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Tesla Sentry Mode captures politician in Model 3 hit-and-run

Tesla Model 3 captures a hit-and-run incident with Sentry Mode. | Credit: emeraldik/YouTube

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A former traffic court judge currently in the running for a seat on the Philadelphia City Council was caught hitting a parked Tesla Model 3 and subsequently leaving the scene without reporting the incident. A video captured of the event using the Model 3’s Sentry Mode feature was published by the vehicle’s owner on YouTube.

Judge Willie Singletary is seen backing out his Cadillac Escalade into the Tesla Model 3 parked next to him in the video, triggering the car’s alarm. Singletary then exits his SUV and appears to assess the damage caused to the all-electric sedan and even attempts to buff out the apparently visible marks at the point of impact. The affected part of the Model 3 isn’t visible in the video, but given the drawn-out contemplation and multiple attempts to smooth out the damage by Singletary, a police report or (at minimum) note to the owner was definitely warranted.

UPDATE: The owner of the Model 3 contacted Teslarati and provided additional details regarding the outcome of the incident. Singletary was easily identified thanks to the owner’s prior work on local elections and his contact information was available from campaign filings. The owner subsequently reached out to Singletary regarding the hit, which he says the former judge first denied but provided insurance information once made aware the event was on video. The police were then brought in to handle the matter further. The Escalade Singletary was driving in the video was a rental car. Additionally, the estimate for repair of the Model 3 provided to the owner by a Tesla certified body shop was $2000.

The Model 3 hit-and-run incident isn’t the first time Singletary has run afoul of the law, adding to the irony of his prior position as a Philadelphia Traffic Court judge. In 2015, the City Council hopeful was sentenced to 20 months in prison, followed by a year of supervised release, after being convicted of lying to the FBI in a ticket-fixing scheme investigation while serving as a judge. Singletary appealed the sentence as beyond the advisory range of 0-6 months for such convictions, but a federal judge resentenced him, citing the highly pervasive nature of the scheme. The judge claimed the corruption was so extreme, the Traffic Court was disbanded in the fall-out, thus the longer sentence was deserved.

Singletary, for his part, denied that the Traffic Court’s closure was related to his role, noting that he and all the other court judges were not convicted of corruption, only lying to the FBI, which he argued is a position the agency can easily manipulate into occurring. The state attorneys involved in the original case regarding the ticket-fixing responded to the appeal, citing witness testimony establishing Singletary’s participation in the scheme and noting the difficulty faced by the government to obtain convictions for fraud even in the face of significant evidence.

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Given former Judge Willie Singletary’s colorful history with vehicle violations, this latest encounter with a Tesla Model 3’s Sentry Mode is likely not going to bode well for his City Council ambitions.

Tesla may be leading the charge in the electric vehicle revolution, but perhaps it’s about to take the lead in vehicle security solutions as well. Sentry Mode was created to address vehicle break-ins that appeared to target Tesla owners specifically, especially in California’s Bay Area, and the security advantages it’s providing are already proving the feature was well worth the effort it took to create.

Sentry Mode is a security feature available on all Tesla models and was recently launched via over-the-air updates to improve and complement existing vehicle security features and options such as GPS tracking and the Enhanced Anti-Theft Device cabin motion sensor. Once activated, the Tesla owner is alerted via the company’s mobile app, video footage is recorded, and in the event of an intrusion, Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor is played at full volume to draw attention to the car. Once the vehicle’s “Alarm” state is entered following a detected incident, a video beginning 10 minutes prior to the event can be downloaded by the owner. Should Willie Singletary have been aware of this Tesla feature, perhaps his choice of action after backing into the Model 3 would have been different.

Watch the full Sentry Mode recorded hit-and-run incident below:

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Accidental computer geek, fascinated by most history and the multiplanetary future on its way. Quite keen on the democratization of space. | It's pronounced day-sha, but I answer to almost any variation thereof.

Lifestyle

EV fans urge Tesla to acquire Unplugged Performance for edge in fleet and security industry

Unplugged Performance has built a name for itself by producing performance upgrades for Tesla vehicles.

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Credit: Unplugged Performance

A growing number of Tesla enthusiasts and longtime community voices are calling on the electric vehicle maker to acquire Unplugged Performance, a California-based aftermarket company best known for tuning Tesla vehicles and developing specialized government fleet solutions under its UP.FIT division.

The idea was once considered a niche proposal among EV fans, but it is now gaining serious attention not just as a performance play but as a strategic move to deepen Tesla’s roots in the fleet and security industry. 

A strategic fit

Unplugged Performance has built a name for itself by producing performance upgrades for Tesla vehicles, from track-optimized components to visual and aerodynamic upgrades. But in recent years, its UP.FIT division has pivoted toward a more functional future by outfitting Tesla vehicles like Model Ys for police, military, and government use.

That work has sparked growing calls for closer collaboration with Tesla, especially as the EV maker increasingly leans into autonomy, AI, and fleet services as core components of its next chapter.

“I posted this four years ago, but I think it’s more true now than ever,” wrote Whole Mars Catalog, a well-known Tesla investor and FSD Beta tester, on X. “Tesla should buy Unplugged. But not just as a Performance division. What they are doing with UP.FIT unlocks large government and commercial fleet purchases that can improve utilization.”

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Tesla fans such as shareholder Sawyer Merritt echoed the sentiment, calling Unplugged a “great fit within Tesla.” adding, “They are literally located directly next to Tesla’s design studio in Hawthorne.”

Enabling the next wave

Supporters of the idea noted that integrating Unplugged into Tesla’s corporate structure could help accelerate the adoption of autonomous technologies in government sectors. With UP.FIT patrol cars already in use across some U.S. police departments, Tesla fans envisioned a future where self-driving Teslas could potentially revolutionize law enforcement, search-and-rescue, and public service logistics.

“Just imagine how autonomous patrol cars could transform policing and bring us into a safer future,” the veteran FSD tester wrote.

The benefits could also extend to Tesla’s existing consumer base. “They also have some incredible products in the works that I think will appeal to many ordinary Tesla drivers — not just those looking for performance or mods. Stuff that’s so good it should have come straight from the design studio next door,” Whole Mars Catalog noted.

Unplugged Performance, founded in 2013, shares not just a product vision with Tesla, but also geography. Its Hawthorne headquarters sits directly adjacent to Tesla’s design studio, and the two companies have maintained a close working relationship over the years. The aftermarket firm has long positioned itself as a “mission-aligned” partner to Tesla.

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In response to the recent calls for acquisition, Unplugged Performance acknowledged the support from the community. “Our very existence is to support the Tesla mission with @UpfitTesla and @UnpluggedTesla,” Unplugged CEO Ben Schaffer posted on X. “We love working with Tesla and are grateful for the community’s support since 2013!”

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Elon Musk

X account with 184 followers inadvertently saves US space program amid Musk-Trump row

Needless to say, the X user has far more than 184 followers today after his level-headed feat.

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Joel Kowsky, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

An X user with 184 followers has become the unlikely hero of the United States’ space program by effectively de-escalating a row between SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump on social media.

Needless to say, the X user has far more than 184 followers today after his level-headed feat.

A Near Fall

During Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s fallout last week, the U.S. President stated in a post on Truth Social that a good way for the United States government to save money would be to terminate subsidies and contracts from the CEO’s companies. Musk responded to Trump’s post by stating that SpaceX will start decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately. 

Musk’s comment was received with shock among the space community, partly because the U.S. space program is currently reliant on SpaceX to send supplies and astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). Without Dragon, the United States will likely have to utilize Russia’s Soyuz for the same services—at a significantly higher price.

X User to the Rescue

It was evident among X users that Musk’s comments about Dragon being decommissioned were posted while emotions were high. It was then no surprise that an X account with 184 followers, @Fab25june, commented on Musk’s post, urging the CEO to rethink his decision. “This is a shame this back and forth. You are both better than this. Cool off and take a step back for a couple days,” the X user wrote in a reply.

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Much to the social media platform’s surprise, Musk responded to the user. Even more surprising, the CEO stated that SpaceX would not be decommissioning Dragon after all. “Good advice. Ok, we won’t decommission Dragon,” Musk wrote in a post on X.

Not Planned, But Welcomed

The X user’s comment and Musk’s response were received extremely well by social media users, many of whom noted that @Fab25june’s X comment effectively saved the U.S. space program. In a follow-up comment, the X user, who has over 9,100 followers as of writing, stated that he did not really plan on being a mediator between Musk and Trump. 

“Elon Musk replied to me. Somehow, I became the accidental peace broker between two billionaires. I didn’t plan this. I was just being me. Two great minds can do wonders. Sometimes, all it takes is a breather. Grateful for every like, DM, and new follow. Life’s weird. The internet’s weirder. Let’s ride. (Manifesting peace… and maybe a Model Y.)” the X user wrote.

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Lifestyle

Tesla Cybertruck takes a bump from epic failing Dodge Charger

The Cybertruck seemed unharmed by the charging Charger.

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Credit: Hammer_of_something/Reddit

There comes a time in a driver’s life when one is faced with one’s limitations. For the driver of a Dodge Charger, this time came when he lost control and crashed into a Tesla Cybertruck–an absolute epic fail. 

A video of the rather unfortunate incident was shared on the r/TeslaLounge subreddit.

Charging Charger Fails

As could be seen in the video, which was posted on the subreddit by Model Y owner u/Hammer_of_something, a group of teens in a Dodge Charger decided to do some burnouts at a Tesla Supercharger. Unfortunately, the driver of the Charger failed in his burnout or donut attempt, resulting in the mopar sedan going over a curb and bumping a charging Cybertruck.

Ironically, the Dodge Charger seemed to have been parked at a Supercharger stall before its driver decided to perform the failed stunt. This suggests that the vehicle was likely ICE-ing a charging stall before it had its epic fail moment. Amusingly enough, the subreddit member noted that the Cybertruck did not seem like it took any damage at all despite its bump. The Charger, however, seemed like it ran into some trouble after crashing into the truck.

Alleged Aftermath

As per the the r/TeslaLounge subreddit member, the Cybertruck owner came rushing out to his vehicle after the Dodge Charger crashed into it. The Model Y owner then sent over the full video of the incident, which clearly showed the Charger attempting a burnout, failing, and bumping into the Cybertruck. The Cybertruck owner likely appreciated the video, in part because it showed the driver of the Dodge Charger absolutely freaking out after the incident.

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The Cybertruck is not an impregnable vehicle, but it can take bumps pretty well thanks to its thick stainless steel body. Based on this video, it appears that the Cybertruck can even take bumps from a charging Charger, all while chilling and charging at a Supercharger. As for the teens in the Dodge, they likely had to provide a long explanation to authorities after the incident, since the cops were called to the location.

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