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Tesla FSD Beta V9 handles roundabouts and blind turns in first real-world tests

Credit: Eli Burton/YouTube

Published

4 years ago

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Tesla has begun rolling out Full Self Driving Beta V9 to members of its FSD Beta program, and so far, it appears that the driver-assist suite has indeed made some notable improvements following its shift to a vision-only system. This was initially demonstrated in tests conducted by members of the FSD Beta program, some of whom wasted no time testing out their vehicles’ updated software capabilities. 

One of these tests was conducted by Tesla Model S Performance owner Eli Burton, how opted to check how FSD Beta V9 handles a series of roundabouts nearby. As per the Tesla owner, FSD Beta V8.3, FSD Beta V9’s predecessor, typically encountered trouble when navigating the roundabouts. With the new update, however, this was no longer the case.

A look at a video posted of the Model S owner’s drive from his home to a Tesla store showed FSD Beta V9 handling several roundabouts confidently and without any difficulties. Unprotected left turns were also handled almost like a human driver. The vehicle’s navigation did need to be adjusted a couple of times to direct the car precisely to its destination, but overall, the advanced driver-assist system performed remarkably well. 

Speaking about the test, the Tesla owner admitted that he was personally surprised at the improvements offered by FSD Beta V9, as he was skeptical of Elon Musk’s decision to shift to a pure vision system. Based on the Model S owner’s roundabout test, at least, it appears that Tesla’s vision-only approach is indeed paying off. 

https://twitter.com/kimpaquette/status/1413824316081385476?s=20

These observations were echoed by fellow FSD Beta tester and Model 3 owner Kim Paquette, who also decided to test her vehicle’s capabilities on several challenging roads. The Model 3 owner directed FSD Beta V9 into a series of narrow streets, and apart from some hesitation in some difficult areas, the advanced driver-assist system performed fairly well. The Model 3 even took a blind left turn into a very narrow road safely, without requiring any intervention from its driver. 

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While much of the improvements that were rolled out to FSD Beta V9 were under the hood, it is becoming evident that Tesla is making some solid progress towards its goal of achieving autonomous driving. Members of the FSD Beta program have remarked that their vehicles now behave more confidently on the road. Whether this is due to the shift to Tesla Vision is up for question, but for now, one thing seems sure: FSD Beta V9 is a definitive improvement over FSD Beta V8.3, and that in itself is a remarkable achievement. 

Watch Tesla’s FSD Beta V9 handle roundabouts in the video below. 

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla takes first step in sunsetting Model S and X with drastic move

Tesla won’t be taking custom orders of the Model S or Model X in Europe any longer.

Published

10 hours ago

on

July 30, 2025

By

Credit: @supergeek18 | X

Tesla has seemingly taken the first step in sunsetting two of its older vehicles, the Model S and Model X, by ending international orders.

The flagship sedan and SUV from Tesla are the two oldest cars in the company’s lineup. They account for a very small portion of overall sales, and several years ago, CEO Elon Musk admitted that Tesla only continues to build and sell them due to “sentimental reasons.”

Earlier this year, there were calls for Tesla to end the production of the two cars, but Lars Moravy said that the Model S and Model X were due to get some love later in 2025. That happened, but the changes were extremely minor.

Tesla launches new Model S and Model X, and the changes are slim

Some took this as an indication that Tesla has kind of moved on from the Model S and Model X. A handful of people seemed to think Tesla would overhaul the vehicles substantially, but the changes were extremely minor and included only a few real adjustments.

In Europe, customers are unable to even put a new order in on a Model S or Model X.

We noticed earlier today that Tesla pressing the ‘Order’ button on either of the flagship vehicles takes you to local inventory, and not the Design Studio where you’d configure your custom build:

Tesla simply does not make enough Model S or Model X units to justify the expensive logistics process of shipping custom orders overseas. It almost seems as if they’re that they will essentially build a bunch of random configurations, send them overseas every few months, and let them sell before replenishing inventory.

Inversely, it could also mean Tesla is truly gearing up to sunset the vehicle altogether. It seems unlikely that the company will fade them out altogether in the next couple of years, but it could absolutely think about ending international orders because volume is so low.

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Energy

Tesla inks multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution to avoid tariff pressure

Tesla has reportedly secured a sizable partnership with LGES for LFP cells, and there’s an extra positive out of it.

Published

16 hours ago

on

July 30, 2025

By

Credit: Tesla

Tesla has reportedly inked a multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution in an effort to avoid tariff pressure and domesticate more of its supply chain.

Reuters is reporting that Tesla and LGES, a South Korean battery supplier of the automaker, signed a $4.3 billion deal for energy storage system batteries. The cells are going to be manufactured by LGES at its U.S. factory located in Michigan, the report indicates. The batteries will be the lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, chemistry.

Tesla delivers 384,000 vehicles in Q2 2025, deploys 9.6 GWh in energy storage

It is a move Tesla is making to avoid buying cells and parts from overseas as the Trump White House continues to use tariffs to prioritize domestic manufacturing.

LGES announced earlier today that it had signed a $4.3 billion contract to supply LFP cells over three years to a company, but it did not identify the customer, nor did the company state whether the batteries would be used in automotive or energy storage applications.

The deal is advantageous for both companies. Tesla is going to alleviate its reliance on battery cells that are built out of the country, so it’s going to be able to take some financial pressure off itself.

For LGES, the company has reported that it has experienced slowed demand for its cells in terms of automotive applications. It planned to offset this demand lag with more projects involving the cells in energy storage projects. This has been helped by the need for these systems at data centers used for AI.

During the Q1 Earnings Call, Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja confirmed that the company’s energy division had been impacted by the need to source cells from China-based suppliers. He went on to say that the company would work on “securing additional supply chain from non-China-based suppliers.”

It seems as if Tesla has managed to secure some of this needed domestic supply chain.

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Lifestyle

Tesla brings perhaps the coolest interior feature to cars in latest update

Tesla adds on to the “fun” aspect of its vehicles.

Published

17 hours ago

on

July 30, 2025

By

Credit: Tesla

Tesla has brought perhaps the coolest interior feature to its cars in a new update that is rolling out to vehicles now.

The feature will require a newer vehicle that has interior ambient lighting, which is present on the new Model S, Model X, Model 3 “Highland,” and Model Y “Juniper.” The Cybertruck also has ambient lighting strips throughout.

Tesla Model Y’s ambient lighting design changes revealed in leaked video

With the Version 2025.26+ Software Update, Tesla is rolling out a new “Sync Accent Lights w/ Music” feature, which is available on the Tesla Toybox:

To enable the feature, you’ll access the Toybox, choose “Light Sync,” and then choose “Sync Accent Lights w/ Music.”

Although it does not improve the performance of the vehicle, it is yet another example of Tesla making one of the coolest cars out there. This is truly a cool add-on that can be used to impress your friends and family.

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