Drivers of Tesla vehicles will have to pay extra starting in 2022 since the automaker wants to raise the cost of its deluxe “Full Self-Driving” service starting in January of this year.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, publicly announced the idea on Saturday, 8/1/2022, using his personal Twitter account. Elon Musk announced in a tweet that effective on January 17, 2022, the cost of the premium driver assistance package would increase from $10,000 to $12,000.
Customers in the United States are the only ones affected by this price hike. Elon Musk asserted that after this product is more widely promoted, the membership cost for Tesla’s FSD service will rise.
As of January 17, Tesla’s FSD cost increased to $12,000. When widely available, monthly membership prices will increase, Musk tweeted.
According to CNBC International, Tesla has never previously made available information about revenue reports or the number of consumers that pre-paid FSD or subscribed to this program. Therefore, it is uncertain how much the change will affect the company’s future profits.
The FSD or common driving assistance functions are currently available to Tesla drivers. All new vehicle types come with Tesla’s basic features, which are promoted on Autopilot (Models S, X, Y and 3).
With the help of the autopilot feature, the car can autonomously use emergency braking, issue forward collision warnings, perform lane maintenance, and use adaptive cruise control depending on its own speed and the flow of nearby traffic.
FSD is a premium package as compared to standard features, and it contains Autopilot capability as well as more sophisticated functions like automatic lane change, stop light recognition, and “smart dialing.” Using their iPhones and the Tesla app, drivers may make calls to cars in the parking lot to come pick them up.
Tesla is also working on the FSD Beta, which has more sophisticated functionality. On Friday, July 1, Elon Musk tweeted that the new 10.9 release for the FSD Beta was almost ready. Only drivers who subscribe to FSD and get excellent safety ratings from the firm are permitted to utilize FSD Beta
On city streets in FSD Beta, drivers can utilize the auto steering option. Without having to drive himself, the driver can walk thanks to an autonomous system.
Tesla describes the current state of the technology as “level 2.” Although it cannot make the car run on its own, the Level 2 system can improve safety or help the driver.