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Tesla Model X safety-first approach saves groom’s life after hit and run the night before his wedding
A groom-to-be behind the wheel of Tesla Model X is thankful to be alive after the vehicle was involved in a severe side-impact collision by a stolen vehicle that careened into the driver’s door of the all-electric SUV at 65 miles per hour.
The driver, an automation consultant for Tesla, rented a Model X for his wedding. After leaving the rehearsal dinner that took place the night before the wedding, the groom-to-be dropped off his fiancé and headed home. Then things took a turn for the unexpected. In a forum post entitled ‘I am alive today well BC of a Model X‘, the driver recounts:
“When I made my way out of the parking lot, I began to take a left turn onto the main street. Mid-turn, I noticed a silver car quickly approaching the driver’s side of the vehicle (I later learned that they were going over 65mph on a private road). I had no time to react, since the driver came from a blind spot on my left. At this point, it looked like the driver had no intention of slowing down, and I immediately thought that I was either going to get badly hurt or potentially die.
I quickly braced and gripped the steering wheel as I was pounded by the silver car, sending me over 20 feet away from my starting point. With the impact, all of the airbags deployed, instantly leaving me in shock. The outgassing of the airbags caused the car to smoke, making it difficult to see. I reached for the door handle with my right hand, but was not able to open it. Seeing no other option, I kicked open the door and was able to escape the vehicle. As I walked outside, I immediately saw the police chasing after the culprits driving the silver car. I looked around, dazed, and ended up falling to the ground. I am unsure of what happened next, but all I can remember is hearing voices from the people nearby, and Nancy screaming my name. When I came to consciousness, I was being helped by the police, paramedics, and fire department. The silver car was a mess, but the Model X only suffered a broken axle and bent wheel.”
An impact from a 3,000 pound Honda Civic traveling at 65 miles per hour into a nearly stationary vehicle would normally end with disastrous consequences but the Model X was able to sustain the impact by cocooning the driver with twelve airbags: head and knee airbags in the front, two side curtain airbags, four seat-mounted side airbags, and two door-mounted airbags, putting the safety-first design to the test in ways nobody would ever want to have to experience. We saw a similar occurrence last year when a Tesla Model X saved the life of an entire family and their pet after it was involved in a horrific traffic accident at an intersection. “I waited 4 years for this one and would wait 4 more if that is what it took to protect my family like this.” said the driver of the Model X at the time.
The groom-to-be that was saved in this latest accident had previously worked with Tesla as an automation consultant for the company in the stamping, body and paint production line, and worked directly with engineers involved in the Model S, X and Model 3. Having worked with many of the people who designed the vehicle instilled a respect for Tesla and its vehicles that was enough for him to choose a Model X as the vehicle to be used for his wedding.
“I wanted to write this to you in hopes that this raises visibility to the management chain at Tesla. I can’t thank Elon Musk, Tesla, and the team enough for what they do and want them to know that their car saved my life. While I also believe that I am still alive because of divine intervention, being in that car was definitely my shield and protector. I have made it a short term goal of mine to sell my cars and buy a Tesla as my next vehicle. That car saved my life. Thank you for your time and I hope this message gets passed through to everyone, especially Elon.”
This story highlights a critical differentiator between Tesla and other auto manufacturers. Tesla and Elon Musk have always put safety first which the company puts as a main focal point at each new vehicle reveal. This focus on safety led to the development of vehicles with larger crumple zones up front (the frunk) than any comparably-sized vehicle, better coverage from integrated airbags and a greatly reduced risk of rollover due to the floor-mounted battery.
Tesla summarizes the safety features of the Model X on its website:
Model X is designed with safety as the first priority. The floor-mounted battery lowers the center of gravity so that the risk of rollover is about half that of any vehicle in its class. The battery structure strengthens Model X against side impact intrusions. And without a gasoline engine, the large front trunk acts as a giant impact-absorbing crumple zone. Although the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not yet conducted crash testing on Model X, Tesla’s own internally conducted crash testing indicates that Model X should be the first SUV to receive the highest safety rating in every category.
Building on the world-class safe design of Tesla vehicles, a layer of active safety features that are included in every Tesla sold take this to the next level with features like Automatic Emergency Braking and side impact collision warnings.
The safety-first culture at Tesla extends beyond its vehicles and into the next generation of products the company is producing – its factory. In its recent blog post about safety, Tesla shared how a safety-first focus underpins the entire design process even going so far as to look for ergonomics concerns in virtual mock ups of its manufacturing lines before they are built.
Tesla is revolutionizing the way humans get around and at the same time, rethinking the safety systems that keep all the people in its care in ways that ultimately benefit everyone. The driver of the Model X in this accident has made it a short term goal to acquire a Tesla as his personal vehicle. That should speak volumes to anyone who has been in an accident, lost someone in an accident or wants to keep themselves and those they travel with as safe as possible.
Source: Teslarati Forums
Tesla has added the 15th automaker to the growing list of companies whose EVs can utilize the Supercharger Network this year, as BMW is the latest company to gain access to the largest charging infrastructure in the world.
BMW became the 15th company in 2025 to gain Tesla Supercharger access, after the company confirmed to its EV owners that they could use any of the more than 25,000 Supercharging stalls in North America.
Welcome @BMW owners.
Download the Tesla app to charge → https://t.co/vnu0NHA7Ab
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) December 10, 2025
Newer BMW all-electric cars, like the i4, i5, i7, and iX, are able to utilize Tesla’s V3 and V4 Superchargers. These are the exact model years, via the BMW Blog:
- i4: 2022-2026 model years
- i5: 2024-2025 model years
- 2026 i5 (eDrive40 and xDrive40) after software update in Spring 2026
- i7: 2023-2026 model years
- iX: 2022-2025 model years
- 2026 iX (all versions) after software update in Spring 2026
With the expansion of the companies that gained access in 2025 to the Tesla Supercharger Network, a vast majority of non-Tesla EVs are able to use the charging stalls to gain range in their cars.
So far in 2025, Tesla has enabled Supercharger access to:
- Audi
- BMW
- Genesis
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Jaguar Land Rover
- Kia
- Lucid
- Mercedes-Benz
- Nissan
- Polestar
- Subaru
- Toyota
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
Drivers with BMW EVs who wish to charge at Tesla Superchargers must use an NACS-to-CCS1 adapter. In Q2 2026, BMW plans to release its official adapter, but there are third-party options available in the meantime.
They will also have to use the Tesla App to enable Supercharging access to determine rates and availability. It is a relatively seamless process.
News
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
Tesla has added a new feature that will be great for crowded parking lots, congested parking garages, or other confusing times when you cannot seem to pinpoint where your car went.
Tesla has added a new Vehicle Locator feature to the Tesla App with App Update v4.51.5.
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
While there are several new features, which we will reveal later in this article, perhaps one of the coolest is that of the Vehicle Locator, which will now point you in the direction of your car using a directional arrow on the home screen. This is similar to what Apple uses to find devices:
Interesting. The location arrow in the Tesla app now points to your car when you’re nearby. pic.twitter.com/b0yjmwwzxN
— Whole Mars Catalog (@wholemars) December 7, 2025
In real time, the arrow gives an accurate depiction of which direction you should walk in to find your car. This seems extremely helpful in large parking lots or unfamiliar shopping centers.
Getting to your car after a sporting event is an event all in itself; this feature will undoubtedly help with it:
The nice little touch that Tesla have put in the app – continuous tracking of your vehicle location relative to you.
There’s people reporting dizziness testing this.
To those I say… try spinning your phone instead. 😉 pic.twitter.com/BAYmJ3mzzD
— Some UK Tesla Guy (UnSupervised…) (@SomeUKTeslaGuy) December 8, 2025
Tesla’s previous app versions revealed the address at which you could locate your car, which was great if you parked on the street in a city setting. It was also possible to use the map within the app to locate your car.
However, this new feature gives a more definitive location for your car and helps with the navigation to it, instead of potentially walking randomly.
It also reveals the distance you are from your car, which is a big plus.
Along with this new addition, Tesla added Photobooth features, Dog Mode Live Activity, Custom Wraps and Tints for Colorizer, and Dashcam Clip details.
🚨 Tesla App v4.51.5 looks to be preparing for the Holiday Update pic.twitter.com/ztts8poV82
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 8, 2025
All in all, this App update was pretty robust.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk shaded Waymo in a post on X on Wednesday, stating the company “never really had a chance” and that it “will be obvious in hindsight.”
Tesla and Waymo are the two primary contributors to the self-driving efforts in the United States, with both operating driverless ride-hailing services in the country. Tesla does have a Safety Monitor present in its vehicles in Austin, Texas, and someone in the driver’s seat in its Bay Area operation.
Musk says the Austin operation will be completely void of any Safety Monitors by the end of the year.
🚨 Tesla vs. Waymo Geofence in Austin https://t.co/A6ffPtp5xv pic.twitter.com/mrnL0YNSn4
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 10, 2025
With the two companies being the main members of the driverless movement in the U.S., there is certainly a rivalry. The two have sparred back and forth with their geofences, or service areas, in both Austin and the Bay Area.
While that is a metric for comparison now, ultimately, it will not matter in the coming years, as the two companies will likely operate in a similar fashion.
Waymo has geared its business toward larger cities, and Tesla has said that its self-driving efforts will expand to every single one of its vehicles in any location globally. This is where the true difference between the two lies, along with the fact that Tesla uses its own vehicles, while Waymo has several models in its lineup from different manufacturers.
The two also have different ideas on how to solve self-driving, as Tesla uses a vision-only approach. Waymo relies on several things, including LiDAR, which Musk once called “a fool’s errand.”
This is where Tesla sets itself apart from the competition, and Musk highlighted the company’s position against Waymo.
Jeff Dean, the Chief Scientist for Google DeepMind, said on X:
“I don’t think Tesla has anywhere near the volume of rider-only autonomous miles that Waymo has (96M for Waymo, as of today). The safety data is quite compelling for Waymo, as well.”
Musk replied:
“Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla. This will be obvious in hindsight.”
Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla. This will be obvious in hindsight.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2025
Tesla stands to have a much larger fleet of vehicles in the coming years if it chooses to activate Robotaxi services with all passenger vehicles. A simple Over-the-Air update will activate this capability, while Waymo would likely be confined to the vehicles it commissions as Robotaxis.
Tesla adds 15th automaker to Supercharger access in 2025
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
