GOOD & BAD: FSD 12.5.1 First Drive 

I have now done 1106 miles on FSD 12.5.1. There are minor issues but why quibble about them.. It is almost perfect as it is. Can not imagine owning another car that does not have this feature!

As I stated in your last video the reason why the car leaves a bigger gap between you and the car in front of you is because it wants to go s constant speed for a smoother ride if it got close to the car it would have to slow and that would be a uncomfortable ride

I’m confused. After the UPL, you said the car should be going faster. It was going precisely the same speed as the cars in front of you. Why would you want it to ”catch up?” That would put you in a higher risk situation for no benefit. Relax a bit and let the car drive you around safely. 👍🏻

I like your drives with FSD. It gives me a better understanding of improvement from the previous version. I try to keep track of different scenarios, most interesting things are not been tested by early testers yet. My opinion of FSD 12.5.1 shows readiness, on a scale from 1 to 10: 1 - Not working, 3 - Working, not useful, 5 - Good, 9 - Like human, 10 - Better than human. 7 - Highway: Performs well, but not perfect(FSD11). 5 - Exit from Highway: Adequate, but requires more refinement, miss exist or change lane too late(FSD11). 7 - Change Lane: Generally effective, but occasional issues. 8 - Intersection: Handles most scenarios smoothly. 8 - Roundabouts: Navigate effectively, though not flawlessly. 4 - Parking Lots: Functional but can struggle with complexity. 3 - Parking on the Street: Needs better spot finding to avoid blocking traffic. 6 - Reverse Parking: Decent, but not consistently reliable. 2 - Gate: Needs significant improvement for reliability. 7 - Signal to Other Cars: Generally good, but improvements are needed. 7 - Left Turn: Handles most left turns well. 4 - Unprotected Turns: Often cautious or hesitant. 5 - Speed Bumps: Recognizes and slows down appropriately. 3 - Constructions on Road: Needs better detection and navigation. 4 - Road Blocks: Struggles to handle unexpected obstacles. 5 - Rain: Performs adequately, but not in heavy rain. 3 - Snow: Limited capability in snowy conditions. 5 - Fog: Manages light fog, and struggles with heavy fog. 4 - Other Cars Breaking Rules: Handles some scenarios, but not all. 7 - Pedestrians: Good at detecting and reacting. 5 - Other Road Vehicles: Adequate, but can be improved. 6 - Traffic Lights: Generally accurate, occasional misreads. 7 - Driving Smoothness: Mostly smooth, with minor jerkiness at times. 2 - Potholes or debris on road: I don't see any lower speed or avoid 6 - Speed Limits: Adheres well, but sometimes slow to adjust. 3 - Emergency Vehicles: Not recognized can be improved. 5 - Supervision: Nice that no hands on the wheel are required. 1 - Front Parking: Major improvements are needed. 1 - Reverse in Street: Significant challenges remain. 1 - Actual Smart Summon(ASS): 1 - Self-park(Banish): My assessment is, of course, open for discussion, but this is my opinion based on the videos that have been published so far. If there haven't been any new updates, I base this on earlier versions. I assume my opinion may change in the future, but right now, I don't see any area where FSD is as good as or better than a human driver, even though it can sometimes surpass humans in certain scenarios. It would be great if a similar approach were taken to address when Tesla resolves any of these issues. Additionally, it would be beneficial to lower the camera to prevent the view from being blocked by the mirror, similar to Whole Mars Catalog. Thanks

I stop at stop signs I always have for the 75 years that I’ve been driving. It’s one of the easiest ways to save your life that there is.

you still drive your car with the idea that it has to learn how you drive. speeding and other things that you have learned. let that go. You are in a taxi (without a driver) If you were in a car without a steering wheel or pedals you would want it to drive carefully, no unnecessary risks and you arrive safely at your destination. That is what your tesla is learning. it is not a race car taxi. it is a safe relaxed ride taxi!

Still on 12.3.6 Have not gotten any updates past that yet. Thanks for the videos! ❤

Regarding speed. Why is this such a big deal for you? Just choose the correct speed tab on your UI and you can adjust it up and down on your right scroll wheel. It is no big deal. 😮 Don't sit there complaining about it. ADJUST IT!!! You do understand what I am talking about, right? Just walking home and I will take a photo to show you when I am back to my garage.🎉

3:20 It's interesting that so many users want to exceed speed limits. It's strange that it's even legal for self-driving vehicles to do so. Banning rolling stops should be a no-brainer. Traffic rules exist for a reason and should be adhered to. It’s no surprise that accident statistics are much higher in the USA than in Northern Europe. Ignoring traffic rules only demonstrates poor driving skills, forcing other drivers to adapt to your bad driving. Not knowing how to follow rules disqualifies you from being a good driver.

I conclude that Dr KIA is fundamentally a bad driver, and strangely happy with his own driving.

More impatience from the DR.

So green where you are, John! What a lovely part of the world.

Have you had any response to the horizontal gate problem you found amonth or two ago?

John is officially the worse Tesla driver on RU-vid so take his advice with a grain of salt

I think Ego is a backer-inner because it has a camera in back better suited for parking.

I have had 12.5 and 12.5.1 completely blow red lights! I have observed and let FSD do its thing and it blew lights by ~ 2 seconds. I have not had this prior to these version. Overall much smoother but those lights where you are borderline stop/accelerate pay attention!

please keep testing the dead end scenario!

elon has said many times that when FSD is 10X - 100X better than a human, FSD will be "ready" So what is the definition of "10X better?" When I engage FSD I am still driving the Tesla - 1) I have my hands on the wheel 2) I must stare forward 3) I disengage it when FSD does stupid things 4) I am hyper-vigilant since FSD won't let me doze off or fiddle with my iPhone or turn around and talk to the kids So what exactly does "10X safer" mean if I'm still driving the car when FSD is behaving itself and I disengage it when FSD goes nuts? like most things elon "10X better" is something that makes little sense...

V12.5.1 arrived on my car last night. I just finished a short (3 mile) ride. It handled everything well enough except angled parking parking lots, still totally manual for me.

If there could be waypoints where the car didn't insist on stopping, you could manually create the routes you wanted. I do it by setting up intermediate destinations with short names, and override the current destination at intervals. Works, but clumsy.

Don’t complain because if you get a ticket because FSD didn’t come to a full stop at a stop sign, you and everyone else would be mad as hell and blame Tesla. If the police know that Tesla EVs never come to a complete stop, any time they need to raise more money, they will target every Tesla EV they see - low hanging fruit! We have to wait until FSD has police awareness and traffic camera awareness and can switch to NHTSA Mode and then exits NHTSA mode when it is all clear.

12.3.6 offers choice of 3 different routes while in zoomed out map view. That may prove your preferred route.

So you chose a parking spot right next to a car in an otherwise empty parking lot and then don't like that it parked too close to the only other car in the lot? Dude.

I've never had a problem with my transition lenses getting too dark for FSD. I am going to test to see if my aviator clip-ons are better than my polarized clip-ons for driving. I haven't tried either yet.

Thanks for these videos, appreciate the information you share! Just wanted to check if the model 3 in this video running 12.5.1 has hardware 3 or hardware 4?

At 9:00 you mentioned the car rolled through the stop. There was no stop sign there. Could that be why the car rolled through?

Regarding parking. I do NOT like going head in. If I had a front camera it would allow me better guidence for head in which I never get like I want it. The autopark rear in approach is much better.😊

Hi John, if FSD is to work, it has to follow the rules. I'm sure Tesla's insurance will want to pay the ticket for speeding, rolling at a stop sign, or other violations of the rules. It will reduce tailgating and constant speed changes in moving traffic by driving with foresight, and save energy in the process. Apparently, Americans tend not to follow traffic rules and are not well-trained in driving. I would bet that in Germany, if they drove the same way, the number of accidents and traffic fatalities would skyrocket. If FSD were to become generally accepted, you would get to your destination faster, safer, and more comfortably.

speed is the main issue ive seen with the new update.. i keep having to use the accelerator to avoid upsetting the other drivers

Time for an AI driven smart navigation John. Just like AI that understands images and it solve a maize in the most efficient way.

Why should anyone park with the front first? Besides needing to put something in the trunk? I always park backwards, it’s much easier than leaving backwards. When you have to go, you can drive right away into the direction you need to go. Less risk for a crash while driving backwards. And so on 😅

That's not a true statement. Plenty of people where I live at stop for the stop signs. Only foolish people roll stop sign. And those are the idiots that can't figure out what I don't know how it got in a crash. I don't care about their life or anybody else's

Hi doctor I am having trouble setting my speed Fsd goes as fast as it wants v26.10 model 3 2024

I'm not sure I'd consider any last 50' to be a fail at this time.

❤ yeah. So. All cities has a Chuck-situation. Would you? Love to use it? I think FSD team does it wrong, for this instance. It does not need to go to the mean.

Bottom line. Not Robotaxi ready. I have a refreshed M3 with HW4 but no FSD. When should I subscribe to FSD? 🙂

I think the car backs into parking spaces because, later, when it pulls out it has better visibility. Just like a human. Cross traffic can be seen better when pulling forward out of parking spaces. I think the time the car did a rolling stop out of Dollar General is because there wasn’t a stop sign there.

I wear transitions lenses. 12.5.1 is constantly changing back and forth from tracking my eyes to having me put my hands on the wheel because I turned into the sun or away from it. Drives me nuts. The only solution is to wear my glasses on my nose like Chuck Schumer does, which looks stupid, makes my nose itch and annoys me no end.

When you are in a cab and the driver drive too slowly for you do you hit the gas pedal ? No … so why don’t you let FSD go his speed to prevent you to get in an accident !

29:14 What is that on the right??!! Looks like a ghost, did FSD detect ephemeral humanoid robot, doc?

My Model Y with 12.5.1 doesn't like my Neanderthal-esk facial features and always thinks I'm not paying attention. I have to widen my eyes to make it happy but then that makes my eyes water. But if I put on glasses it thinks I'm smart and it leaves me alone. Make it make sense. ha ha.

I disagree with you on the topic of rolling the stop signs and (mostly) on exceeding the posted limit. I'm one of those crazy people who have always tried to come to a complete stop (for a split second) at stop signs, and believes speed limits are generally chosen for valid reasons. If we have reached a condition in which the traffic authorities know the safe speed is 55 mph, but they have to set the limit at 45 because they know EVERYONE drives faster, that's crazy. If rolling most intersections is safe, then a stop sign shouldn't be there (perhaps a yield or caution sign instead.) The Europeans think we are nuts to require "full stops" everywhere. For them, a STOP sign is serious and really means it. I learned in driver's ed many years ago that the requirement to come to a full stop is because a policeman can't tell the difference between 1mph and 3mph reliably, but can tell the difference between a tire that has stopped and one that is still turning. If it's a law that needs enforcing, then that makes it practical to do so. I would prefer stop signs only where they are truly the only way to make the intersection safe. The ideal setup would be that the regulations actually make sense and then that they are universally and consistently enforced. I live in Oklahoma and drive in Texas, Kansas, and Colorado enough to know what those states are like. And I've driven all over the country. I've never had anybody object to my stop sign behavior, or honk at me for it. Speed limits in town are chosen to keep kids, pets, and other "vulnerable road users" alive and uninjured. I obey them. On divided highways, I admit I do speed, but just enough to keep up with most people and not force too many to move left to pass me. I still drive an older gas car and therefore only have simple cruise control. If I set it to be among the faster cars on the road, I would spend more time than I like disengaging, re-engaging, and changing lanes back and forth to pass nearly everyone else. Instead, I like to chill out while going about 3 mph over the limit, traveling about the same speed as 50% of the other cars, passing 10% of the slowpokes, and letting the other 40% pass me. About 10% of those are speed-crazed drivers who go by at 90 or more when the limit is 75. They are just the worst ones; I and more than half of my fellows are also breaking the law, knowingly and on purpose. We are becoming a nation that doesn't respect any laws. We think they ARE necessary to control others, but not ME. I believe this starts with laxness on "little things" like traffic regulations. I hate living in a country full of scofflaws. The wealthy and powerful ignore the laws, and I think a lot of the rest of us envy them and want our own little piece of the action. So many of us knowingly do "wrong" things. The laws are still in effect and can be used against us, but probably won't be unless the authorities have other reasons to dislike us. We know not to step out of line; if we do, we may have reason to fear the govt. Not a healthy nation. I don't know how we move forward to a culture that respects the law because it protects the majority and is right, but a good start would be each of us obeying the traffic laws and complaining forcefully to lawmakers when these laws should be different. Also, I hope if there are enough self driving cars on the road that do obey the laws, people may follow suit and begin to change too.

Not a fan of automatically exceeding the speed limit to match traffic. OK if human overrides, because now it is the human who would have earned the ticket.

General public ❤ should not be the drive

I want it to go slower I am on 11.6 it drives way to fast. But if they put in a fast mode, its ok with me, use it if you want tickets . But if you use fast mode and you kill someone it should be on the driver not tesla

I believe the system needs to incorporate local knowledge to control speed and lane choices. Attention Tesla: A nightmare FSD test would be on PCH from Manhattan Beach to Torrance in either direction.

I mean you hit the throttle to make it go so why wouldn't you hit the throttle it's like telling a horse to go it kicks in and starts going

Did anyone notice with 12.5.1 (or even earlier versions) that while driving on highways it keeps on driving on passing lane and not moving unless a car is coming behind? Can anyone suggest to set FSD so that it can change lanes? Or is this problem with FSD?

Turning it on inside the carwash is not an edge case . Nobody with a brain in their head would do that. Besides that doesn't your car have a car wash mode that you're supposed to be in going through the wash .

I totally disagree with your statement about getting into the left lane I think it got overrated the perfect time considering there was no traffic around and itI totally disagree with your statement about getting into the left lane I think it got overrated the perfect time because left lane is for passing use it and get out of it

Corrective action mysteriously popped up for me when in FSD and no actual problem. Without FSD this might have been a phantom brake. It thinks something bad is imminent, but nothing is even remotely an actual problem. When in FSD the corrective action it tried to take was a quick left lane change. I stopped it, but it's unnerving when it makes an instant and unpredictable decision.

Che veicolo pottente

I am moving to Bangkok, Thailand. Traffic there is insane. When FSD can safely drive there I will buy a Tesla. Would be very interested if anyone has experience there with 12.5. . Thanks.

Too fast methinks.