My 5,617-Mile FSD Test
Of the last 5,617 miles I've "driven," my hands were only on the wheel for 435. I really didn’t expect to be a Full Self-Driving convert, but after some experimentation with my 2026 Tesla Model Y, it’s rare that I find myself manning the controls. It’s a more relaxing experience and the data indicates a vehicle with FSD active is 7x less likely to be involved in a major crash. After 5,000+ miles on FSD, here are some of my big takeaways.
The car has eight cameras distributed around the vehicle. I only have two eyes in the driver seat. I can’t compete. However, the vision system is only comprised of cameras, so you must be aware if something is obscuring their view (currently, FSD must be supervised).
The computer can pay attention to all eight cameras simultaneously. I have to look at something, attend to it, look at something else, attend to that, etc. I find this especially comforting when I’m surrounded by peds, and there are many videos of Tesla’s refusing to accelerate when a light turns green because someone is about to blow through a red light.
My reaction time sucks compared to the computer’s.
I don’t worry about rear-ending a similarly paced lead vehicle anymore. The system consistently knows the closing speed and isn’t heavily relying on brake lights, like I am.
FSD is never tired, distracted, frustrated, or in a rush. It functions without emotion.
It moves over to make space for lane-splitting motorcycles and identifies them before I do. Very cool.
It handles cutoffs shockingly well. The system doesn’t jam on the brakes like a novice if someone in an adjacent lane wanders over. If there’s space, it’ll move over to give the wanderer a cushion and if not, gently apply the brakes.
My driving radius has expanded. I’d rather do a 7-hour drive on FSD than subject myself to flying, which requires packing tight, airports, security, cramped seats, and someone coughing on my neck.
As of now, FSD still behaves like a scared 16 y/o in parking lots. Jerky, unconfident, and slow.
It doesn’t drive as aggressively as me, so tire wear and efficiency are both improved.
Based on what I’ve seen, unsupervised full self-driving will be making its way to the gen-pop before long, and I’m down for it. Just don’t take away my steering wheel. I still like to carve it up once in a while.
Thanks for reading, keep exploring!
Lou Peck
Lightpoint | JS Forensics
P.S. Why you lying?