Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Sunday announced a 25% price hike for the electric firms’ premium driver assistance system “Full Self-Drivin,” or FSD. The price will increase to $15,000 from $12,000 on Sept. 5, Musk said in a tweet.
Today, Tesla charges customers $12,000 upfront for FSD or $199 per month on a subscription basis. Musk did not mention an increase in the cost of FSD subscriptions.
All new Tesla models come with a standard driver assistance package called Autopilot, which includes features such as “Traffic-Aware Cruise Control” and “Autosteer.” The two features rely on cameras, other sensors, hardware, and software to automatically keep a Tesla vehicle centered in its lane and traveling at the speed of surrounding traffic.
Tesla’s highest-priced driver assistance option, FSD, includes what the company calls “Traffic and Stop Sign Control” and “Navigate on Autopilot” among its features.
These more advanced features are supposed to allow Tesla cars to automatically detect and slow down for traffic signs and signals, navigate from highway on-ramp to off-ramp while engaging turn signals, make lane changes, and take exits.