The Professor was looking forward to getting a new US driver’s license. After moving from the East Coast to teach at the University of California, it became pertinent for the 38-year old engineer and scientist to have his own driver’s license again. The coming school year would be different from the last, after all, and with face-to-face classes likely starting again, it was important for the Professor to have the capability to drive the family’s Tesla Model 3 when needed.
Having extensive driving experience overseas before moving to the United States, the Tesla owner (name witheld as requested) was fairly optimistic that he could pass the Department of Motor Vehicles’ standards. His family certainly looked forward to it, so his wife, who also teaches at the University of California, and their two kids — a 4-year-old and a 3-month old baby — headed over to the Santa Ana DMV. Unfortunately for the Professor, he made a grave mistake.
He drove a Tesla.
Driving Tests from Hell
It is no stretch to state that California is the heart of the US’ electric vehicle transition. It’s home to Tesla’s headquarters and the company’s Fremont Factory, where vehicles like the Model 3 and the Model Y are produced. The Professor was then surprised when the DMV examiner, after what appeared to be an uneventful drive, told him that he had failed his driving test. As related to Teslarati, the DMV examiner reportedly informed the Tesla owner that he failed because the “technology in the car was not off.” When asked for more explanation, the examiner explained that the Model 3’s acceleration should have been on “Chill Mode” and the steering settings in “Comfort.”
This was inconvenient, but the Professor figured that he should probably just try again. The Model 3 owner ultimately opted to try his hand at another test in the LA DMV, especially since Teslas are extremely common in Los Angeles. For the second time, the family of four headed over to the LA DMV in their Model 3 for another test. The Professor then drove away with his examiner, but not before ensuring that the Model 3 was in Chill Mode and its steering was set in Comfort. But just like his previous attempt, the DMV examiner informed the Tesla owner that he had failed because of the Model 3’s “automatic engage.” Explaining further, the examiner stated that she could feel the brakes even when the physical brake pedal was not being pressed.
This set off alarms in the Professor and his wife, as regenerative braking is a feature that is very common among electric vehicles. It is also not in any way connected to a Model 3’s automated features. As they addressed their concerns with the DMV, the manager of the LA office told the Model 3 owners that there was no way for Teslas to disable their automated features. When the Tesla owners asked where she got her information from, the manager stated that she heard it from a customer who visited the DMV a few weeks prior. The manager then extended an offer, telling the Tesla owner that he could retake the exam that same day if he could rent a traditional car.
This was an unexpected turn for the family, but they were eventually able to secure a Toyota Camry from a rental car company an hour away. But upon presenting the vehicle to the DMV, the LA office rejected the Camry since it was not under the Professor’s name. Ultimately, the Tesla owner was not allowed to take his driving test in the rental car, though he was given the option of renting one from the LA DMV office instead for $140, $40 more than the Camry that the family had initially rented. Unfortunately for the Professor, he was given a failing score once more, despite the DMV examiner acknowledging that he seemed to have a lot of experience driving cars.
DMV Policies and Customer Advice
In a later message, the Professor’s wife stated that her husband would most definitely try to get his driver’s license once more, though they would probably wait some time before trying again. The last three tries were quite exhausting, and by the third driving test, the Model 3 owner stated that some DMV staff were already irate. This was not that unusual, of course, considering that the DMV is one of America’s least-liked agencies. It was just quite surprising that in the first two tests, it was the Model 3’s features that caused the examiner to fail the Tesla owner.
In a response to a Teslarati inquiry about the Model 3 owners’ experience, the CA DMV Public Affairs Office confirmed that there is no policy that prevents customers from taking their driving test in a Tesla. The office added that while the DMV currently has no specific criteria for features like regenerative braking in EVs, it is working to ensure that examiners have an understanding of the function and how it impacts driving. That being said, the agency advised that those who wish to take their driving test in a Tesla should speak to a manager first to avoid issues.
“In the event (that) a customer has questions about taking a driving test in a particular vehicle, they should ask to speak with a manager before the test. DMV employees who give behind-the-wheel tests receive updated training as necessary,” the DMV Public Affairs Office noted.
It should be noted that California is arguably the US state that is friendliest to electric vehicles. The state still offers clean vehicle rebates, and there is still a Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate for automakers. It is then no surprise that Teslas are very popular in the state. In 2015, California accounted for 43% of Tesla’s new vehicle registrations, as per data from IHS Markit. This percentage has since decreased as Tesla started selling its cars to more territories — but its California stake is still no joke. In 2020 alone, Tesla still sold 37% of its vehicles in California, despite the pandemic and the company no longer having any access to the $7,500 federal tax credit enjoyed by competitors like the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the Volkswagen ID.4.
Insights from CA’s Clean Air Protectors
The California Air Resources Board (CARB), which is charged with protecting the public from the harmful effects of air pollution and developing programs to fight climate change, is among the agencies that are helping push the transition to sustainable transportation. With this in mind, it seemed appropriate to get the agency’s take on the Tesla Model 3 owners’ experience with the Santa Ana and LA DMV. After all, it would be quite challenging to fully adopt electric vehicles in California if some driving examiners or DMV offices were still unfamiliar with how EVs work, or their features for that matter.
CARB Communications Specialist John Swanton informed Teslarati that while driving tests are not CARB’s area of responsibility, the agency could work together with the DMV if there are widespread issues that could impede the greater goals of California’s transition to Zero-Emission vehicles. That being said, Swanton remarked that driver-assist technologies are becoming more and more common in modern cars, and they are widely accepted as features that enhance safety.
“While the driver’s license test is not our area of responsibility, we can say that we are not aware of any serious concerns that DMV has with the routine features found in a very wide range of vehicles equipped with driver-assistance technologies. As you are probably aware, these are in use in both EV and combustion-powered vehicles, and are widely accepted to enhance vehicle safety. These systems not only meet state requirements; they are fully certified for use nationwide by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,” Swanton said.
The CARB Communications Specialist further stated that specific features like regenerative braking have long been proven to be very efficient, driver-operated controls that have been utilized since the early days of hybrid vehicles like the Toyota Prius. In this light, at least, it appears that the DMV examiner’s statements about the Model 3’s regenerative braking being an automated feature seems misinformed at best or biased at worst. “Their operation is not unlike the use of an automatic transmission. So it’s safe to say that these are not autonomous features, but rather simply part of modern automobile controls. I think this complaint may be a situation with an individual examiner that DMV management will need to speak to or clarify policy,” Swanton remarked.
Behind the Times
There is something ironic about the idea of a Tesla driver in California failing a driving test because of the electric vehicle’s basic functions. Numerous driving schools across the globe, after all, are already embracing electric vehicles fully. Los Angeles-based Drivers Ed Direct currently operates an all-electrified fleet of cars for its students. Defensive Driving School, which was founded in 1945, actually offers a “specialty course” on Model 3s called “The Tesla Experience.” These programs suggest that driving schools across the country are already aware that sustainable vehicles are inevitable, and it is in everyone’s best interest to ensure that drivers of the future are fully acquainted with the features and behavior of electric cars.
And it’s not just the United States either. In Germany, a country famous for its mastery of carmaking, schools like Die Fahrschule have made it their mission to ensure that the next generation of drivers is properly prepared for the era of electric vehicles. In an interview with noted EV advocate Ove Kröger, one of the German driving school’s instructors, Alexander Erler, stated that there are actually advantages to teaching in an EV like a Model 3, since the vehicles provide a calm atmosphere. Remarkably, Erler noted that the presence of Model 3s in the school’s fleet actually helped dispel misinformation about electric vehicles, especially when younger drivers take their EV-skeptical parents along for their lessons.
Even oil-rich Dubai is no different. Electric vehicles are still a niche product in the Middle Eastern city, but prominent driving schools like Emirates Driving Institute (EDI) are already investing in electric vehicles. The school purchased a Model X to be part of its premium driving fleet in 2018, and since then, the vehicle has been received well. In a conversation with Teslarati, EDI Marketing Executive Disha Bhatia explained that the addition of electric vehicles to the school’s fleet is fully supported by the government. This is a big vote of confidence in EVs, since Dubai mandates all drivers to attend a formal driving school before attempting a driving test.
“It becomes important for them to also know that if tomorrow, electric cars are the future, then how would driving be any different than that of regular cars? So when (the students) learn on Teslas, they would understand the differences between a normal car versus an electric car. However, they also need to understand that driving is the same. They still need to focus on the same points… the same (focus on safety)… We’ve received great responses from a lot of our customers who are very interested to drive in a Tesla, and they’re very happy to get their licenses,” she said.
So what exactly happened in the case of the Model 3 owner? It would be very difficult to determine exactly what caused the examiners to fail the Tesla owner, though it appears that a lack of proper information is the prominent culprit. Teslas are ultimately cars, after all, and they serve the same purpose as regular vehicles. They just happen to be more advanced, and in more ways than one, safer, than traditional vehicles. With this in mind, it seems to be a bad idea to be misinformed about Teslas, especially since the vehicles are practically everywhere in the state.
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News
Why Elon Musk’s target date for buying an Optimus robot is harder than it sounds
Musk says China’s magnet export ban cost Optimus months, and robot hands remain shockingly hard.
Elon Musk says China’s export curbs on magnets used in electric motors set back Tesla’s Optimus program by two to three months, and that the robot’s hands remain the hardest part of the project. He made the comments Saturday during a live interview with Tesla Owners Silicon Valley at the X Takeover event at Giga Texas, in front of roughly 2,000 attendees. The Optimus discussion begins around the 49 minute mark of the stream.
On the hands, Musk was blunt and noted that a general purpose humanoid needs fine motor skills that are “incredibly difficult to get right. Shockingly difficult,” he said in the interview. He pointed to a problem he says no one has demonstrated yet: “One of the hardest things also generally is to do precision and force at the same time,” such as driving a small self tapping screw into wood. Touch sensors add another layer, since it is “actually kind of hard to get touch sensors that elastically deform and can handle high cycle life and it won’t just break after a few thousand cycles.”
He also took aim at rival robot videos. “Any complicated looking robot demo, it’s a canned demo. It’s not real,” Musk said, adding that real AI means showing a robot something it has never seen and watching it still cope, the way FSD handles a city it has never driven.
Musk expects the Optimus ramp to be slower than a new vehicle production ramp. “The initial part of that S curve of production ramp is going to be very slow at the beginning,” Musk said, partly because “unlike cars, there’s no pre existing supply chain for robot stuff.” That echoes his July reply on X that Optimus production “will be extremely slow at first, as everything is new.”
The magnet disclosure puts a number on a problem Musk first raised in 2025. He said China “prevented the export of magnets for use in electric motors” and that it “set back the Optimus program by like two or three months.” Then he added: “We had robots with no arms.” Tesla’s fix is to bring the supply chain home. “You’ve got to be able to make all the parts domestically,” he said. Teslarati reported in April 2025 that Musk tied the issue to permanent magnets in the arm actuators, where motors have to be as small as possible.
Tesla Optimus V3 hand and arm details revealed in new patents
Production is moving regardless, with a reported internal goal of more than 1,000 a week by the end of 2026. Teslarati recently covered how Tesla is certifying supply partners in China for Optimus parts, while the company’s hand design has been the subject of new patent filings.
Musk has said he wants Optimus available to the public by late 2027, though Tesla has not confirmed that date or published updated production figures.
Investor's Corner
Elon Musk drops a Thanksgiving hint about Starship’s biggest test yet
Elon Musk says Starship Flight 15 will try to catch the ship itself, a first.
Elon Musk says SpaceX’s next Starship flight will try something nobody has done before, by catching the ship itself. Speaking to roughly 2,000 people at the X Takeover event at Giga Texas on Saturday, Musk said Flight 15 is about four to six weeks away and “probably launches a little bit before Thanksgiving, is my guess.”
That is a slip from earlier reporting, which had pointed to a launch as early as October 19. Musk explained why the date keeps moving. “We’re making a bunch of improvements to the rocket between every flight,” he said, adding that there are often hundreds, sometimes thousands, of small changes. This time the list is short, “but some of them take a fair bit of work and we’ve got to go inside the tank to make some of these changes.”
“We’re going to try to catch the ship, which is a super big deal,” Musk said. “If we do so, that’ll be the first time that there’s been full recovery of an orbital class rocket.” SpaceX has already caught the Super Heavy booster with the tower’s mechanical arms, and has talked about catching the ship since late 2025, but the upper stage has never been caught.
Musk also laid out what comes after. “The next big milestone would be to refly both the booster and the ship,” he said, describing a Flight 16 where “all parts of an orbital rocket are reflown.”
The reason SpaceX wants this comes down to cost and cadence. Every Starship ship so far has ended its flight in the ocean, and SpaceX expects most of those water landings to end in fireballs. A ship that returns to Starbase intact can be inspected and flown again. SpaceX’s IPO filing, says Starship V3 is designed to deliver 100 metric tons to orbit in a fully reusable configuration, that SpaceX aims to cut the cost to reach orbit by 99% or more versus the historical average, and that tower catches should allow “multiple launches per day.”
The payoff goes beyond cheaper launches. The next generation Starlink V3 satellites are too large for Falcon 9 and can only fly on Starship, which can carry up to 60 per flight. Flight 14 on September 28 deployed the first 26 of them after Starship reached orbit despite an early engine shutdown, as Teslarati reported. Musk blamed engine computer software, and said the heat shield “was extremely robust,” which he claimed in August had solved Starship’s biggest challenge.
NASA’s Moon plans depend on the same capability. NASA’s inspector general has described a lander mission that needs a propellant depot in low Earth orbit and more than 10 tanker flights, with SpaceX targeting one tanker launch every six days. That schedule only works if ships and boosters come back fast and fly again. Also, ship to ship propellant transfer has not been attempted yet.
One interesting hurdle yet to be explored is bringing the ship back to the launch site, with reentry over land, which will undoubtedly come with a lot of aviation safety reviews.
Lifestyle
Tesla’s mirrorless Cybercab will give riders a visibility upgrade
Tesla engineer confirms Cybercab update letting riders pull up rear and repeater cameras on demand.
Tesla is working on a Cybercab update that would let passengers pull up the vehicle’s rear and side cameras on demand, and the request came straight from a rider.
The exchange played out on X late Friday. Cybercab rider Dan Burkland shared photos of the two-seater’s cabin screen after an evening ride, praised the UI team’s work, and left one request: let riders open the rear and repeater cameras whenever they want, “especially for peace of mind.” Tesla UI software engineer Evan (@CarCoder) answered with two words: “In development.”
The Tesla UI team absolutely crushed it with the infotainment software. Nicely done @CarCoder!
One feature request: Allow folks to pull up the rear & repeater cameras on demand. This would be great especially for peace of mind. https://t.co/mNAOSLx6pE
— Dan Burkland (@DBurkland) October 10, 2026
The idea fits a pattern Teslarati has tracked since public rides began. Days after paid Cybercab service opened in Austin, Tesla sent riders a survey that asked them to rate the touchscreen, the app and the cabin, and to pick the features they wanted most. We reported on that survey in September, and a camera view is the kind of small software change Tesla can push quickly if riders keep asking.
It also speaks to something unique about the vehicle. With no steering wheel, no pedals and no driver, passengers have no mirror to check and no way to see behind them. The hardware is clearly built for camera awareness, from the repeater cameras to the rear camera. Letting a passenger look through those same cameras would give a nervous first time rider a way to confirm what is around the car.
The timing matters because the fleet is growing fast. Tesla’s Robotaxi account said on Saturday that more than 300 Cybercabs are now serving Austin, an eightfold increase in 30 days, and Tesla AI chief Ashok Elluswamy named Dallas as the next city. More cars and more cities mean more people riding in a driverless vehicle for the first time, which is exactly when small trust features carry weight.
For now, the feature is confirmed only as in development. If Tesla follows its usual pattern with Cybercab software, riders could see it appear in a point release without any announcement, and Teslarati will watch for it.
Why Elon Musk’s target date for buying an Optimus robot is harder than it sounds
Elon Musk drops a Thanksgiving hint about Starship’s biggest test yet
Tesla’s mirrorless Cybercab will give riders a visibility upgrade
The Pentagon taps Elon Musk to design the battlefield of the future
Tesla Roadster’s new patent preps white-knuckle speeds, keeping it grounded
