The latest over-the-air-update to Tesla’s Model S will introduce a host of enhancements to the electric luxury sedan including a warning system meant to keep drivers from driving out of range from a charger.
“This makes it effectively impossible for a Model S driver to run out of range unintentionally,” Musk said today during a press conference.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said today that a new version of the Model S on-board software that includes a “range assurance application” will communicate in real time with the company’s network of superchargers and other charging stations to prevent drivers from unintentionally stranding themselves by driving out of charging range.
The software update will ignore chargers in heavy use in an attempt to combat long wait times to access the charger in question. The application will run constantly in the background regardless of whether the navigation system is active or not. It will also take factors into account that could diminish range including elevation changes and wind speed to offer a more accurate estimate of how far the car can actually drive.
Other updates with the 6.2 software include forward collision braking and side collision warning systems that will put the Model S on a more level playing field with mainstream luxury vehicles from a safety technology standpoint. The company said that version 6.2 of the Model S software will be available in roughly 10 days.
Version 7.0 will include an automatic steering feature that will allow the Model S to drive without direct input through the steering wheel on major roads. Musk said that right now, the Model S “can basically go between San Francisco and Seattle without the driver doing anything.”
Tesla is also planning a valet feature that will allow the car to park itself in a garage and for owners to summon the car remotely. That update will also come with a complete overhaul to the user interface that will improve its functionality.
Finally, Musk promised that the long-awaited Model X SUV will finally arrive this summer.
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