Connect with us

News

Tesla Model 3’s emergency braking system saves driver from icy collision

(Credit: thenext44/Reddit)

Published

on

A Tesla Model 3 owner is thanking his electric car’s emergency braking system after a recent close call on a dangerous, icy highway. A video of the nail-biting incident showed the electric sedan seemingly detecting and anticipating a road hazard well ahead of time, allowing its driver to successfully perform a “threading the needle” maneuver, avoiding a potentially deadly crash in the process.

The short dashcam video showed the Tesla Model 3 navigating an icy highway smoothly, before it braked and moved to the right just as a stopped hatchback came into view. The Model 3 did not lose any traction when it performed the maneuver, unlike a white sedan that almost spun out when it evaded the vehicle.

In a post on the r/TeslaModel3 subreddit, Long Range Model 3 AWD owner u/thenext44 noted that he felt his electric sedan start braking even before he saw the stopped car on the road. Sharing his insights further, the Tesla enthusiast noted that when he swerved to the right to avoid the other vehicle, he could feel the Model 3 keeping itself in a straight line. This allowed the electric car to avoid losing traction, similar to what happened to the white sedan in front, which almost spun out when it tried to evade the stopped car.

Due to the circumstances of the incident, the Model 3 owner admitted that he was not really sure if Autopilot was engaged when his car’s emergency braking system kicked into gear. Explaining further, the Tesla enthusiast explained that the trip had been a six-hour drive, and that there have been times when Autopilot disengaged due to the weather. That said, the Tesla community member lightly stated that after he successfully threaded the needle, he immediately felt relief.

Tesla’s vehicles are among the safest cars on the road today, and this has been evident in the accolades the Model 3 has received since its release. Last year alone, the Model 3 received a “superior” front crash avoidance rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a nonprofit organization funded by auto insurers dedicated to reducing the number of accidents and injuries on the road. During the IIHS’ evaluation, the Model 3 showed impeccable automatic braking capabilities, reducing its speed by more than 10 mph during the organization’s 12 mph test, and exhibiting a speed reduction of over 22 mph in the 25 mph test.

Just like its two larger siblings, the Model 3 boasts an incredibly high safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Last August, the safety organization gave the electric sedan a perfect 5-Star safety rating in all categories and subcategories. In its frontal crash, side crash, and rollover tests, the Model 3 performed superbly, displaying a level of industry-leading driver and passenger safety. Analyzing the Model 3’s NHTSA results, Tesla has noted that the electric sedan is the vehicle with the lowest probability of injury among all cars that the agency has tested so far. 

Advertisement
-

Watch the Tesla Model 3’s automatic braking system in action in the video below.

Threading the needle. Model 3 auto braked and kept from sliding out, avoiding a crash while driving too fast for conditions.
byu/thenext44 inTeslaModel3

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.

Advertisement
Comments

News

Tesla’s Cybercab fleet jumped 8x in a month, with Dallas up next

Tesla confirms its first official Cybercab fleet number as Austin scales fast and Dallas looms.

Published

on

By

Tesla says more than 300 Cybercabs are now serving Austin, the first time the company has put an official number on its active Cybercab fleet. The figure came from the Robotaxi account on X on Saturday, which wrote that one month after launch the service had “scaled to 300+ Cybercabs serving Austin – an 8x increase in 30 days.”

Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s head of AI software, quoted the post with a line that carried the bigger news. “Two years since the 10/10 Cybercab WeRobot event, the cabs are everywhere in Austin now. Dallas soon,” he wrote. It is the first time Tesla has named the next city for public Cybercab rides.

Tesla opened Cybercab rides to the public in Austin on September 4, as Teslarati reported, a day after an invite only launch event. The ramp since then has been steep. Our September 28 report had the fleet at well over 100 units after availability jumped from 58 to 125 in a single week. On Thursday, Tesla added 150 Cybercabs to the Texas automated vehicle registry, lifting its registered count to 319 from 169. The first seven appeared on the registry on August 31.

RobotaxiTracker, a community site that counts vehicles from sightings and state records, listed 275 vehicles in unsupervised service in Austin on Saturday, 105 of them Cybercabs, which is well below Tesla’s figure. Tracker counts can lag official numbers, though Sawyer Merritt noted that Cybercab wait times in Austin stayed short on Saturday evening even with more than 2,000 fans in town for X Takeover.

Advertisement
-

Regulators are watching the rollout. NHTSA opened an audit query into Tesla’s certification that the Cybercab meets federal safety standards, and sworn answers are due October 30. Tesla reports third quarter earnings on October 21, which gives the company a natural venue to define its fleet numbers and put a date on Dallas.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Elon Musk roasts India’s billionaire Mukesh Ambani as Starlink fight heats up

Elon Musk sarcastically calls Mukesh Ambani ‘Prime Minister’ as the Starlink India standoff escalates again.

Published

on

By

Elon Musk escalated his public fight over Starlink’s launch in India on Friday, addressing Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani as “Prime Minister Ambani” in a sarcastic post on X. “Please accept my humble apologies for not realizing that you are the real boss of India,” Musk wrote, before accusing Ambani of “monopolistic exploitation” and asking whether he would “consider allowing Starlink to compete.” In follow up posts, he said Starlink has proven essential during natural disasters and would help parts of India with no internet access.

The post came two days into a fight that Musk sparked up on Wednesday, when he said Starlink was “being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people.” He called it “a crime against the people of India” and left the names out, adding only, “You can guess who they are.” Jio and Airtel together hold more than 80% of India’s telecom market. On Thursday, Musk asked whether Ambani is “the real boss of India” and said Starlink has spent five years complying with “every single law and requirement” of the Indian government.

India’s government has pushed back each time. The Ministry of Communications called the suggestion that its framework is unfair or discriminatory “baseless and misconceived.” Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said Friday that three companies hold satcom licenses: Starlink, Jio Satellite Communications, and Bharti backed Eutelsat OneWeb. Amazon’s Kuiper, now Amazon Leo, is still going through the process. None can launch until regulators finalize satellite spectrum pricing and the Home Ministry signs off on each company’s security compliance. Scindia said the telecom regulator and the Department of Telecommunications are close to a decision on pricing, The Hindu reported. Bharti chairman Sunil Mittal also said OneWeb is still waiting on approvals.

Starlink received its operator license in 2025 after a three year wait, and the space regulator IN-SPACe granted what industry executives called the last approval needed in July. The holdup since then centers on security, particularly concern that foreign operators could bypass Indian gateways.

Musk and Ambani have been on opposite sides of this before. In late 2024, Ambani argued for auctioning satellite spectrum, which Musk criticized as out of step with the rest of the world, and India chose administrative allocation instead. By March 2025, the two sides had signed a deal to sell Starlink devices in Reliance stores, and Starlink secured its telecom license that June. That partner is now also a competitor. Jio is reportedly weighing a constellation of 1,600 to 1,650 satellites costing an estimated $10 billion to $15 billion, while Akash Ambani has told shareholders Jio plans to lease capacity from global providers to move quickly.

Advertisement
-
Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Elon Musk’s surprise addition to the X Takeover lineup has fans talking

Elon Musk will join Saturday’s X Takeover at Giga Texas for a live virtual interview.

Published

on

By

Credit: Tesla Owners Silicon Valley
Credit: Tesla Owners Silicon Valley

Elon Musk will join X Takeover at Giga Texas on Saturday for a live virtual interview, according to Sawyer Merritt, who shared the news late Thursday. Musk will not be on stage in Austin. The conversation is set to stream for free on the @teslaownersSV account on X.

Organizers had kept expectations in check. In a September update, Tesla Owners Silicon Valley said Musk had appeared at the event twice before but was not promising a third appearance, even as fans hoped he would walk the Giga Texas grounds in person. A virtual spot matches 2024, when Musk gave a surprise interview of about an hour to the crowd in San Luis Obispo, as Teslarati reported at the time.

This year’s edition is a first in several ways. It is the first X Takeover held outside California and the first at a Tesla facility, with tickets selling out in eight days. Tesla provides the venue, but the event is produced independently by Tesla Owners Silicon Valley. The main event runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT, followed by a drone and light show at 9 p.m. Maye Musk is the keynote speaker, Franz von Holzhausen is set for a virtual keynote, and Nicki Minaj is the special guest. Joe Tegtmeyer, whose drone footage Teslarati used to track the Optimus factory steel frame at Giga Texas, is also on the speaker list.

Musk’s interview topics have not been revealed, but the backdrop is busy. Tesla doubled its Cybercab fleet in Austin in late September, and last week Musk explained why Robotaxi hours only moved from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.. Merritt also reported Thursday that Texas DMV records now show 319 registered Cybercabs, up from 169. NHTSA’s deadline for Tesla’s sworn answers on Cybercab certification is October 30, and Tesla reports third quarter earnings on October 21.

Advertisement
-

Fans who cannot make it to Austin can watch the livestream on X. Musk tends to say more in unscripted settings than he does in prepared remarks, which is the reason this one is worth having open on Saturday.

Continue Reading