This I agree with 100%. I've seen quite a few videos of people needlessly targeting Teslas for no real reason. People scratching them up with keys, trucks blocking changing stations, a Civic driver brake-checking a Tesla and then damaging it by throwing a penny at it at highway speeds, etc.

 

I understand your point, I just disagree that it is a big deal. Subscription didn't exist years ago when these cars were made. Owners have known for 2+ years that their cars required an upgrade for FSD and they'd get HW for free if they bought the package.
There is some fault on both sides here, Tesla mostly for selling FSD that didn't exist and still doesn't, and consumers feeling entitled to new features or options years after buying.

 

There is no entitlement on the customer's part. That's not a new features or option. 2016+ cars were sold as having everything needed for FSD when it arrives. It's not the customers fault Tesla took WAY longer than expected to get this rolling and didn't anticipate changes needed to hardware. Completely on Tesla. Creating a subscription service doesn't absolve them of blame. Makes no difference. It's all about the hardware.

 

As a person who has EAP on HW2.5, I'm one of those who would have to pay to get HW3. I think Tesla painted themselves into a corner when they realized they would need newer hardware and played their hand as best as they could, from a practical standpoint. Those who purchased the FSD package would receive the new HW (and all future upgrades), while those who didn't were hardware and/or software locked from the capability, so it made less sense to retrofit the former. Now that the sub exists and presents a different path to FSD, it no longer allows them to use that loophole, and so I agree, Tesla stumbled here.

Word is HW4 is on the horizon, and so this will come up again for anyone who hasn't already purchased the FSD package. For now, I'm just going to wait until more exclusive features roll out for FSD, since there isn't much to differentiate it at this stage.

I also don't think it's a big deal, but I don't fault consumers or think they're being entitled. IMO, this situation was inevitable from the time HW3 was mentioned (since any car that didn't have it, was no longer FSD capable), while the necessary sub service eventually forced their hand and revealed the holes in their rollout. I think it was an honest oversight by Tesla and they should be pressed on it.

I think their bigger hurdle is really showcasing the value in FSD. Since there isn't really anything else like it (even in current form), owners and non-owners alike are having a tricky time determining its worth and it's constantly evolving at a rapid pace, both in terms of tech and price. Personally, I'd have waited until the city street functionality was released to the public, to at least differentiate the feature set further, before the last price hike.

 

Oh I didn't realize he was messing with everyone in a Tesla not just people zoned out in FSD mode. Yeah that's hilarious, it's like a civic messing with my A8 lol! Fail

Speaking of the ACC and lane keep in said A8 is very "meh"

 

not sure what you mean specifically by 'picked on', but every so often on CL we have a usual "drivers of X suck" thread (typically bmws, mustangs, hell even subarus, and so on) - all bogus, there's horrible drivers of every make, model and year of cars out there.

i've tried a couple of times to understand what you wrote here, but need help.
what do you mean by "it made less sense to retrofit the former"? less sense to whom? and in what way? and if the owners with fsd packages were entitled to it, why wouldn't they upgrade?

what loophole?

 

Not arguing whether there are sucky drivers of other makes. Of course there are. I'm asking whether EV drivers in other areas of the US get "picked on", harassed etc. by drivers in that region which is a completely different topic.

 

How would anyone possibly know this?

 

Its fairly easy to observe in that region if you frequently commute. Its an ask if any forum members have seen it...not really difficult to understand. I see Prius drivers regularly lounging in the left lane...easily observed and annoying as hell. I see Mustang drivers doing crazy crap regularly, again easily observed. A forum member admitted they mess with Teslas whenever they see them on the highway so I was asking if this stuff happens or is observed whenever they see EVs on the road. I don't see this California but EVs are common here.

 

I've never been harassed or picked on. I live in Ontario, Canada.

 

Tesla drivers I encounter are the most stealth in my experience. BMW drivers are the most noticeable if you know what I mean. In these parts there is a fair bit of hate for Tesla, most people I talk to say batteries are far worse for the environment than oil.

 

I think that view is mainly because Alberta produces oil.

 

What is so noticeable about BMW drivers?

 

Likely.

https://insurify.com/insights/car-mo...udest-drivers/

 

I thought this was something you had noticed. Didn't know there these sites exist.