‘Tesla Drivers Think They Have Sports Cars’: Tesla Driver Brake-Checks a Kia Soul. Then He Gets a ‘Taste Of His Own Medicine’
'Gave you that smoke too.'
One driver recorded themselves getting revenge on behalf of a fellow commuter after a Tesla Model X appeared to brake-check their vehicle. A 30-second video uploaded by Viral Clipped (@viralclippedit0) details what went down, and folks who replied to the video had a lot of things to say about the way Tesla drivers act on the road. And much of it wasn’t very positive.
Switching Lanes On a Tesla
“Local Tesla driver gets a taste of his own medicine,” a text overlay at the start of the video reads. The clip shows a Kia Soul stuck behind a Tesla Model X while commuting on a freeway. Judging from the distance between the Soul and the EV, it seems that the Tesla driver directly merged in front of the Soul and maintained a speed that would keep the Korean-made commuter vehicle in place.
However, the person recording the clip wasn’t having it. Which is presumably what prompted them to accelerate and position their vehicle directly in front of the electric SUV in the same lane. Thus, ensuring that the driver would be forced to tailgate them, culminating in an unpleasant commuting experience.
Following this, they slow down their vehicle considerably to annoy the Tesla driver, who swerves into the left lane and then brake-checks the person recording the clip. While many EVs, Tesla’s included, sport blistering acceleration times, the vehicle of the driver filming the interaction sounds like it’s tuned for performance purposes.
As the Model X speeds ahead, the driver chases it down until the EV finally pulls over near an orange traffic cone and road sign.
Commenters Sound Off
Folks had varying opinions as to what prompted the Model X owner to finally give up racing. One person quipped, “his battery died had to pull over.” Which was a recurring joke in the comments section of the video as another person penned, “Tesla just burned half his battery doing all that.”
Then there were other users on the application who wrote that they noticed a distinct pattern of unsafe driving when it comes to the EV-maker. “Tesla drivers will drive slow and ruin the flow of traffic,” another person remarked.
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This TikTok user said that they purchased dash camera systems because of how Tesla owners behave on the road. “Teslas are the single reason I have a dash cam on everything now,” they wrote.
Although folks who saw the clip mentioned the Model X driver easily outmaneuvered the person recording the video. “As a Tesla driver usually I would agree with you. But he kinda stood on business and gave you that smoke too,” one person replied.
Which was a sentiment echoed by another who commented, “He literally gave you the work right after?”
'Tesla Drivers Are the Worst'
In many cases, a handful of online anecdotes shouldn’t immediately be viewed as a sample of a larger public opinion on a topic. With bot farms, spam accounts, and specifically curated content designed to create confirmation-bias echo chambers, just because it seems like a lot of folks are concurring about a topic in the comments section of a post doesn’t necessarily mean a belief is a widespread one.
However, Lending Tree posted some statistics in a 2025 article that indicates Teslas are involved in an inordinately larger number of traffic incidents. When compared to other brands, folks who own cars from the EV manufacturer had the highest percentage of road woes per 1,000 drivers: 36.94. Trailing not far behind were Ram owners at 33.92, and Subaru road warriors with 32.85 for every 1,000 commuters. Conversely, the same article says that Mercury, Pontiac, and Cadillac vehicles were more likely to be steered by folks with the best driving practices.
Also, the same research penned that Tesla, Ram, and Subaru drivers had the highest accident percentage rates. “26.67, 23.15 and 22.89 accidents per 1,000 drivers [respectively],” Lending Tree reported.
More Tesla Driver Disdain
Folks on this Rivian Forums thread seemed to have some problems with the research presented in the analysis, however. Namely, because Pontiac vehicles were phased out of production in 2010. But there are plenty of other stories and social media posts online that don’t shy away from openly criticizing Tesla drivers as a whole.
This Facebook user remarked that Tesla has dethroned BMW as the vehicular brand that receives the most eye-rolls from commuters. The Bavarian automaker once held the perception-crown for inconsiderate driving practices, such as failing to use a turn signal, speeding, or abruptly cutting people off in traffic.
This forum user also asked in a 2025 post if “Tesla drivers are the new BMW drivers?” as well. In their thread, they asked other folks on the site if they noticed Tesla and other EV drivers tend to speed even when it’s raining. Or if they saw an inordinate amount of electric vehicles failing to use their turn signals when merging into other lanes and engaging in generally unsafe road behavior. Several folks who replied to their query affirmed that they’ve perceived similar actions from Tesla and EV drivers.
This Quora thread asked a similar question where they pondering if “Tesla drivers [are] the new Audi and BMW idiots?” And a Reddit user asked back in 2022 if “Tesla drivers are the new BMW drivers?” too. They wondered if this is simply because folks who are terrible at obeying the rules of the road simply found a new favorite car brand. Or if the EV’s capabilities have created a new breed of jerk-driving mannerisms.
InsideEVs has reached out to @viralclippedit0 via TikTok comment for further information.
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