The spot needs to be near other vehicles, as the car uses its sonar sensors to look for the space – it can’t see the painted lines. Drive at low speeds along parking spots, waiting for the screen to indicate that it sees a parking spot. Autopilot will verify (or wait) for that lane to clear, then move the car over on its own.Īutopark will park the Tesla autonomously – hands off, for real. Initiate the lane change with the turn signal, indicating the desired lane. It cannot currently handle turns at intersections, and Tesla requires the driver to keep their hands on the wheel for the ability to make fast corrections as needed.Īuto Lane Change will automatically make a lane change. While many other automakers use reactive “lane keep assist” systems that will bounce the car off of lane lines, Tesla actually steers proactively to handle relatively significant curves in the road. The car will then provide steering input necessary to keep a Tesla centered in its lane. Unlike many other automaker’s adaptive cruise control systems, Traffic Aware Cruise Control will bring Tesla all the way down to a stop and back up to speed again with no driver input required.Īutosteer uses the Tesla’s cameras to track lane lines. Traffic Aware Cruise Control uses the Tesla’s radar to lock-on to the vehicle in front of it and match its speed. Over the years, Tesla has sold four different Autopilot software packages that bundle these features together in different ways. Each feature has a specific task, such as maintaining speed, steering, or parking. In short, Autopilot is really just a catch-all term that refers to Tesla’s entire suite of semi-autonomous driving features. For a quick refresher, check out our comprehensive overview of Tesla's Autopilot Hardware. It’s easier to understand the software once you know about the hardware that makes it all work.

With four different hardware versions and four different software packages released over the years, it’s tough to keep track of what was available when, and what each system can do. It’s also one of the most confusing features from Tesla. It has tons of features, is constantly being improved upon, and is the single biggest option most consider when considering a Tesla. It might not be robotaxi-ready yet, but Autopilot is already one of the leading semi-autonomous driving software suites available today. Guest post: Blane Erwin, Current Automotive Understanding Tesla's different Autopilot software packages

Autopilot with convenience features