Gas2/Autoblog revealed yesterday a video showing a secret menu (and how to access it). From the image we can deduct that Tesla’s plans for the Model S/X include the addition of:
- Blind spot detection
- adaptive cruise control
- land departure warning
I’ve always thought that electric cars, when they become mainstream, will be the hackers’ havens: a pool for the bit-lovers to swim in, a giant swamp that the nerdiest of drivers can access and get their chance at whether they’ll live the next road trip or not, by tinkering with the gadget car’s core apps and firmware.
Of course one could expect that the Tesla Model S will get hacked someday, but as a matter of fact, I myself didn’t think it would be so soon.
The latter feature is probably linked to a technology that they’re developing and for which they’ve probably been in talks with Google. Why? Because “lane departure warning” is undoubtedly linked to autonomous driving, or the capacity of the car to act by itself in a limited set of instances (lane departure, in this case). It could be useful when driving drunk (highly unadvised and illegal) or when you start to fall asleep.
It’s nice to hear that Tesla is further improving the sensory part of their cars, but they could offer us a glimpse from time to time. I once suggested to Elon Musk in an e-mail that it’d be nice if Tesla put the newly invented technology of “smart lighting” in cars. While I didn’t get any response to that question, I guess he’s aware of it (made sure, anyway) and he’ll implement the feat at some point in the future.
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Tesla has already publicly acknowledged that these features would be available as they become ready (even for existing cars).