‘One Of The Scariest Moments Of My Life:’ Woman Sits In Her Tesla. Then It Drives Itself To An Ace Hardware

A Tesla owner says she lost control of her car, which culminated in a strange and frightening encounter in an Ace Hardware parking lot.

TikTok user Maci (@mellowwithmaci) had others on the popular social media application frightened. The video resonated with people familiar with similar experiences others have had with Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) and Autopilot technology.

Maci’s video begins with her sitting in her Tesla in traffic. The SUV in front of her begins to go through the green stoplight while the EV cuts a right turn into a shopping mall parking lot. Her vehicle passes a T-Mobile store before driving straight at an Ace hardware.

“This was one of the scariest moments of my life … My Tesla started driving by itself,” she writes of the video.

Maci says her fear was compounded by the fact that she couldn’t steer the vehicle as this was happening. “I had no control,” she claims.

Tesla Autopilot and Full-Self Driving (Supervised) Crashes

There have been numerous reports of Teslas failing to follow drivers’ commands or acting of their own accord due to a malfunction of the technology.

Last May, Electrek reported that a Tesla “suddenly veered off road and flipped the car upside down.” The piece includes a picture of a black Model 3 turned over on its roof. The outlet wrote that the driver of the vehicle claimed “he couldn’t prevent” the accident and the Tesla in question had the latest FSD (Supervised) update available.

Last month, InsideEVs reported on changes to Tesla’s FSD (Supervised) software. Elon Musk said that “depending on context of surrounding traffic,” Tesla owners would be able to “text and drive” on FSD’s (Supervised) 14.2.1 update. Sending texts behind the wheel is illegal in nearly all 50 states.

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Not Really Full Self-Driving?

There’s been no shortage of Tesla drivers who’ve criticized the way their vehicle’s software interprets the rules of the road. As we previously reported, one woman said that whenever she initiates FSD (Supervised) in her Tesla, her car will “cut people off.” Others who replied to her post shared their own scary alleged encounters with the feature. One wrote that theirs will make “low-speed turns” and cross traffic at alarming speeds. Another said that with FSD (Supervised) enabled, “erratic” lane changes were the norm.

These occurrences, along with Tesla’s decision to append the word “Supervised” to its FSD software, has prompted some to criticize the carmaker’s nomenclature as inherently disingenuous. One Reddit user argued Tesla’s insistence that drivers pay attention to the road while utilizing this feature proves the name Full Self-Driving is misleading.

“Full Self-Driving isn’t actually self-driving, and needs constant human oversight,” they said. They also criticized Musk for misleadingly telling people they’d be able to sit in the driver’s seat and not pay attention while the vehicle piloted itself.

Other Tesla drivers feel strongly enough to file suit over the matter. Clean Technica reports that the automaker is being sued for “fraud and negligence” over allegations it overstated the vehicle’s self-driving capabilities. The outlet notes that “plaintiffs won key discovery disputes” pertaining to claims regarding driving cross-country without human intervention. They also claim that the vehicles have “hardware limitations” because the EV brand didn’t apply for “regulatory approval for SAE Level 3+ autonomy in California.”

Tesla is defending itself against these claims.

Tesla Driver Escapes Unscathed

In the end, it turned out that Maci’s video is likely a prank. After zipping through the Ace Hardware parking lot, her Tesla abruptly veers into the drive-thru of a 7 Brew Coffee, where it safely pulls into line.

Some people were fearful for her safety. “I was worried for a second there,” one said.

Most people got it by the end. “Mine does this with Dunkin,” another joked.

A third wrote, “My 2010 F350 does this all the time! It’s terrifying actually.”

InsideEVs has reached out to Tesla and Maci via email for further comment. We’ll update this article if either responds.

 

 

 

 

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