cities including Stuttgart-Weinstadt, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf in Germany. This suggests that the FSD ride-along program in Europe has officially been extended until the end of the first quarter of 2026.
Building momentum for European approval
Replies to Merritt’s posts buzzed with excitement, with users like @AuzyMale noting that Cologne and Düsseldorf are already fully booked. This sentiment was echoed by numerous other Tesla enthusiasts on social media. Calls for the program’s expansion to other European territories have also started gaining steam, with some X users suggesting Switzerland and Finland as the next locations for FSD ride-alongs.
Ultimately, the Tesla EU Policy and Business Development Manager’s post aligns with the company’s broader FSD efforts in Europe. As per recent reports, Tesla recently demonstrated FSD’s capabilities for Rome officials. Reporters from media outlets in France and Germany have also published positive reviews of FSD’s capabilities on real-world roads.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announces major update with texting and driving on FSD
Tesla Semi just got a huge vote of confidence from 300-truck fleet
